On the second day of the high-profile murder trial against Karen Read, her defense attorney raised questions about the investigation when a police officer took the stand.
Read is charged with second-degree murder in the 2022 death of her boyfriend, Boston Police Officer John O'Keefe. He was found in the snow outside fellow Boston Police Officer Brian Albert's home in Canton, Massachusetts. Prosecutors say Read hit O'Keefe with her SUV, while Read says she has been framed in a wide-ranging coverup.
Steven Saraf, the first officer from the Canton Police Department to arrive on the scene after O'Keefe was found, was called by the prosecution Monday. Tuesday began with cross-examination from defense attorney Alan Jackson.
Watch Day 2 testimony
Get Boston local news, weather forecasts, lifestyle and entertainment stories to your inbox. Sign up for NBC Boston’s newsletters.
Read's team has questioned why investigators did not go into the home or talk to the homeowners after O'Keefe was found. Saraf defended this Tuesday.
"Do you think that would have been appropriate protocol, when dealing with a body laying on a lawn, that is partially unclothed, to look inside the house of the lawn?" Jackson asked Saraf.
"No," he replied.
"You didn't think that would have been appropriate protocol?" the defense attorney asked.
"No," Saraf said again.
"For you or anybody else?" Jackson continued.
"No," the officer repeated.
Speaking with NBC10 Boston Tuesday evening, security analyst Todd McGhee, a retired Massachusetts State Police trooper, called the police investigation described in Saraf's testimony into question.
"As a law enforcement investigator, the first thing you're looking for are facts. Facts lead to evidence, evidence can be gleaned from eyewitness accounts, from the Ring doorbells, anything that can help you stitch this mystery back together again," he said. "And the fact that the investigation wasn't thorough provides a big wrinkle in the prosecution's case."
Watch the Karen Read trial live on nbcboston.com, NECN, NBC Boston streaming platforms (including Roku, Peacock and Samsung TV) and NBC10 Boston's YouTube page. Every night of the trial at 7 p.m., come back for analysis and more.
He elaborated that it does not make sense for investigators not to pursue evidence from the house or accounts from those inside.
"It does not ring true, because if I can find one person to help me spell out the story, to help bring some clarification, anything — was there another vehicle close by? Was there another eyewitness, as a neighbor, that I might be able to go and speak to?" McGhee said.
The defense also showed Saraf a video, which he acknowledged showed a person walking from the area where O'Keefe was found toward the house.
"There was a person walking from the area where a body was found in the lawn of a house, walking into the house to make contact with other individuals, correct?" Jackson asked Saraf.
"It appeared that way, yes, sir," he replied.
"Does that seem appropriate to you?" Jackson asked.
"No," said Saraf.
Saraf also acknowledged a discrepancy between what was in his initial written report and his claim months later that Read said "This is my fault, I can't believe this happened."
"Nowhere in your official report did you say that," Jackson said. "And nowhere in your interview with Trooper Proctor the next day did you say that."
Saraf said this was correct.
"You think that was a pretty important omission on your part?" Jackson asked.
"It was an oversight," the officer answered.
"An oversight that a woman who you made contact with, standing over the body of a fallen police officer, said to you, 'This is my fault?' You just missed that one?" Jackson asked.
"Yes, I missed it, yeah. I didn't write it down," Saraf said.
Lally asked Saraf if his testimony to the grand jury and at trial about what Read said is accurate by his memory, to which the officer replied, "Yes."
Court adjourned just before 1 p.m. and court will not be in session on Wednesday. Thursday will be a half day.
The trial is expected to last six to eight weeks.
Sign up for our Breaking newsletter to get the most urgent news stories in your inbox.
