Massachusetts professor indicted in alleged drunk driving death of Boston cop boyfriend
Prosecutors believe Read hit O'Keefe with her car while attempting to make a turn and drove home
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}A Massachusetts finance professor pleaded not guilty Friday in the death of her late boyfriend, Boston Police Officer John O'Keefe, after she allegedly hit him with her vehicle while intoxicated on the night fo Jan. 29, 2021, according to local reports.
A Norfolk County Grand Jury on Thursday indicted Bentley University Professor Karen Read, 42, of Mansfield, for second-degree murder, motor vehicle manslaughter, and leaving the scene of a collision, which apparently caused O'Keefe's death.
She pleaded not guilty during an arraignment proceeding on Friday, The Boston Globe reported.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Authorities discovered John O'Keefe outside a Canton, Massachusetts, home on the morning on Jan. 29, 2021. (Boston Police Department)
Massachusetts State Police previously arrested Read on Feb. 1, 2022, on a manslaughter warrant. Read pleaded not guilty in Stoughton District Court at the time and was released on $50,000 cash bail, according to Norfolk District Attorney Michael Morrissey's office.
Authorities say Read drove O'Keefe to a home on Fairview Road in Canton shortly after midnight on Jan. 29.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}That morning around 6 a.m., authorities found O'Keefe on the ground outside the Canton home just before a nor'easter struck the town with 21 inches of snow. Authorities transported the off-duty officer to Good Samaritan Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead several hours later.
Authorities say Read drove O'Keefe to a home on Fairview Road in Canton shortly after midnight on Jan. 29. (Craig F. Walker/The Boston Globe)
Prosecutors said the couple was drinking at a bar on the evening of Jan. 28. Read allegedly drove O'Keefe to a party at the Canton home, at which point prosecutors believe she hit him with her car while attempting to make a turn and drove home, NBC Boston reported.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Read then apparently became worried when she did not hear back from O'Keefe later on and returned to the Canton home with two friends on the morning on Jan. 29, where they found him on the ground with cuts, both of his eyes swollen shut, and his clothes covered in blood and vomit, the outlet reported, citing prosecutors.
"He appeared to have been in the cold for some period," Morrissey said in a statement at the time.
One of Read's friends allegedly told police that Read called her at 5 a.m., saying, "John's dead. I wonder if he's dead. It's snowing. He got hit by a plow."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Read also told emergency personnel who responded to the scene, "I hit him, I hit him, I hit him, I hit him," according to NBC Boston.
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The Boston Police Department described O'Keefe as "a kind person" who was "dedicated to his family" in a February statement after his death.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"[He] will be greatly missed by his coworkers and anyone who had the privilege of meeting him," the department said at the time. "…At this time, we are stunned and saddened and offer whatever support we can to John’s family. Boston Police Peer Support will be available to assist department members in need of emotional support."
Fox News' Bradford Betz contributed to this report.