Latest news with #Turtleboy
Fox News
23-06-2025
- Fox News
Special prosecutor warns Karen Read supporters' behavior is 'antithesis of justice'
Special prosecutor Hank Brennan broke his silence on the Karen Read case Monday, warning that the behavior of her most vocal supporters threatens the American legal system as it is known. "The campaign of intimidation and abuse that has been waged, funded, and promoted in public and on social media is the antithesis of justice. If this type of conduct becomes commonplace, it will threaten the integrity of our judicial system, affecting both victims and criminally accused," he said in a statement. "We cannot condone witness abuse causing participants to worry for their own safety or that of their families." One of Read's chief cheerleaders, Aidan Kearney, a Canton blogger known as Turtleboy, is facing charges of witness intimidation in connection with the case. "It is my hope that with the verdict, the witnesses and their families will be left alone," Brennan said. "The harassment of these innocent victims and family members is deplorable and should never happen again in a case in this commonwealth." Jurors found Read not guilty of all homicide-related charges last week in her second trial over the death of John O'Keefe, a Boston police officer and her former boyfriend whom prosecutors alleged she fatally struck with her 2021 Lexus LX 570 SUV before fleeing the scene. Despite the outcome, there are signs that her supporters still have their focus on witnesses in the case – one of whom is slated to get married over the weekend. After a "Free Karen Read" X account posted information about the wedding, her registry site went offline. Prosecutors had accused Read of backing into O'Keefe with her Lexus SUV and leaving him to die with a fractured skull during a blizzard on Jan. 29, 2022. Her defense denied a collision ever happened. Jurors agreed and found her guilty only of drunken driving. "I am disappointed in the verdict and the fact that we could not achieve justice for John O'Keefe and his family," Brennan said. GET REAL-TIME UPDATES DIRECTLY ON THE TRUE CRIME HUB He joined the case last year to assist the Norfolk District Attorney's Office after Read's first trial ended with a deadlocked jury. He said District Attorney Michael Morrissey gave him full discretion to reinterpret the evidence, and Brennan sought the same charges, including second-degree murder. SIGN UP TO GET TRUE CRIME NEWSLETTER "After an independent and thorough review of all the evidence, I concluded that the evidence led to one person, and only one person," Brennan said. "Neither the closed federal investigation nor my independent review led me to identify any other possible suspect or person responsible for the death of John O'Keefe." Morrissey's office has not responded to a request for comment from Fox News Digital regarding the trial's outcome. Read's parents, however, have maintained her innocence throughout more than three years of her legal ordeal. Her father, William Read, an outspoken voice on the courthouse steps during and after her second trial, has thanked supporters who lined the streets outside her trial as well as internet "content providers" who took her side online. "I want to acknowledge the greatest team of attorneys," he told a crowd after her acquittal on the most serious charges. "Our first one that we found was David Yannetti. We added Alan Jackson and Liza Little. Bob Alessi you know about, all right. It was a fantastic team, but we needed them all to defeat this." In a new interview with NBC's Boston affiliate, he put on a Lexus golf shirt and said his daughter would have told him if she had killed O'Keefe. "We know Karen as our daughter. Had she done something and struck John O'Keefe, we would have been the first to be notified," he told the station. "She would have said, 'Mom and dad, I will take my medicine,' and it was quite the opposite." As for her mother, Janet Read, she thanked her daughter's supporters and said she intended to pay it forward. William Read, like his daughter's defense attorneys, is urging her supporters to go out and vote. O'Keefe's family has not responded to requests for comment.
CBS News
06-06-2025
- CBS News
Watch Live: Karen Read trial continues with full day of testimony from defense witnesses
The Karen Read trial is back in a Massachusetts courtroom today for a full day of testimony from defense witnesses. You can watch live coverage of the trial on the CBS News Boston livestream or in the video player above. There was no court on Thursday, partly because of hot weather. The air conditioning and fans inside Norfolk Superior Court in Dedham are noisy and can make it hard for jurors to hear what's being said. Judge Beverly Cannone said that after 27 days of testimony, both sides agree that the case is proceeding ahead of schedule. Karen Read trial latest The last witness to testify for the defense on Wednesday was Karina Kolokithas, who was at the Waterfall Bar & Grille with Read and John O'Keefe, hours before O'Keefe's death. Read is accused of hitting her Boston police officer boyfriend with her SUV and leaving him to die in the snow in Canton after a night of heavy drinking in January 2022. Before Kolokithas took the stand, snowplow driver Brian "Lucky" Loughran testified that he never saw a body on the front lawn of 34 Fairview Road, the home formerly owned by Brian Albert, even though he made two passes by the address. During cross-examination, special prosecutor Hank Brennan asked Loughran if he was threatened by blogger Aidan Kearney, who writes under the name "Turtleboy." Loughran said he was not. Earlier in the week, Read's attorneys called for a mistrial during contentious cross-examination of Dr. Marie Russell, who testified that O'Keefe was attacked by a dog. The judge quickly rejected the request. How long will the Karen Read trial last? It's not clear how many witnesses the defense has left to call because a gag order prohibits lawyers from talking to the press. But Read said she expects the defense to rest on "Tuesday, give or take." Read's first trial ended in a mistrial due to a "starkly divided" hung jury. She has pleaded not guilty to charges of second-degree murder, manslaughter while operating under the influence of alcohol and leaving the scene of personal injury and death. Read's defense claims she is the victim of a coverup involving law enforcement and several others.
