DEDHAM – Jury Considerations The continuation will take place on Monday in Karen Read murder trial in Massachusetts. The jury deliberated for approximately 22 hours and stated that they could not reach a unanimous verdict. How long did the deliberations last compared to other cases that have been in the public spotlight?
Read is on trial in January 2022 Death of her boyfriend, Boston police officer John O’Keefe. She is charged with second-degree murder, manslaughter while under the influence of alcohol, and leaving the scene of a crime resulting in personal injury and death.
How long did the jury deliberate in the trial of Karen Read?
The jury in Read’s murder trial was given the case and began deliberating on Tuesday afternoon. They deliberated all day on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.
Early Friday afternoon, the jury sent a note to Judge Beverly Cannone.
“Despite our extensive review of the evidence and our careful consideration of all disputed evidence, we have not been able to reach a unanimous verdict,” the statement said.
Cannone responded that given the wealth of evidence presented during the 10-week trial, she would like the jury to continue trying to reach a verdict.
Later in the day, jurors asked for an additional half hour of deliberation, raising hopes that a decision might be near. Instead, the day ended without a verdict and the jury was sent home for the weekend.
Reflections on Karen Read compared to other high-profile trials
The OJ Simpson The trial lasted eight months, but the jury deliberated for only four hours before Simpson, who died earlier this year, was acquitted.
The Casey Anthony trial made national headlines in 2011. Anthony was charged with first-degree murder, aggravated child abuse and aggravated manslaughter in connection with the death of her daughter. After deliberating for ten hours, the jury found her not guilty.
Aaron Hernandez was on trial for nearly three months in 2015 for the murder of Odin Lloyd. Superior After 36 hours over seven days, the jury found Hernandez guilty.
Whitey Bulger’s The trial in Boston in 2013 lasted two months. The jury deliberated for 32 hours over five days and ended with a guilty verdict.
Cannone served as judge in 2023 when a jury failed to reach a verdict in the trial of Emanuel Lopes.
Lopes was charged with killing a Weymouth police sergeant. Michael Chesna and innocent bystander Vera Adams in 2018. The jury could not reach a unanimous decision on whether Lopes was a murderer or mentally ill, prompting Cannone to Mistrial.
In February 2024, Lopes found guilty after a second attempt.
What happens if the jury cannot reach a verdict?
If the jury cannot reach a unanimous verdict in Read’s case, Cannone could declare a mistrial. It would then be up to the state to decide whether to retry.
Legal expert Phil Tracy predicted that prosecutors would likely retry Read, but said it would not be easy.
“It will be brutal to have jurors who have not yet formed an opinion,” Tracy said.
Tracy estimated that Cannone would declare a mistrial if no verdict was reached on Wednesday.
