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Date for opening statements set in Karen Read murder trial as court tries to finalize jury pool

By Ted Daniel, Boston 25 News and Boston25News.com Staff
By Ted Daniel, Boston 25 News and Boston25News.com Staff

DEDHAM, Mass. — The date for opening statements is set to happen in one week in the Karen Read murder trial as the court continues trying to finalize the jury pool.

19 jurors have been chosen in the Read case but they want to keep selecting on Wednesday. According to the clerk, they “think they may have problems” with some of the people selected over the last 4 days.

Initially, 16 jurors were wanted for the trial but late Monday afternoon Boston 25 Investigative Reporter Ted Daniel learned the court is now seeking 20 jurors.

Prosecutors propose alternative to moving jury box in Karen Read murder trial, new filing shows

Follow Ted Daniel’s live updates from the courtroom:

Karen Read murder trial: List of questions prospective jurors are being asked

Read, 44, of Mansfield, is accused of running down John O’Keefe, her Boston police officer boyfriend, and leaving him to die in a blizzard outside the home of another police officer in the town of Canton on Jan. 29, 2022.

Read has pleaded not guilty to charges of second-degree murder, motor vehicle manslaughter, and leaving the scene of a collision in connection with O’Keefe’s death.

Read’s lawyers claim she is being framed in a massive cover-up, and that feds have been investigating the probe into O’Keefe’s death.

Karen Read murder trial: A guide to the key players you need to know

A buffer zone that includes metal barricades and orange traffic drums has been set up for Read’s trial and no one is allowed to demonstrate with signs within 200 feet of the courthouse.

Read’s lawyers want to change the layout of the courtroom where her murder trial is taking place, court records show.

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Karen Read’s lawyers want jury box moved

The defense, comprised of David Yannetti and Alan Jackson, has asked Norfolk Superior Court Judge Beverly Cannone to move the location of the jury box so jurors can clearly see the faces of witnesses when testimony begins, according to filings obtained by Boston 25 News.

Yannetti and Jackson argue in the filings that the current setup of the court “violates her [Karen Read] constitutional right to confrontation because numerous members of the jury will be unable to observe the faces of the witnesses who testify against her.”

Cannone has not yet issued a ruling on that request.

The trial is expected to last between 6 and 7 weeks.

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Fatal hit-and-run: Karen Read, 41, of Mansfield, Mass., is charged with manslaughter in the Saturday, Jan. 29, 2022, death of Boston police Officer John O’Keefe. O'Keefe, 46, was off duty at the time of his death. (Boston 25 News, Boston Police Department)

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