Karen Read trial: Paramedic testifies accused saying ‘I hit him’ when asked what happened to John O'Keefe

Warning: This article contains a recollection of crime and can be triggering to some, readers’ discretion advised.

NORFOLK, MASSACHUSETTS: The trial of Karen Read, who stands accused in the January 29, 2022, killing of her Boston Police Officer boyfriend John O'Keefe, has entered its second day.

Read faces charges including second-degree murder, manslaughter involving alcohol intoxication, and fleeing the scene of injury and death. 

On this day of proceedings, testimony was heard from a paramedic who attended the scene where O'Keefe was found, along with cross-examinations of other police officers.

Defense attorney Alan Jackson questions responding officers

Defense attorney Alan Jackson started the second day of the trial by asking Canton Police Officer Steven Saraf about what happened when O’Keefe’s body was found.

Saraf said that Read tried to help O’Keefe, but others at the scene didn’t. When Jackson asked who helped O’Keefe more, Saraf said, "At that point, it was Karen Read."

During the trial, Jennifer McCabe, O'Keefe's friend, might testify. The defense says McCabe searched "How long to die in cold" before O'Keefe's body was found near her brother-in-law's home.

The defense claims McCabe tried to delete that search, per NBC.

The defense showed Saraf a video where someone walks from where O'Keefe's body was found to a house. Jackson asked Saraf if it was okay for someone to do that. Saraf said no.

Read's lawyers wondered why investigators didn't go into the house or talk to the people inside when they found O'Keefe. Saraf said it wasn't necessary.

Speaking with NBC10 Boston, security analyst Todd McGhee called the police investigation described in Saraf's testimony into question.

McGhee said, "As a law enforcement investigator, the first thing you're looking for are facts. Facts lead to evidence, evidence can be gleaned from eyewitness accounts, from the Ring doorbells, anything that can help you stitch this mystery back together again And the fact that the investigation wasn't thorough provides a big wrinkle in the prosecution's case."

He added, "It does not ring true, because if I can find one person to help me spell out the story, to help bring some clarification, anything -- was there another vehicle close by? Was there another eyewitness, as a neighbor, that I might be able to go and speak to?" 

Saraf also admitted he didn't write everything down, like when Read allegedly said, "This is my fault, I can't believe this happened."

Jackson asked if that was important, and Saraf said it was an oversight, "Yes, I missed it, yeah. I didn't write it down,"

Prosecutor Albert Lally asked Saraf if his memory of what Read said was accurate, and he said yes.

Second witness called by defense attorney is Stephen Mullaney

The next witness of the day was Canton Police Officer Stephen Mullaney, who also went to the scene where O'Keefe's body was found.

He talked about how far away he was, the path he took, how long it took him to get there, and who he saw there - Saraf, O'Keefe, Read, and McCabe.

He said O'Keefe didn't have snow on him, but his face was frozen with water, showing he'd been out in the cold. Mullaney didn't see any injuries on O'Keefe's body then.

When O'Keefe was put in the ambulance, Read kept asking, "Is that my boyfriend? Is he dead?"

Later, defense attorney David Yannetti asked Mullaney if he saw Read trying to do CPR.

Mullaney said he saw Read was very upset, and was screaming and shocked.

But McCabe wasn't like that, he said.

"She was not screaming, she was not yelling," Yannetti said.

Mullaney also agreed with Saraf that Read kept asking if O'Keefe was her boyfriend and if he was dead.

Third witness for the second day trial of Karen Read

The third person to give testimony was Timothy Nuttall, a paramedic and firefighter from Canton. He was one of the first responders to the place where O'Keefe was discovered. 

Nuttall recounted seeing three women gathered around what looked like a person lying in the snow. 

Upon closer examination, he identified the figure as O'Keefe. Nuttall immediately checked for signs of life but found none, saying, “We found none -- we found no breathing, no pulse -- so we immediately began performing high-quality CPR”. 

He and his team started CPR right away. There was a bit of blood under O'Keefe, which was hard to see due to the darkness. 

Nuttall noticed a swelling on O'Keefe's forehead and scratches on his arm as per Law&Crime.

He described O'Keefe as cold all over, “His nose was also quite cold, quite white, just because he had been in the elements for a while. There appeared to be a little blood on his nose as well. All of his digits were cold, immobile, stiff, I assume due to the elements.”

Nuttall mentioned asking the women what happened, and one of them, later identified as Read, confessed to hitting him several times, “I hit him, I hit him”. 

During questioning by Jackson, Nuttall admitted that the head injury could have various causes, including a fight.

Jackson also questioned Nuttall's memory of the events, suggesting, “Nobody's casting aspersions. Memory's a funny thing”

The last witness of the day was Anthony Flematti, a fire lieutenant from Canton. He described the snowy and dark conditions when he arrived at the scene. He noticed two women near the body, with one seeming to perform chest compressions.

Court adjourned shortly before 1 pm, and there won't be a session on Wednesday. Thursday's session will only be half a day. It is worth mentioning that Read’s trial is expected to last for 6 to 7 weeks.