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‘Starkly divided’ jury offers lessons for Karen Read retrial – The Boston Globe

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The jury’s note Monday announcing it was “starkly divided” in trying to reach a unanimous verdict at Karen Read’s murder trial provided rare insight into its closed-door deliberations: This was not a case where one hold-out refused to budge.

“Some members of the jury firmly believe that the evidence surpasses the burden of proof establishing the elements of the charges beyond a reasonable doubt,” the jury foreman wrote. “Conversely, others find the evidence fails to meet this standard and does not sufficiently establish the necessary elements of the charges.”

For now, it’s unclear just how evenly the jury was split. Prosecutors and attorneys aren’t allowed to approach jurors, so unless they speak out that note is the only clue about their stalemate.

“It suggests that at least more than one person was on each side,” said Tracy Miner, a longtime criminal defense lawyer who has handled public corruption and murder cases. “It does not appear to be a one juror holdout for either side.”

That message should give the prosecution and Read’s lawyers reason to pause before a retrial and re-examine the decisions they made about what witnesses to call and how to question them, according to Miner and other legal specialists.

“Nobody wants to try such a case again,” said Brian T. Kelly, an attorney and former federal prosecutor, citing the time, energy and resources already invested in a two-month trial. “It’s like putting on a wet bathing suit.”

Minutes after Judge Beverly Cannone granted a mistrial, Norfolk District Attorney Michael Morrissey issued a statement vowing to retry Read for the 2022 death of her boyfriend, Boston Police Officer John O’Keefe.

Outside the courthouse, Read’s attorneys said prosecutors brought false charges against an innocent person and “failed miserably.”

For now, the inability of the jury to render a verdict is, indeed, a victory for Read, said Daniel Conley, former Suffolk district attorney and now a partner at Mintz.

“It’s certainly not a victory for the prosecution,” said Conley, noting that the only victory for prosecutors would have been a conviction. “But both sides will likely learn from this trial.”

Each side will have the benefit of reviewing trial transcripts, analyzing witness testimony, and sharpening their questions for the next trial. No date has been set, but the judge has scheduled a hearing on the case for July 22.

“I really don’t see a big advantage to either side [going into a retrial] except they’re going to be able to really dissect this and think about strategy and what may have persuaded more jurors toward their side,” Conley said.Y

Read is charged with second-degree murder, manslaughter while operating under the influence of alcohol, and leaving a scene of personal injury and death.


Shelley Murphy can be reached at shelley.murphy@globe.com. Follow her @shelleymurph. Sean Cotter can be reached at sean.cotter@globe.com. Follow him @cotterreporter.



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