It was a Tuesday in January 2026 when the news finally broke that Norfolk County District Attorney Michael Morrissey wouldn't be seeking reelection. Honestly, for anyone who has been glued to the Boston Globe Karen Read updates for the last four years, it felt like the final exhale of a very long, very exhausted breath.
The Karen Read case isn't just a trial anymore. It's a localized religion in Massachusetts. You’ve got the "Free Karen" crowd in their pink shirts, the O'Keefe family mourning a veteran Boston cop, and a legal system that basically tripped over its own feet for three straight years.
If you're just catching up, here is the short version. Karen Read was accused of hitting her boyfriend, John O’Keefe, with her Lexus SUV and leaving him to die in a snowbank outside a fellow officer's house in Canton. But after two trials, a mountain of "shoddy" police work, and a disgraced lead investigator, a jury finally acquitted her of the most serious charges in the summer of 2025.
The Evidence That Actually Stuck (and What Didn't)
Most people think this was a simple "did she or didn't she" situation. It wasn't. The Boston Globe Karen Read reporting early on focused heavily on the "I hit him, I hit him" statements allegedly made by Read at the scene. But as the trials progressed, the "how" became a lot more important than the "what."
The prosecution's case leaned on a broken tail light and microscopic pieces of plastic. They said she backed into him at 24 mph. Now, have you ever tried to drive 24 mph in reverse on a curved, snowy driveway at night? It’s basically impossible. Even the FBI-hired independent crash experts—guys who had no skin in the game—testified that the damage to the car didn't match the injuries on O'Keefe's body.
Why the Retrial Changed Everything
The first trial in 2024 ended in a hung jury. People were shocked. The second trial in 2025 was different because the defense, led by Alan Jackson, went full "Canton Cover-up" mode. They pointed at the wounds on O’Keefe’s arm. They looked like dog bites. The Albert family, who owned the house where he was found, had a German Shepherd named Chloe.
Guess what happened to the dog? Rehomed.
Guess what happened to the basement floor of that house? Replaced.
You don't have to be a conspiracy theorist to see why a jury couldn't convict her of murder. By the time the 2025 verdict came in, Read was found not guilty of second-degree murder and manslaughter. She was only hit with a DUI charge, which she basically admitted to by saying they’d been bar-hopping that night.
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The Michael Proctor Problem
You can't talk about the Boston Globe Karen Read saga without mentioning Trooper Michael Proctor. If this were a movie, the critics would say his character was too "on the nose" as a villain. Proctor was the lead investigator, but it turned out he was texting his buddies and sisters calling Read names like "whack job" and saying he hoped she’d kill herself.
Even worse? He had personal ties to the people in the house where O'Keefe died.
In late 2025, Proctor was officially banned from law enforcement in Massachusetts. His career is done. But the damage he did to the public's trust in the State Police is going to take decades to fix. When the lead investigator is caught lying about when he towed a suspect's car, the whole case starts to smell.
Where is Karen Read Now?
As of January 2026, Karen Read is out, but she’s not exactly "back to normal." In a recent interview with the Rotten Mango podcast, she admitted she doesn't feel safe in Massachusetts. She’s living with her parents and says she’s broke. All those "Hollywood deals" people talk about? She claims she hasn't seen a dime yet.
Interestingly, her Lexus SUV—the one at the center of the whole tail light controversy—is actually scheduled to be auctioned off on January 30, 2026. Talk about a weird piece of true crime memorabilia.
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The Real Impact on Canton
The town of Canton is still sorta divided. There’s a new police chief, Michael Daniels, who was brought in at the end of 2025 to try and clean up the mess. But for the O'Keefe family, there is no "not guilty" that brings John back. That's the part that gets lost in the TikTok memes and the pink shirts. A man died in the snow, and we still don't have a definitive answer that satisfies everyone.
What You Should Do Next
If you’ve been following this case and want to understand the "whys" behind the verdict, you need to look past the headlines.
- Read the full autopsy reports: Look for the "undetermined" manner of death. It’s the smoking gun that most people miss.
- Watch the expert testimony: Specifically the crash reconstruction experts hired by the DOJ, not the ones hired by the state. The physics don't lie.
- Follow the civil suits: Karen Read is currently suing several of the investigators and witnesses for framing her. This is where the real evidence of a cover-up will either be proven or debunked.
The Boston Globe Karen Read archives are full of daily play-by-plays, but the big picture is simple: when the police stop following the rules, the truth becomes a secondary concern. Whether you think she did it or not, the 2025 acquittal proved that the "standard of proof" still means something in a Massachusetts courtroom.
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Moving forward, keep an eye on the Norfolk County DA race this November. With Morrissey out, the next person in that office is going to have to decide if they ever want to look at the O'Keefe case again, or if they’re just going to let it stay buried in the snow.