Karen Read, Trooper Michael Proctor, Brian Walshe
Monday's testimony by Massachusetts State Police Trooper Michael Proctor could not just have implications on Karen Read's ongoing murder trial, but potentially beyond.
Experts say that the investigator's vulgar text messages about Read could spell trouble for Proctor's credibility while testifying in other cases as well, including the pending Brian Walshe murder trial, for which he is the designated case officer — the same position that Proctor holds in the Read investigation.
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Read denies the state's allegations that she killed her boyfriend, Boston Police Officer John O'Keefe, in Canton in 2022, and her lawyers have depicted a large-scale coverup by law enforcement, which they say Proctor was part of. The prosecution has denied there was a coverup, calling the allegations "fanciful."
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In a text conversation with friends that prosecutors had Proctor read from Monday, he referred to Read as a "whack job" and "c---," made fun of a medical condition she has and made a disparaging comment about her rear. Proctor said his comments were "unprofessional and regrettable," but said they "have zero impact on the facts and the evidence and the integrity of this investigation."
In another text chain with colleagues, Proctor made a joke about not being able to find naked photos of Read while going through her phone. Read's defense team hammered Proctor — and is expected to continue doing so when court returns Wednesday, on whether his text messages about the defendant reflected a bias.
"I think the testimony likely was fatal to the government's case," Dean of the Massachusetts School of Law and NBC10 Boston legal analyst Michael Coyne said. "The fact is, it does taint all law enforcement in this case."
Former Massachusetts State Trooper Todd McGhee explained Tuesday that the bombshell testimony could taint other cases, too, saying it was possible the situation could potentially put Proctor at risk for being included on what's called a Brady list, referring to a Supreme Court case.
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Brady lists are typically used by prosecutors to determine whether they should consider officers unqualified to testify in a case over lack of credibility.
"Once that officer has been deemed as compromised, their integrity has been compromised, their name ends up on the list," McGhee said. "Once your name was on the Brady list, anytime you testify in a court of law, the opposing attorney is going to challenge your veracity.
"Effectively, you are of no real use in the court of law based on any investigative work you’ve conducted," McGhee continued.
Proctor, who works out of the Norfolk District Attorney's Office, is also the designated case officer for the Brian Walshe murder case.
Brian Walshe is charged with murdering and dismembering his wife, Ana Walshe, in their Cohasset home in early 2023. He's pleaded not guilty. The case is expected to be heard soon after the Read trial concludes.
Shira Diner, an instructor at the Defender Clinic at Boston University, believes these developments could impact Proctor's involvement at the Walshe trial.
"Because of the high profile nature of [the Karen Read trial], it's well known," Diner said. "Before a trial starts involving him, I think the defense lawyer is going to be in a very strong position to be asking for internal affairs reports — their kind of potential bias discovery that we usually have a hard time getting."
Diner added that the commonwealth may try to avoid having him on the stand in future cases, "because there's no way that this isn't going to come up."
"It is always going to be relevant," Diner said. "The issue of bias is never collateral to anything. It's sort of at the root of what we are asking our jurors to do."
That said, the prosecution could still try the case without calling Proctor, Diner said, by calling other witnesses to piece together the narrative.
The Walshe case became infamous over the massive search for Ana, whose body hasn't been found, and the Google searches allegedly made by her husband seeking instructions for how to discard a body.
While Proctor is the case officer for the Walshe case, a spokesman for the district attorney's office said Tuesday, he is "one of numerous officers involved in the investigation."
The office and the Massachusetts Executive Office of Public Safety and Security both declined to comment on Proctor's testimony Tuesday. Massachusetts State Police has also not issued a statement.
State police confirmed in March that Proctor was the subject of an internal investigation for a potential violation of department policy, but would not comment on what caused them to probe one of their own. However, sources told NBC10 Boston that the investigation is connected to the Read case.
Proctor remains certified under Massachusetts' POST Commission, as of May 31, the most recent date available. The commission offers a mandatory statewide certification system for all of the Bay State police officers.
