A wrongful death lawsuit was filed this week by the family of deceased Boston police officer John O’Keefe III against his girlfriend, Karen Read. According to the lawsuit filed in Plymouth Superior Court on Monday, Read is accused of intentionally striking O’Keefe with her SUV while intoxicated and leaving him to die during a snowstorm. The family claims that Read was served nine drinks over the course of an evening at two bars before driving O’Keefe back from a party. At 12:45 a.m., her blood alcohol content would have been between 0.135% and 0.292.
The lawsuit alleges that Read knew their relationship was struggling, and had argued frequently in the months before O’Keefe’s death on January 29th. The family claims she deliberately left him to die, removing her car from the scene afterward in an attempt to cover up evidence. They are seeking at least $50,000 in damages.
The case has garnered significant attention since Read’s murder trial ended in a hung jury two months ago after five days of deliberations. Her legal team had attempted to have some charges dismissed due to potential jury bias, but the judge ruled last week that both second-degree murder and leaving the scene of a death would stand at her next trial, set for January 27th, 2025.
