Karen Read's next murder trial is set to begin in January.
Read, members of her defense team and prosecutors were in court Monday to consider the next steps in the case over the death of Read's boyfriend, Boston Police Officer John O'Keefe.
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The brief hearing in Norfolk Superior Court was Read's first court date since Judge Beverly Cannone declared a mistrial earlier this month, bringing the first trial to a dramatic close.
The retrial was tentatively set for Jan. 27, two days before the third anniversary of O'Keefe's death.
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O'Keefe was found unresponsive in the snow outside the Canton home of another Boston police officer. An autopsy found the 16-year BPD veteran died of hypothermia and blunt-force trauma.
Read, a former adjunct professor at Bentley College, had been out drinking with O'Keefe and others the night before, and prosecutors claim she fatally struck her boyfriend with her SUV before driving off. While she was charged with second-degree murder, manslaughter and leaving a scene of personal injury and death, her team contends O'Keefe was killed inside the home after Read dropped him off and that those involved chose to frame her because she was a "convenient outsider."
A new jury will be chosen to weigh the charges, though Read's team has argued that the charges of murder and leaving the scene should be dismissed, based on what her lawyers say they've heard from jurors.
Also Wednesday, Cannone also set a hearing for Aug. 9 when she will hear arguments on that motion. Cannone noted that she expects whatever decision she makes at the Aug. 9 hearing to be appealed — one indicator of how fraught the case has been. It has attracted international attention — a Netflix special is already in the works over the allegations.
Read's two-month trial ended with jurors hopelessly deadlocked. Cannone declared the mistrial on the fifth day of deliberations.
In the weeks since, Read's defense team has claimed that five jurors have come forward — three directly to them — and confirmed the jury was only unable to agree on the manslaughter charge.
Prosecutors have asked the court to deny that request. Legal experts have said there's a real chance prosecutors could be barred from retrying Read for murder.
While the names of jurors are usually released after trials in Massachusetts end, who served on the first Karen Read trial jury remains a mystery. Cannone ordered the names of the jurors not be released indefinitely after one of the jurors filed a motion saying they feared for their own and their family's safety if the names are made public. The order does not preclude a juror from coming forward and identifying themselves, but so far none have done so.
More on the Karen Read murder trial
The "frightened" juror's portrait of serving on the jury suggested that the body was aware of the intense interest in the case — they could hear protesting as they deliberated the verdict despite Cannone's order that protesters be kept 200 feet from the courthouse, and had to be bused to a secret location to maintain their anonymity.
Much of the outrage on the case centered around the vulgar, insulting things the case's lead investigator, Trooper Michael Proctor, admitted he said about Read as his investigation unfolded. He was later suspended without pay.
But many of Read's most passionate supporters were convinced she was innocent by blogger Aiden "Turtleboy" Kearney, who was arrested before the trial for allegedly intimidating witnesses in the case. He's denied those allegations.
Outside the hearing Monday was a large group of Karen Read's supporters, more than a dozen people who said they support her.
"We have no quit, we are not stopping," said Mike Brooks, who drove down from New Hampshire.
Read herself didn't say much outside of court.
Also outside were more than a dozen people who said they support O'Keefe himself.
"He was a good neighbor, he took care of his niece and nephew, and he stepped up to the plate. He had a heart of gold and he didn't deserve what he got," said a person who identified themselves as a former neighbor.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
