The online blogger who wrote extensively about the Karen Read murder case and became a staunch advocate for the framing allegations had a series of court hearings on Thursday for the charges he faces, some of which are in connection with the Read saga.
Aidan Kearney — better known as "Turtleboy" — had a brief pretrial hearing Thursday morning in Dedham District Court, which is related to an incident invovling his ex-girlfriend and a restraining order.
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"She was one of the five people who showed up and forced me to leave my own protest because she can't stop coming around me," Kearney said outside of court. "I just want to do my job and be left alone and not have this order weaponized against me."
Kearney also had a discovery hearing Thursday afternoon in Norfolk Superior Court, which is a witness intimidation case connected to the Read trial.
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Thursday is the first time Kearney has had a court appearance of his own since a mistrial was declared in Read's case last week.
The Holden-based blogger was charged with assault and battery and witness intimidation last December; Kearney's ex-girlfriend claimed at the time that he threatened to release personal information and explicit photos of her and ultimately pushed her into a couch.
Kearney served 60 days after having his bail revoked. In February, a Norfolk County grand jury indicted Kearney on two new charges — harassing a witness and intercepting wire or oral communication. The original assault charge was dropped, the Boston Herald reported.
In March, he was charged with a restraining order violation involving the same woman, according to the Herald.
Thursday morning's hearing provided a brief discovery update on the evidence-gathering process in that case, and the case was continued to Aug. 22 for another pretrial hearing.
Two months before the December 2023 incident, Kearney was charged with intimidation and conspiracy. Prosecutors accused him of harassing witnesses in the Read case.
The special prosecutors who brought the case read from transcripts of YouTube videos and articles that Kearney posted amid his "Canton Coverup" investigation, which as of Tuesday had 179 articles on his website. The prosecutors said that, on more than one occasion, Kearney said he was hoping his reporting would influence the jury pool for Read's eventual trial and that he broadcast himself calling the lead investigator, as well as the investigator's wife, sharing their phone numbers and leading to their harassment.
A Norfolk County grand jury brought down a number of charges in that case in December, including eight counts of witness intimidation, three counts of conspiracy to intimidate witnesses and five counts of picketing a witness.
The conspiracy charges allege that Kearney on Sept. 25 worked with a police dispatcher to intimidate three people, including a Massachusetts State Police investigator working on the case. The dispatcher is also facing a conspiracy charge.
The grand jury charges name several alleged victims along with the police investigator, all of whom have been subjects of Kearney's vitriol.
Kearney has maintained his innocence in both cases.
