Jury Fails To Reach Verdict In Karen Read Murder Trial After Defense Claims Of Conspiracy

A mistrial was declared Monday after a jury failed to reach a unanimous verdict in the high-profile trial of a Massachusetts woman accused of backing her SUV into her police officer boyfriend and leaving him for dead in the snow.

Karen Read, 44, had pleaded not guilty to charges of second-degree murder, vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, and leaving the scene of a collision in the Jan. 29, 2022, death of Boston officer John O’Keefe, 46, in Canton.

The jury, which comprised six women and six men, deliberated for more than 23 hours before telling the judge Monday afternoon that they remained “starkly divided” despite their “rigorous efforts” to reach a consensus. Judge Beverly Cannone had ordered them twice over the last week to continue deliberating after they’d said they were deadlocked.

In a note to the judge before a mistrial was declared, the jury foreperson said some jurors believed the case had been proven beyond a reasonable doubt, while others believed prosecutors hadn’t established “necessary elements” of the charges.

“The deep division is not due to a lack of effort or diligence but rather a sincere adherence to our individual principles and moral convictions,” the foreperson said. “To continue to deliberate would be futile and only serve to force us to compromise these deeply held beliefs.”

Prosecutors intend to retry the case, District Attorney Michael W. Morrissey said in a statement shared with HuffPost.

The case had deeply divided residents of Canton, Massachusetts, as well as people who followed proceedings on social media.

Prosecutors argued that O’Keefe died of multiple skull fractures he suffered when Read, who had been drinking heavily and was angry at O’Keefe, struck him with her black