By USA Daily Now 
In a final-hour motion filed Friday, Special Prosecutor HANK BRENNAN requested the court to prevent the defense team for KAREN READ from implicating fellow police officers or a dog in the death of her Boston police officer boyfriend, JOHN O’KEEFE, during upcoming opening statements. The retrial is set to begin next week.
The motion, submitted days before the proceedings, argued that the defense’s plan to display photos of injuries to O’Keefe’s right arm could violate a prior court order restricting third-party culpability claims without adequate evidentiary support. BRENNAN emphasized that any suggestion attributing the injuries to individuals or animals present at the Canton, Massachusetts, residence—located at 34 Fairview Road—would be improper unless substantiated by admissible evidence.
Prosecutors allege that O’Keefe died outside the home following an after-party on January 28, 2022, where several law enforcement colleagues and their spouses had gathered. Karen Read is accused of striking O’Keefe with her Lexus SUV during a drunken argument and leaving the scene. His body was discovered the following morning on the front lawn of fellow Boston Police Officer BRIAN ALBERT, who owns a German shepherd named Chloe.
O’Keefe’s cause of death was ruled as severe head trauma and hypothermia, with additional injuries noted on his hands and right arm. The defense has sought to introduce evidence suggesting alternative causes for these injuries, including the involvement of Chloe.
The prosecution’s motion follows a recent ruling by Judge BEVERLY CANNONE, who denied a request to exclude a defense expert on dog bites but imposed limitations on the testimony of a prosecution expert, DR. JAMES CROSBY. While Crosby may discuss dog bites generally, he cannot explicitly state that his analysis excludes Chloe.
This marks the second trial for KAREN READ, whose first trial ended in a hung jury last year. She has pleaded not guilty and is petitioning the U.S. Supreme Court to dismiss two of the three charges based on partial, unannounced results from the initial proceedings. Opening statements for the retrial are scheduled for Tuesday.
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