Karen Read retrial: Prosecution wants testimony on ‘hos long to die in the cold’ barred

The prosecutors in the retrial of Karen Read want to keep out the testimony of a digital forensics expert who alleged that a friend of John O’Keefe’s searched “hos long to die in cold” on Google.

Read’s first trial in the death of her Boston police officer boyfriend O’Keefe ended in a mistrial on July 1. The state alleges that she hit O’Keefe with her SUV outside of the Canton home of fellow officer Brian Albert following a night of drinking in a snowstorm in January 2022. Her second trial is set to begin April 1.

The state wants the new trial to exclude testimony from Richard Green, who owns the Florida-based United States Forensics, according to a motion filed Tuesday.

Green had analyzed the cellphones of Reed, O’Keefe and friend Jen McCabe, and testified that a Google search for “hos long to die in cold” had been made on McCabe’s phone at 2:27 a.m. The prosecution wants to exclude testimony on the Google search and deletion of data from McCabe’s phone.

“Exclusion is appropriate because both claims lack any evidentiary support, and the claims cannot be made in good faith,” the motion said, according to Patriot Ledger news partner WCVB. “Allowing introduction of baseless claims without any scientific, forensic, or factual support would be misleading to the jury and disruptive to the interest of justice.”

The prosecution has also requested the exclusion of testimony from emergency room physician Dr. Marie Russell, who testified that marks on O’Keefe’s arm were made by “teeth or claws.” Read’s defense attorneys allege that Read was framed and that O’Keefe died after being beat up in the Canton home where he was dropped off, bit by a dog and left outside in the snow.

In a December hearing before Judge Beverly Cannone, who will remain overseeing the Read case, the prosecution argued that Russell is not an expert in dog bites. She has not yet issued a ruling, according to WCVB.

Read was charged with second-degree murder, motor vehicle manslaughter while driving under the influence and leaving the scene of a collision causing death. She has petitioned the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court on whether the state should be able to retry her. The SJC has not yet ruled.

Hannah Morse covers growth and development for The Patriot Ledger. Contact her at [email protected].

This article originally appeared on The Patriot Ledger: Karen Read trial: Prosecution wants to exclude cellphone testimony