Massachusetts choose guidelines Karen Learn may be retried for homicide after mistrial

The Massachusetts choose presiding over the high-profile homicide trial of Karen Learn has rejected a protection movement to dismiss two costs, together with homicide, setting the stage for the case to be retried in January after jurors deadlocked this summer time.

Learn, 44, is accused of killing her boyfriend, the Boston police officer John O’Keefe, 46, by hitting him together with her sport-utility automobile and leaving him to die in a snowbank. She pleaded not responsible to costs together with second-degree homicide, manslaughter whereas drunk, and leaving the scene of a lethal crash.

A two-month trial led to July after the jury indicated a number of instances that its members have been deadlocked whereas deliberating a verdict. The choose Beverly Cannone declared a mistrial on the fifth day of unsuccessful deliberations.

O’Keefe, who served as a Boston police officer for 16 years, was discovered useless on 29 January 2022 outdoors the house of Brian Albert, a retired Boston officer who hosted a home get together within the suburb of Canton.

In line with investigators, O’Keefe had suffered a number of head accidents, together with a fractured cranium and a mind bleed. He additionally had hypothermia.

Prosecutors argued that Learn killed O’Keefe in an act of home violence. She is accused of driving over O’Keefe with an SUV whereas underneath the affect and fleeing the scene as O’Keefe died.

Her protection staff maintained that she was framed by corrupt officers making an attempt to cowl up the homicide of O’Keefe by others. She alleged that fabricated proof and false testimony unduly implicated her.

Protection attorneys additionally argued that a number of conflicts of pursuits prejudiced O’Keefe’s homicide investigation.

Attorneys for Learn had sought the dismissal of two of three costs, presenting proof that a number of jurors mentioned the jury had unanimously reached a not responsible verdict on these costs: second-degree homicide and leaving the scene. They mentioned the jury was deadlocked on the remaining manslaughter cost.

The protection argued that retrying Learn on the costs of homicide and leaving the scene would violate constitutional protections towards double jeopardy. However the choose mentioned the jurors didn’t inform the court docket throughout their deliberations that that they had reached a verdict on any of the costs.

In her ruling on Thursday, Cannone wrote: “After cautious consideration, this court docket concludes that as a result of the defendant was not acquitted on any of the costs and protection council consented to the court docket’s declaration of a mistrial, double jeopardy isn’t implicated by retrial of the defendant.”

The movement to dismiss the case towards Learn “is subsequently denied”, she added.

Attorneys for Learn mentioned they plan to attraction the choice to the next court docket.

“We respectfully however strongly disagree with the cornerstones of at this time’s rulings and totally intend an attraction to say and uphold Ms Learn’s rights underneath the double jeopardy clause,” the legal professional Martin G Weinberg mentioned in a press release shared by the native information outlet WCVB.