Shownotes Transcript
On a January night in 2022, a powerful nor'easter was blowing into the town of Canton, Massachusetts. But come morning, the fierce blizzard paled in comparison to the headline that would soon take the world by storm. She struck him with her motor vehicle. She had been under the influence and then she left him there.
Local woman Karen Reed had been implicated in the mysterious death of her boyfriend, Boston police officer John O'Keefe. The apparent murder weapon? Her SUV.
But this isn't your typical hit and run. The motive basically appears to be jealousy combined with drinking. Theory is that she had nine drinks that night and that she was heavily intoxicated. There's some evidence to support it, but there's also a whole bunch of evidence to counter it. It was alleged that after an innocent night out for drinks with friends, Karen and John got into a lover's quarrel en route to the next location.
a house party hosted by another Boston police officer, Brian Albert. What happens next depends on who you ask. If you believe the prosecution, it's because the evidence was so compelling. This was clearly an intentional act, and his cause of death was blunt force trauma with hypothermia. Did you hear her say, could I have hit him? I heard, I hit him, I hit him. That's what you believe at this point? That's what I heard. If you believe the defense theory, however, this was all a cover-up to prevent...
one of their own from going down. Was it a cold-blooded crime of passion or a corrupt cover-up?
The suggestion here is basically that the Alberts have really strong connections to police. They're sort of presented as this connected, powerful family that really didn't like outsiders. They didn't like the people who were not part of that world, which included Karen Reed. The theory is that they dumped him outside in the snow and they were simply going to say, we never saw him, he never came into the house, and let that be that.
And the handling of evidence left more questions than answers in this not-so-classic case of whodunit.
From the scene of the murder... The processing in the crime scene was a textbook example of how not to do it. They should have gone in, secured this scene, and they didn't do that. To the forensics... What exactly happened that night? I haven't seen enough evidence to really be able to affirmatively hang my hat on any single theory. To the digital footprints... Mr. McCabe, every single one of those calls was deleted automatically.
off your phone, correct? According to the reports. According to that report, yes. What was actually contained on that SIM card, I'd like to know. But people get rid of things for a reason, and that's important. But it was the lead investigator's testimony that arguably catapulted the case of Karen Reid into the national spotlight. So the way that you were going to make it cut and dry, pretty simple. Just pin it on the girl. Who did you mean by the girl, by the way? The defendant.
Karen Reed? Yes, sir. Only fanning the fires for those claiming conspiracy. To say that it's troubling is to sugarcoat it.
When police ethics were brought into question, it struck a national nerve. On both ends, there is a distrust of authority. There's a distrust of police. And this case threads that needle. Local outcry grew louder, too. Honestly, I've never seen anything like it. Outside the courthouse, droves of supporters gathered daily in support of Karen Reid. What is...
What in the world is going on in Massachusetts, the birthplace of America? A woman's being railroaded and framed for a murder she didn't commit. Then suddenly, the whole world couldn't get enough. Role-playing as armchair detectives. Did she murder him or is she being framed? And the more I dug into it, the more I felt like I was Alice going down the rabbit hole.
Social media became captivated by the sensation, yet true justice for a remarkable man and the fate of a woman's life hung delicately in the balance. Would John O'Keefe's death remain a mystery? Could Karen Reid be convicted for a crime she potentially didn't commit? Or is it possible that a guilty woman could walk free?
After the 10-week trial, everyone had an opinion. There's just reasonable doubt dripping off the vine. The longer this trial has gone on, the more passionate people have gotten. There's a lot going on on social media, a lot of theories sort of floating around about the prosecution, about the judge. They're all in cahoots with each other.
Everybody should be upset by this because really, if you're sitting here thinking Karen Reid is guilty, then you should be also thinking that John O'Keefe was owed a proper investigation using proper investigative techniques by officers who are above reproach.
And just when you think the end is near, the 12 men and women tasked with deciding the fate of Karen Reed could not come to a unanimous decision. To end in a mistrial, it's just a confirmation of just how complicated this case is.
Law and Crime presents the most in-depth analysis to date of the sensational case, exploring the divisive theories and more by taking you behind the scenes of both the trial of Karen Reed and the investigation into John O'Keefe's mysterious death in Karen. You can listen to Karen exclusively with Wondery Plus. Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify.