A lawsuit filed Thursday in Bristol County Superior Court sees Karen Read allege that the Massachusetts State Police and the town of Canton failed to properly hire, train, and supervise officers, leading to a wrongful prosecution of her in the death of Boston police officer John O’Keefe.
Read was declared a free woman after more than three years and two trials over the incident. She faced charges of second‑degree murder, manslaughter and leaving the scene, but a jury convicted her of drunken driving. Prosecutors say a night of heavy drinking turned into a fatal SUV collision that left O’Keefe dead in a blizzard.
Read’s lawyers argued that the investigation was tainted by institutional rot and that the lead investigator, Michael Proctor, displayed bias, even sending defamatory texts about her. Proctor was subsequently fired after the Massachusetts State Police trial board found he had harassed Read.
The complaint names former Canton police Sgt. Sean Goode as another unfit participant. Goode was placed on leave after misconduct allegations and resigned early this week.
In the file, Read presents dozens of pages of texts, recordings and other communications that she says show racist, sexist, and other derogatory remarks from Proctor and Goode. She claims those remarks demonstrate a broader failure of oversight within state and local law enforcement.
The town of Canton and its police department have not yet responded to requests for comment.
}
