Defense in Karen Read case accuses special prosecutor of misleading jury about damaged hoodie evidence
Karen Read defense attorney Robert Alessi moved for a mistrial again Monday over special prosecutor Hank Brennan's handling of John O'Keefe's hoodie during cross-examination of a defense expert witness.
"Your honor, the defense moves for a mistrial with prejudice Based upon intentional misconduct that just occurred before the court and before the jury," Alessi said.
He said the motion came in response to representations Brennan made while questioning Dr. Daniel Wolfe, a crash reconstructionist from a firm called ARCCA.
Brennan, while cross-examining Wolfe about damage to O'Keefe's hoodie, showed him the actual piece of clothing, which had a series of holes in the back.
Jury Skepticism Of Experts Could Determine Outcome In Karen Read Murder Trial: Former Judge
Alessi contended that the holes were created by a criminologist during lab testing and that they did not exist when police took the sweatshirt.
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Read is accused of killing her boyfriend O'Keefe, a Boston police officer, by clipping him with her 2021 Lexus LX 570 SUV on Jan. 29, 2022, and leaving him to die on the ground in a record-setting blizzard.
Before jurors arrived, Judge Beverly Cannone heard motions regarding rebuttal testimony and to preclude or limit expert witnesses.
WATCH: Karen Read defense moves for a mistrial again
She said she would hold an additional evidentiary hearing to determine what Dr. Elizabeth Laposata, a Rhode Island forensic pathologist and professor at Brown University, can testify in front of jurors.
David Yannetti, one of Read's defense lawyers, told the court that her legal team believes O'Keefe was "placed" on the ground near a flagpole outside 34 Fairview Road in Canton, Massachusetts. Laposata is expected to discuss O'Keefe's injuries and how and where he could have suffered them.
The home is about 20 miles south of Boston. Read, O'Keefe and others went there for an after-party on Jan. 28, 2022.
Dr. Daniel Wolfe, the reconstructionist from a firm called ARCCA, testified last week that damage to Read's SUV is inconsistent with the type of impact that prosecutors allege left O'Keefe dead early the following morning.
'Cannon' Test Boosts Karen Read's Defense, Showing Taillight Damage Consistent With Thrown Bar Glass
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But on cross-examination, he conceded that flying fragments of a taillight could have been the source of injuries to O'Keefe's face and nose before he suffered a fractured skull from what prosecution experts testified was a backward fall.
Read has pleaded not guilty to charges of second-degree murder, drunken driving manslaughter and leaving the scene.
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Her defense maintains that her vehicle never struck O'Keefe and that his injuries were caused in some other manner after she left.
Read could face life in prison if convicted of the top charge. Jurors deadlocked at her first trial last year on the same charges.Original article source: Defense in Karen Read case accuses special prosecutor of misleading jury about damaged hoodie evidence
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Special prosecutor grills Karen Read's final witness, turning up the heat on his credibility
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Karen Read judge cuts off witness who sends 'happy birthday' wish to 10-year-old from stand
The judge overseeing Karen Read's retrial on murder charges in the death of Boston cop John O'Keefe cut off the defense's final witness Wednesday morning after he told jurors he had three children and wished his 10-year-old a happy birthday. "So I was going to say I have three kids, a 9-year-old who's actually turning 10 today – happy birthday Kai – and I have two older ones," said Dr. Andrew John Rentschler, a biomechanical engineer and accident reconstructionist from a firm called ARCCA. "All right, I'm going to, we're going to stop this – [use] another example," said Judge Beverly Cannone after an objection from special prosecutor Hank Brennan. Brennan has repeatedly tried to have Rentschler's testimony blocked or limited. The ARCCA scientists dispute the state's version of events – and have also been accused of destroying text messages with the defense they were ordered to give to prosecutors as well as slow-walking discovery disclosures. Final Defense Witness In Karen Read Trial Pumps Brakes On Lexus Collision Theory Read is accused of mowing down O'Keefe after a night of drinking and leaving him to die as she went to his house and left him raging voicemails as his niece and nephew slept in the home. He had taken them in after they were orphaned when his sister and brother-in-law died within months of one another. Read On The Fox News App "Was it appropriate? I think it's his personality," said David Gelman, a Philadelphia-area defense attorney and former prosecutor who is following the trial. "It may have missed the mark, but it's a breath of fresh air since experts are usually boring." Grace Edwards, a Massachusetts trial lawyer who is also following the case, said the judge likely cut Rentschler off because narrative answers can distract from the facts of the case. Karen Read Reveals She Will Not Testify In Her Own Defense "The story can lead to a long answer that could be potentially off-topic or the jury could take from it something else that was not intended, like 'Happy Birthday,' and only remember that part," she told Fox News Digital. "The judge wanted the witness refocused to specific questions with focused answers rather than potentially rambling