Watch the full coverage of the live stream on The Emily D Baker YouTube channel: https://youtube.com/live/4wSJeNZph94

Day 33 of the Karen Read Retrial happened on June 13, 2025. The Defense's closing argument, delivered by Jackson, focused on the lack of collision and the integrity of the investigation. The Prosecution's closing argument, delivered by Hank Brennan, focused on Karen Read's actions and the data.

After lunch, the court read the jury instructions. The court did not include the defense's requested instruction regarding John O'Keefe's hoodie but did include a straight DUI as a lesser included charge.

The jury began deliberations just after 2:39 PM local time and deliberated for a little under two hours before asking to go home for the weekend. They were instructed not to discuss the case with anyone, conduct independent research, or follow news about the case over the weekend. Deliberations will resume on Monday morning.

RESOURCES

Karen Read Retrial Day 32 - https://youtube.com/live/N1az5x1PEkM

What You Need to Know About the Retrial - https://youtu.be/89Jpa8vz1RQ

Karen Read Retrial Playlist - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLsbUyvZas7gKOJlfL__9F027hlETVU-vo

Karen Read Trial - 2024 - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLsbUyvZas7gKUeCUzApgsEuQRXu5IXeTS

Watch the full coverage of the live stream on The Emily D Baker YouTube channel: https://youtube.com/live/9W-28UtY1lY

Day 31 of the Karen Read Retrial happened on June 11, 2025. Neither Karen Read nor Former Trooper Proctor will be called to testify. A charging conference, where jury instructions will be discussed, is scheduled for tomorrow. The Defense is requesting instructions regarding "missing witnesses" and the hoodie, but not a "third-party culprit" instruction.

Dr. Rentschler's testimony focused on the paint transfer test and concluded that the injuries were inconsistent with the Commonwealth's theory, stating that the abrasions on O'Keefe's arm do not correspond to how an arm would interact with the vehicle if struck at a right angle. The Defense effectively used visuals from his Power Point to support Dr. Rentschler's testimony.

During cross-examination, Special Prosecutor, Hank Brennan, largely avoided questions about Dr. Rentschler's testing, instead focusing on his independence and expenses. Rentschler maintained his opinions were unchanged by these factors. Brennan's cross-examination strategy undermined the Commonwealth's position, especially given the high payment to their own experts.

A significant development is that the Commonwealth will not call any rebuttal witnesses once the defense rests, a surprising move given their prior legal battles over testimony. The introduction of X-rays by the defense, which many believed didn't exist due to Dr. Welcher's testimony, may have influenced this decision.

With the evidence phase concluding, the next steps are the charging conference, where jury instructions and lesser-included crimes will be debated, and then closing arguments on Friday. The jury will then deliberate, with the complexity of Count Two (involuntary manslaughter) expected to be a key focus, as it was in the previous trial.

RESOURCES

What You Need to Know About the Retrial - https://youtu.be/89Jpa8vz1RQ

Karen Read Retrial Playlist - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLsbUyvZas7gKOJlfL__9F027hlETVU-vo

Karen Read Trial - 2024 - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLsbUyvZas7gKUeCUzApgsEuQRXu5IXeTS

Watch the full coverage of the live stream on The Emily D Baker YouTube channel: https://youtube.com/live/qgkQm-VgMu0

Day 30 of the Karen Read Retrial happened on June 10, 2025. Defense Attorney Alan Jackson started the day by coming in hot and accused the Prosecution of "burden shifting," implying they were improperly trying to make the defense prove their case. He provided a transcript that the Prosecution opened the door to ask Dr. Laposata about dog bites when Brennan inquired Dr. Russell about Dr. Laposata's report about dos bites. The Judge Denied questioning about dog bites but okay to question about animal bites. The judge offered to give an instruction about burden shifting to the jury but Jackson declined it.

There was confusion about whether Dr. Wrenchler had seen X-ray evidence, as he testified there were none done to the arm, while Dr. La Pasada's testimony indicated X-rays did exist. This point raises questions about what evidence was provided to Dr. Wrenchler and how rebuttal will go.

During Cross Examination and the Morning Break, Brennan wanted to impeach Dr. Laposata's credibility with past issues from her time as a medical examiner, including an audit and handling of the Station nightclub fire. The court allowed some of this to be brought up during cross-examination but not all.

A juror's question led to the court clarifying what it meant when video evidence was "stricken" during testimony showing that all jurors are paying attention and really want to get the understanding right.

The Defense's last witness, Dr. Andrew Rentschler, a Biomechanical Engineer at ARCCA, testified about how ARCCA was hired by a government agency and was not given information about the case. They were only give the circumstances and to try to recreate it. His analysis of John O'Keefe's injuries were that the injuries were not consistent with being struck by the Lexus, specifically the tail light. He determined that the force required to produce the skull fracture was significantly higher than what could result from impact with the taillight at a speed of 15 mph.

There were several disputes regarding the content of Dr. Rentschler's PowerPoint presentation, with objections to text containing hearsay and ultimate opinions. The court ordered the presentation to be edited, with certain text removed. This will be finalized on Day 31 before the jury comes in.

RESOURCES

What You Need to Know About the Retrial - https://youtu.be/89Jpa8vz1RQ

Karen Read Retrial Playlist - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLsbUyvZas7gKOJlfL__9F027hlETVU-vo

Karen Read Trial - 2024 - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLsbUyvZas7gKUeCUzApgsEuQRXu5IXeTS