Recap: O'Keefe's mother among witnesses in Karen Read trial Wednesday

After the lawyers returned from the sidebar, Whitley confirmed that he learned while taking Read's medical history that she had multiple sclerosis.

Whitley also confirmed to Yannetti that he didn't know if O'Keefe did have hypothermia: "We were just trying to give her any hope."

The paramedic acknowledged that he told investigators a few weeks after O'Keefe's death that he thought of Read as being snarky. Yannetti also sought to establish that Whitley knew Roberts and lead investigator Michael Proctor from Canton, but didn't know Read — Whitley described her as a patient.

Yannetti asked to speak with Cannone at sidebar during a subsequent line of questioning — afterward, she dismissed the jury.

She told the lawyers, "I would like to move things along a little bit more expeditiously tomorrow," and asked for a copy of the videos Brennan's been showing, so she can review them ahead of time, and Brennan promised to provide a physical copy.

Defense attorney David Yannetti began his side's the cross-examination of Whitley.

He narrowed in on how Whitley takes patients' medical histories — information about medical conditions — before Brennan raised an objection.

Cannone called the lawyers to a sidebar.

Read was taken to the hospital from where O'Keefe's body was found under what's known as a "Section 12," the emergency restraint and hospitalization of someone in psychiatric or emotional distress.

Whitley was one of the paramedics who took Read to the hospital, and he shared his memory of what happened that morning.

"She kept asking if there was any chance her husband could be alive. And even sitting outside, in the snow with no coat on for many hours," Whitley said.

He also described Read being resistant to some of the hospital staff's requests as she was being evaluated.

After further discussion of the technical aspects of cellphone forensics, Guarino was excused from the stand, but with the provision that he might be recalled.

Canton firefighter/paramedic Daniel Whitley was called next, and Brennan dived into what happened as he and his colleagues were called to the scene of O'Keefe's death.

Massachusetts State Police Trooper Nicholas Guarino, who testified about text messages between Karen Read and John O'Keefe during Read's first trial, testified Wednesday afternoon about the phones he extracted data from in connection with the investigation into O'Keefe's death.

Guarino said he was brought phones from the case to have the data extracted and have it ready for investigators to look at.

He said two of those phones belonged to O'Keefe and Read.

Guarino said it was July of 2022 before the software he uses had upgraded enough to that he was able to gain access to Read's phone data.

Massachusetts State Police Trooper Nicholas Guarino, who testified about text messages between Karen Read and John O'Keefe during Read's first trial, has just taken the witness stand.

The jury has now left the courtroom, and special prosecutor Hank Brennan is asking Judge Beverly Cannone to admit footage from a TV interview Karen Read did with "20/20" in which Read said she thought John O'Keefe's mother, Peggy O'Keefe, was looking at her warily, as if she thought Read hit her son with her SUV.

"I think John's mother thinks I did something to John," she said.

Brennan said the clip should be admitted because it shows "consciousness of guilt." He said it shows Read trying to make an excuse for the fact that she left the house, taking her SUV -- "a key piece of evidence" -- with her.

"It's not only relevant. It is an extraordinarily strong piece of the consciousness of guilt evidence," he said.

Special prosecutor Hank Brennan concluded his questioning of Peggy O'Keefe, John O'Keefe's mother, shortly after 2 p.m., and the defense said they were sorry for her loss, and had no questions for her.

John O'Keefe's mother, Peggy O'Keefe, broke into tears almost immediately after beginning her testimony when she talked about how her daughter died of cancer in 2013 and her son-in-law died soon after of a heart attack, leaving their two children without parents.

Both children then went to live with their uncle, John O'Keefe.

Special prosecutor Hank Brennan asked Peggy to describe her son, other than his job as a police officer.

"He was enthusiastic with sports, he was wonderful with the kids," she said. "He took care of them and did everything for them -- take them places on vacations and everything. He was their number one and they called him JJ"

Jurors are back from the lunch break, and John O'Keefe's mother, Peggy O'Keefe, is about to testify.

She is the third prosecution witness to be called so far, following Canton firefighter paramedic Timothy Nuttall and O'Keefe's friend Kerry Roberts.