about his three kids." Follow The Fox True Crime Team On X Rentschler insisted that "details matter" repeatedly as he explained the basics of the scientific method and took issue with another expert report from the firm Aperture, retained by the prosecution. Aperture labeled the injuries to O'Keefe's arm "lacerations," he said – a term that he testified contradicts the findings of the official autopsy, which described them as "superficial abrasions." GET REAL-TIME UPDATES DIRECTLY ON THE True Crime Hub "The superficial abrasions and abrasions occur when there's rubbing or scraping of the skin, and it just rubs away the top layer, the epidermis of the skin," he testified. "Now, a laceration is an actual jagged, ripping or tearing of the skin which gets down through the epidermis into the dermis. So abrasions take much less force. They're less severe than what a laceration actually is." Sign Up To Get The True Crime Newsletter Based on his testing, he said that he ruled out an impact with Read's 2021 Lexus LX 570 SUV and O'Keefe's arm as the cause of those injuries. "They're inconsistent with striking the taillight or being produced as a result of contact with the taillight," he testified. The prosecution claims that these minor injuries came from an impact with Read's broken taillight after she allegedly drove into O'Keefe on Jan. 29, 2022 and left him to die on the ground in the snow. The defense denies a collision and has claimed the injuries came from dog teeth and claws. Aperture's Dr. Judson Welcher testified earlier, based on digital forensics of phone and vehicle data, that Read's SUV reversed at 75% throttle right before O'Keefe's last conscious interaction with his article source: Karen Read judge cuts off witness who sends 'happy birthday' wish to 10-year-old from stand
Fox News
7 hours ago
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Karen Read judge cuts off witness who sends 'happy birthday' wish to 10-year-old from stand
The judge overseeing Karen Read's retrial on murder charges in the death of Boston cop John O'Keefe cut off the defense's final witness Wednesday morning after he told jurors he had three children and wished his 10-year-old a happy birthday."So I was going to say I have three kids, a 9-year-old who's actually turning 10 today – happy birthday Kai – and I have two older ones," said Dr. Andrew John Rentschler, a biomechanical engineer and accident reconstructionist from a firm called ARCCA."All right, I'm going to, we're going to stop this – [use] another example," said Judge Beverly Cannone after an objection from special prosecutor Hank has repeatedly tried to have Rentschler's testimony blocked or limited. The ARCCA scientists dispute the state's version of events – and have also been accused of destroying text messages with the defense they were ordered to give to prosecutors as well as slow-walking discovery DEFENSE WITNESS IN KAREN READ TRIAL PUMPS BRAKES ON LEXUS COLLISION THEORYRead is accused of mowing down O'Keefe after a night of drinking and leaving him to die as she went to his house and left him raging voicemails as his niece and nephew slept in the home. He had taken them in after they were orphaned when his sister and brother-in-law died within months of one another. "Was it appropriate? I think it's his personality," said David Gelman, a Philadelphia-area defense attorney and former prosecutor who is following the trial. "It may have missed the mark, but it's a breath of fresh air since experts are usually boring."Grace Edwards, a Massachusetts trial lawyer who is also following the case, said the judge likely cut Rentschler off because narrative answers can distract from the facts of the READ REVEALS SHE WILL NOT TESTIFY IN HER OWN DEFENSE"The story can lead to a long answer that could be potentially off-topic or the jury could take from it something else that was not intended, like 'Happy Birthday,' and only remember that part," she told Fox News Digital. "The judge wanted the witness refocused to specific questions with focused answers rather than potentially rambling about his three kids."FOLLOW THE FOX TRUE CRIME TEAM ON XRentschler insisted that "details matter" repeatedly as he explained the basics of the scientific method and took issue with another expert report from the firm Aperture, retained by the labeled the injuries to O'Keefe's arm "lacerations," he said – a term that he testified contradicts the findings of the official autopsy, which described them as "superficial abrasions."GET REAL-TIME UPDATES DIRECTLY ON THE TRUE CRIME HUB"The superficial abrasions and abrasions occur when there's rubbing or scraping of the skin, and it just rubs away the top layer, the epidermis of the skin," he testified. "Now, a laceration is an actual jagged, ripping or tearing of the skin which gets down through the epidermis into the dermis. So abrasions take much less force. They're less severe than what a laceration actually is."SIGN UP TO GET THE TRUE CRIME NEWSLETTERBased on his testing, he said that he ruled out an impact with Read's 2021 Lexus LX 570 SUV and O'Keefe's arm as the cause of those injuries."They're inconsistent with striking the taillight or being produced as a result of contact with the taillight," he prosecution claims that these minor injuries came from an impact with Read's broken taillight after she allegedly drove into O'Keefe on Jan. 29, 2022 and left him to die on the ground in the defense denies a collision and has claimed the injuries came from dog teeth and Dr. Judson Welcher testified earlier, based on digital forensics of phone and vehicle data, that Read's SUV reversed at 75% throttle right before O'Keefe's last conscious interaction with his cellphone.
