ED. YES. SEVEN MORE JURORS SEATED TODAY. THAT’S IN ADDITION TO FOUR WHO WERE SEATED YESTERDAY FOR A TOTAL OF 11 SO FAR. NOW, THE JUDGE WANTS 12 JURORS PLUS FOUR ALTERNATES. KAREN REID LEFT THE COURTHOUSE AFTER ANOTHER LONG DAY OF TRYING TO FIND A JURY FOR HER SECOND DEGREE MURDER TRIAL. IT’S ABOUT WHAT WE EXPECTED, YOU KNOW, BE DONE. MAYBE TOMORROW. NO WAY OF KNOWING ON THIS SECOND DAY OF JURY SELECTION, THE JURY POOL INCLUDED 85 PEOPLE FROM ACROSS NORFOLK COUNTY. WHEN THE JUDGE ASKED IF THEY’D HEARD ABOUT THE CASE, 58 OF THEM RAISED THEIR HANDS AND WHEN ASKED IF THEY’D ALREADY FORMED AN OPINION ABOUT REID’S GUILT OR INNOCENCE, 24 INDICATED THEY HAD. WERE YOU ONE OF THOSE PEOPLE THAT HAD HEARD ABOUT IT? NO, I HADN’T HEARD ABOUT IT, TONY PARDO SAYS HE WAS RELIEVED TO BE EXCUSED FROM WHAT’S EXPECTED TO BE A NEARLY EIGHT WEEK TRIAL. HE SAYS MANY OF THE OTHER PROSPECTIVE JURORS ALSO DIDN’T WANT TO BE PICKED. I KIND OF GOT THE SENSE THAT MOST PEOPLE DIDN’T. PROBABLY ABOUT HALF THE PEOPLE RAISED THEIR HAND WHEN THEY WERE TALKING ABOUT HAVING A HARDSHIP OR, YOU KNOW, THINGS OF THAT NATURE. SO ON A TWO PAGE QUESTIONNAIRE, PROSPECTIVE JURORS ARE BEING ASKED ABOUT THINGS LIKE IF THEY WOULD BE OKAY, NOT READING ANY NEWS ABOUT THE CASE, IF THEY HAVE STRONG PERSONAL BELIEFS ABOUT LAW ENFORCEMENT, IF THEY’VE EVER HAD IN AN INCIDENT OF DRINKING AND DRIVING, AND IF THEY’D BE ABLE TO VIEW GRAPHIC AUTOPSY PHOTOGRAPHS. NOW, THERE WERE FEWER DEMONSTRATORS OUTSIDE THE COURTHOUSE TODAY, FEWER THAN YESTERDAY DURING THE FIRST DAY OF JURY SELECTION, A JUDGE ON THE STATE’S HIGHEST COURT HAS UPHELD A 200 FOOT BUFFER ZONE AROUND THE COURTHOUSE, WHERE DEMONSTRATIONS ARE BANNED. BUT THE PROTESTERS HAVE ASKED THE FULL COURT TO WEIGH IN ON THE ISSUE.
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Fight over 'buffer zone' around Karen Read trial continues in Massachusetts' highest court
Jury selection for trial began Tuesday
While jury selection for the high-profile murder trial of Karen Read drags on inside one Massachusetts courthouse, a fight over the judge's decision to establish a "buffer zone" around the building is being pushed at the state's highest court. One justice of the Supreme Judicial Court has already denied the request, but records show an appeal was filed on Tuesday. Read, 43, of Mansfield, is accused of hitting John O'Keefe, a Boston police officer, with her vehicle outside of a home in Canton during a snowstorm on Jan. 29, 2022. Prosecutors say Read and O’Keefe had both been drinking that night. Read and her defense team claim she is the victim of a cover-up. They claim O'Keefe was beaten inside the home, bitten by a dog and then left outside. She has pleaded not guilty to charges including second-degree murder.Read's supporters often demonstrated outside the Norfolk Superior Court building during her pretrial hearings, and some have worn clothing with messages about the case into the courthouse.Judge Beverly Cannone, who is hearing the case in Norfolk County Superior Court, issued an order prohibiting any demonstrations from occurring within 200 feet of the courthouse complex during the trial. Her order also prohibited the use of "audio-enhancing devices" and prevents anyone inside the court from wearing buttons, photographs, clothing, or insignia relating to the case. Records show that SJC Associate Justice Serge Georges Jr. denied an original petition to overrule Cannone's decision on Friday. In his decision, Georges praised Cannone for rejecting an original proposal for a much larger exclusion zone and noted that her order is "content neutral.""The buffer zone order is narrowly tailored to serve a significant government interest, namely, the integrity and fairness of the defendant's trial," Georges wrote. "Demonstrations near the courthouse threaten this interest by exposing witnesses and jurors to intimidation and harassment, undermining their ability to testify or to serve without fear of reprisal. In addition, demonstrations may expose jurors to extraneous material beyond the evidence presented at trial, improperly influencing their decision."Records indicate that an appeal of Georges decision was filed with the SJC on Tuesday. Petitioners identified in the appeal docket include the Freedom to Protest Coalition and several individuals. A brief is also expected from the American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts, records show. Video below: Former AG Martha Coakley weighs in on jury selection process
DEDHAM, Mass. —
While jury selection for the high-profile murder trial of Karen Read drags on inside one Massachusetts courthouse, a fight over the judge's decision to establish a "buffer zone" around the building is being pushed at the state's highest court.
One justice of the Supreme Judicial Court has already denied the request, but records show an appeal was filed on Tuesday.
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Read, 43, of Mansfield, is accused of hitting John O'Keefe, a Boston police officer, with her vehicle outside of a home in Canton during a snowstorm on Jan. 29, 2022. Prosecutors say Read and O’Keefe had both been drinking that night.
Read and her defense team claim she is the victim of a cover-up. They claim O'Keefe was beaten inside the home, bitten by a dog and then left outside. She has pleaded not guilty to charges including second-degree murder.
Read's supporters often demonstrated outside the Norfolk Superior Court building during her pretrial hearings, and some have worn clothing with messages about the case into the courthouse.
Judge Beverly Cannone, who is hearing the case in Norfolk County Superior Court, issued an order prohibiting any demonstrations from occurring within 200 feet of the courthouse complex during the trial. Her order also prohibited the use of "audio-enhancing devices" and prevents anyone inside the court from wearing buttons, photographs, clothing, or insignia relating to the case.
Karen Read murder trial: Here's what prospective jurors are being asked
Records show that SJC Associate Justice Serge Georges Jr. denied an original petition to overrule Cannone's decision on Friday. In his decision, Georges praised Cannone for rejecting an original proposal for a much larger exclusion zone and noted that her order is "content neutral."
"The buffer zone order is narrowly tailored to serve a significant government interest, namely, the integrity and fairness of the defendant's trial," Georges wrote. "Demonstrations near the courthouse threaten this interest by exposing witnesses and jurors to intimidation and harassment, undermining their ability to testify or to serve without fear of reprisal. In addition, demonstrations may expose jurors to extraneous material beyond the evidence presented at trial, improperly influencing their decision."
Records indicate that an appeal of Georges decision was filed with the SJC on Tuesday. Petitioners identified in the appeal docket include the Freedom to Protest Coalition and several individuals. A brief is also expected from the American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts, records show.
Video below: Former AG Martha Coakley weighs in on jury selection process