Don't forget to tune in to "Canton Confidential tonight at 7 on NBC10 Boston or on NBC10 Boston's YouTube or other streaming channels for full analysis of Wednesday's testimony.

You can also watch "Canton Confidential" episodes on demand on YouTube or subscribe to our podcast for audio versions if you want to listen while you drive.

Court resumed around 12:45 p.m., with special prosecutor playing a brief audio clip of an interview Karen Read did with Boston Magazine writer Gretchen Voss, which was introduced into evidence.

After that, rather than calling the next prosecution witness, Judge Beverly Cannone had the jurors break for a 40 minute lunch.

Kerry Roberts concluded her testimony around 12:35 p.m., and court is taking a brief recess.

The prosecution had said earlier Wednesday that the next witness would be John O'Keefe's mother, Peggy O'Keefe.

At redirect, special prosecutor Hank Brennan attempted to show that Kerry Roberts did not intentionally mislead the grand jury about her "Google hypothermia" statement.

"Did you ever tell the grand jury you actually heard that statement being made?" he asked.

"I did not," Roberts said.

Defense attorney Alan Jackson pressed Kerry Roberts at one point about whether she ever told investigators that Karen Read asked Jennifer McCabe to "Google hypothermia" on the day John O'Keefe was found outside in the cold.

Roberts said she did not recall ever saying that.

But when she testified to the grand jury, Jackson said Roberts did say that she heard Read ask McCabe that question.

"Yup, I testified. I didn't hear it, but I was told she was asked to Google it," Roberts said after having a chance to review her grand jury testimony.

"You'll agree for that purpose you painted a very, very detailed picture in front of the grand jury, didn't you?" Jackson asked.

Defense attorney Alan Jackson asked Kerry Roberts why she didn't immediately recall to investigators that Karen Read called her on the morning John O'Keefe was found and said, "He's dead."

Only later did Roberts recall that call, saying "I was in shock."

Jackson also asked Roberts about her second interview with investigators on Feb. 1, 2022. She said that interview was conducted at the home of Jennifer McCabe, and she met with McCabe before the interview.

"We were putting a timeline together," Roberts said, at the request of O'Keefe's mother.

"So both of you were assisting in each others' memories, correct?" Jackson asked. "Obviously, that would help influence your memory. So what's on that timeline is not completely independent, it's a combination of your memory and Jennifer McCabe's memory?"

At one point, defense attorney Alan Jackson asked Kerry Roberts about her grand jury testimony ahead of Karen Read's first trial.

At that time, Roberts said Read asked her, "Do you think I hit him?" after they noticed the taillight of Read's vehicle was cracked.

Jackson then played a video clip from outside O'Keefe's house, showing that Read and Roberts get out of separate vehicles and no one stops to look at the taillight of Read's car.

Roberts said they actually looked at the taillight on their way back outside the house, and not on their way in, as she had previously thought.

"It was incorrect," she said. "It happened on the way out of the house."

Defense attorney Alan Jackson continued his cross examination of Kerry Roberts by asking her about her testimony in the first trial, and what special prosecutor Hank Brennan asked her about.

He also asked her about the video shown in court earlier Wednesday morning, and where Jennifer McCabe was.

Roberts said she was doing chest compressions, Read was doing CPR and McCabe was calling 911, but McCabe at some point took over the chest compressions.

Jackson asked if Roberts remembers hearing Read say, "My boyfriend, I left him, he never came home."

"I do not," Roberts replied.

Just before 11 a.m., defense attorney Alan Jackson began his cross examination of prosecution witness Kerry Roberts.

Jackson began by asking how many times Roberts has spoken with the Norfolk County District's Office. Roberts said she frequently received updates on the case from investigators.

She would sometimes text one investigator, at times due to questions raised to her by Jennifer McCabe.

Jackson also asked if Roberts communicated with Norfolk District Attorney Michael Morrissey, and she said that she did.

After a brief morning recess, court has resumed with more testimony from John O'Keefe's close friend Kerry Roberts.

The proceedings started up with special prosecutor Hank Brennan continuing to show police surveillance video from the morning O'Keefe was found on the lawn on Fairview Road.