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Yahoo
Mass. school shelters in place while police search for person after traffic stop
Malden police are searching for a person who ran from their car following a traffic stop has prompted a nearby school to shelter in place as a precaution, the Malden Police Department said Wednesday. A person driving in the area of Mountain Avenue failed to stop for an officer and ran away from their car, police said in a statement. 'A perimeter has been established as officers work to locate the individual,' police said, and that the area would see a heavy police presence and a helicopter looking for the person. Nearby, the Early Learning Center implemented its shelter-in-place protocol as a precaution, police said. Officers will be on-scene to 'ensure a safe and orderly dismissal process.' There's currently no threat to the public, police said. How to watch `All Access PD: Grand Rapids' new episode tonight Person dies after daytime shooting in Roxbury Leominster man admits to trying to stab flight attendant in the neck with a spoon 'Turtleboy' blogger indicted on 2 charges linked to pizza shop incident Worcester judge sets trial date for woman detained by ICE on separate charge Read the original article on MassLive.
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Yahoo
Person dies after seriously hurt in daytime shooting in Boston neighborhood
A person shot and hospitalized following a shooting in Roxbury on Tuesday has died, Boston police confirmed. At around 2:54 p.m., officers assigned in Roxbury were notified of a person who was shot in the area of 107 Munroe St., police said in a statement. The area where the shooting happened extends to Horatio Harris Park, Boston 25 News reported. The person had life-threatening injuries and was taken to a local hospital for treatment, police said. Police called for homicide detectives as part of the investigation into the shooting. There have been no arrests while the shooting continues to be under investigation, police said. Leominster man admits to trying to stab flight attendant in the neck with a spoon 'Turtleboy' blogger indicted on 2 charges linked to pizza shop incident Worcester judge sets trial date for woman detained by ICE on separate charge No arrests made after person was shot, seriously hurt in Roxbury Lowell man sentenced for trafficking over 11K fake Adderall pills containing meth Read the original article on MassLive.
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Yahoo
'I'm taking over this plane': Mass. man pleads guilty to trying to stab flight staff with spoon
A Leominster man admitted to trying to stab a flight attendant and attempting to open an emergency exit door on a flight from Los Angeles to Boston, United States Attorney Leah Foley's office said. Francisco Severo Torres, 34, pleaded guilty to one count of interference and attempted interference with flight crew members and attendants using a dangerous weapon. Torres' sentencing was scheduled for July 17. After his arrest in March 2023, he was indicted in September 2023. Torres was about a United Airlines flight from Los Angeles to Boston on March 5, 2023, Foley's office said in a statement. With 45 minutes left of the flight, the plane's flight crew received an alarm from the cockpit that an emergency exit door between first class and coach was unlocked. A flight attendant found that the door's locking handle was out of position and the emergency slide arming lever had been moved to the 'disarmed' position, Foley's office said. The attendant reported this to the captain. Passengers later told investigators that Torres asked another passenger where on the safety card it showed where the door handle was located during the flight attendants' safety briefing before takeoff, Foley's office said. He was seen pacing in a galley. Not long after the door was found unlocked, Torres left his seat and approached two flight attendants in the aisle, the statement read. An attendant saw but could not hear Torres saying something. Video taken by a passenger showed Torres yelling that he would 'kill every man on this plane' and 'I'm taking over this plane.' Torres then moved forward with a stabbing motion at one of the flight attendants, thrusting a broken metal spoon, Foley's office said. He struck her three times in the neck before passengers tackled and restrained him with the help of the flight crew. Torres was arrested after the plane landed at Logan International Airport, Foley's office said. The charge of interference and attempted interference with flight crew members and attendants using a dangerous weapon provides for a sentence of up to life in prison, up to five years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. Person dies after daytime shooting in Roxbury 'Turtleboy' blogger indicted on 2 charges linked to pizza shop incident Worcester judge sets trial date for woman detained by ICE on separate charge No arrests made after person was shot, seriously hurt in Roxbury Lowell man sentenced for trafficking over 11K fake Adderall pills containing meth Read the original article on MassLive.
