Trooper Michael Proctor, lead investigator in Karen Read case, has been fired

Massachusetts State Police announced Wednesday morning that Trooper Michael Proctor has been fired and should be dishonorably discharged.

They said their trial board found Proctor guilty of three charges of unsatisfactory performance and one charge of alcoholic beverage. The decision came following three days of closed hearings that started in January.

As the lead investigator in the Karen Read murder case, Proctor faced allegations of misconduct and criticism for his highly offensive text messages about Read that were read aloud in court during her trial. He admitted on the stand that those messages were unprofessional and regrettable.

State police said the unsatisfactory performance charges stem from "derogatory, defamatory, disparaging, and/or otherwise inappropriate text messages about a suspect" in connection with Read case. The trial board also found that he "provided sensitive and/or confidential information about a homicide victim, potential witnesses, and/or potential investigative steps in the investigation to non-law enforcement personnel" and failed to conform to work standards by creating an image that he was biased in his dealings with the Read case.

The alcoholic beverage charge stemmed from an incident on July 19, 2022, when the Trial Board said he consumed alcohol while eating dinner on duty, after which he proceeded to operate his department issued cruiser.

Read the Trial Board's full ruling on Michael Proctor:

“Our mission to deliver the highest level of police services depends on the public's trust in our professionalism and integrity. It is incumbent upon me, as well as every member of this Department, to hold one another accountable when any member compromises our mission by failing to uphold our values," Col. Geoffrey Noble, the superintendent of the Massachusetts State Police, said in a statement. “As Superintendent, my role demands that I do what is in the best interest of the Department. My decision to terminate Mr. Proctor follows a thorough, fair, and impartial process. I have weighed the nature of the offenses, their impact on our investigative integrity, and the importance of safeguarding the reputations of our dedicated women and men in the State Police. This decision reflects our unwavering commitment to upholding our values, enhancing public trust and ensuring the highest standards of service and accountability.

“Finally, recognizing the ways in which this process has affected the family of Boston Police Officer John O’Keefe, I would also like to renew our condolences to them.”

Proctor had been relieved of duty, transferred out of the Norfolk District Attorney's Office and suspended without pay immediately following the July 2024 mistrial in the Read murder case. In addition to being the lead investigator in the case, Proctor was a key prosecution witness in Read's trial. State police began conducting an internal affairs investigation after details about misconduct emerged during the trial.

Read is accused of killing O'Keefe, her boyfriend, by backing her SUV into him outside a home in Canton in January 2022. Authorities have alleged she drunkenly hit him and left him in the snow, where he was found dead the following morning. Her defense team has claimed that she is at the receiving end of a massive coverup involving law enforcement corruption and is being framed for the murder. Her retrial is scheduled to get underway on April 1.

Proctor can appeal the Trial Board's decision to the Civil Service Commission, which his attorney says is the former trooper's plan. State police said they are confident the evidence is sufficient for civil service to affirm Noble's decision to terminate him.

The State Police Association of Massachusetts, the union that represents trooper, criticized the firing.

"The Department's decision to sacrifice Trooper Proctor to appease the media rather than making a decision based on the facts and evidence presented during the trial board is disappointing but not surprising," Brian Williams, the union's president, said in a statement.

"I know troopers who, again, have shared in confidence their own feelings about the case, and I don't believe that this ultimate decision is going to impact the morale," McGhee said.

Proctor's family also issued a statement following the Trial Board's decision, saying they are "truly disappointed" with the ruling.

"We are truly disappointed with the trial board’s decision as it lacks precedent, and unfairly exploits and scapegoats one of their own, a trooper with a 12-year unblemished record," the family's statement said. "Despite the Massachusetts State Police's dubious and relentless efforts to find more inculpatory evidence against Michael Proctor on his phones, computers and cruiser data, the messages on his personal phone – referring to the person who killed a fellow beloved Boston Police Officer — are all that they found. The messages prove one thing, and that Michael is human — not corrupt, not incompetent in his role as a homicide detective, and certainly not unfit to continue to be a Massachusetts State Trooper."

"Proctor and his detectives led a meticulous and thorough investigation of integrity, and despite today’s wrongful termination, and great harm and defamation this case has inflicted on him and his family, Proctor still believes justice will be served. He is grateful for the unrelenting support of the union and the men and women of the Massachusetts State Police. His heart is always with the family of Officer John O’Keefe who continue to endure a prolonged and unimaginable nightmare."

Also on Wednesday, Read's defense released a list of 91 possible witnesses it may call to testify. Proctor is on that list, as well as the one prosecutors released last week.

"I'm not sure the prosecution needs him or it makes sense to call him under the circumstances, having watched the first trial," said NBC10 Boston legal analyst Michael Coyne.