As we wait for testimony to resume in the Karen Read murder trial, here's a quick reminder on all of the ways you can keep up with the case.

Of course you can watch live coverage of the trial on NECN, on NBC10Boston.com, in the NBC10 Boston app, on NBC10 Boston's YouTube channel and on all of our streaming platforms.

But if you can't watch during the day, you can also watch the day's full proceedings on our YouTube channel on demand, or watch "Canton Confidential," our nightly recap show, at 7 p.m. every weeknight on NBC10 Boston.

You can also download a podcast version of "Canton Confidential" to listen while you drive, or watch "Canton Confidential" on demand on our YouTube channel.

In the midst of showing the video from the day John O'Keefe was found on the lawn at Fairview Road, Judge Beverly Cannone stopped the proceedings to take the morning recess, which is expected to last about 15-20 minutes.

Special prosecutor Hank Brennan showed a video in court Wednesday from the scene on the night of John O'Keefe's death.

The video showed first responders arriving at the scene where O'Keefe was found on Fairview Road in Canton, and Karen Read screaming and running frantically around the scene as emergency personnel begin to attend to O'Keefe.

Kerry Roberts next described arriving at the hospital, saying she immediately asked to wash up because she was covered with blood. She then went to the hospital chapel to say a prayer.

Roberts said she then had a chance to go in and see John O'Keefe.

"I went into the hospital room and John was in a neck brace at this point," she said. "There was a trail of blood going toward the gurney or the bed that he was on. This time both eyes were filled with blood, they looked like raccoons. I thought that he was going to look better seeing him in the hospital because he had been worked on, but he was not. There was much more blood."

Roberts' eyes again welled up with tears and she began to weep as an image of O'Keefe in the hospital was shown to her.

During testimony on Wednesday morning, Kerry Roberts' eyes welled up with tears and she got a bit choked up as she recalled seeing her friend John O'Keefe and not being able to find a pulse.

Roberts said Read told her that if anything happened to O'Keefe, Read was going to kill herself.

She said she also spoke with Read's mother, who told her Read was going to be taken to the hospital for a psychiatric evaluation because they were afraid she might try to harm herself.

Roberts also testified about how she returned to the spot where O'Keefe was first found lying after he was loaded into an ambulance and picked up his cell phone. She put it in her pocket and later gave it to a first responder.

She said she then drove to O'Keefe's parents' house, barely making it there because of the snowy driving conditions. Despite the treacherous conditions, Roberts said she and O'Keefe's parents then drove to the hospital.

Kerry Roberts, a friend of John O'Keefe, resumed her testimony on Wednesday morning.

Special prosecutor Hank Brennan started by asking Roberts more about the events on the morning of O'Keefe's death and showed a Ring camera video of Roberts, Read and Jennifer McCabe entering O'Keefe's home.

Roberts said Read pointed out a broken taillight on her SUV.

"She said, 'Do you think I hit him?'" Roberts recalled. "I said, 'I don't think you hit him. What are you talking about?'"

Kerry Roberts is set to resume her testimony on Wednesday morning after first taking the stand on Tuesday.

Special prosecutor Hank Brennan said at the beginning of Wednesday's proceedings that the next two witnesses after Roberts will be Peggy O'Keefe, John O'Keefe's mother, and Massachusetts State Police Trooper Nicholas Guarino, a forensic expert who testified about text messages between Read and John O'Keefe during the first trial.

Did you miss Day 1 of Karen Read's second murder trial?

If so, you missed the opening statements and the first two witnesses.

For a full recap, check out Tuesday's live blog, and watch last night's episode of "Canton Confidential" below:

And don't forget to download our "Canton Confidential" podcast for an audio version of our nightly recap show.

When the Karen Read trial resumes Wednesday morning, Kerry Roberts is expected to return to the stand.

She was the second witness called on Tuesday, the first day of the trial, following Canton firefighter/paramedic Timothy Nuttall.

Roberts testified about the night before John O'Keefe's death, and how Read woke her up with a call at 5 a.m. on the day O'Keefe was found dead.

She said Read yelled, "'Kerry, Kerry, Kerry, John's dead,' and then she hung up."