Connect with us

Massachusetts

Karen Read has ‘one foot out of Massachusetts,’ John O’Keefe’s family’s lawyer claims in lawsuit

Published

on

Karen Read has ‘one foot out of Massachusetts,’ John O’Keefe’s family’s lawyer claims in lawsuit


Murder defendant Karen Read has “one foot out of Massachusetts,” according to John O’Keefe’s family’s lawyer who wants to “lock in” testimony from Read in the wrongful death lawsuit.

While the attorney for the O’Keefe family wrote in the new court filing that Read has sold her Mansfield home, a real estate agent told the Herald that the home has not officially sold yet but is under contract.

Whenever a sale happens for the home listed at $849,900, Read’s criminal defense attorneys — listed as lenders on the mortgage — are set for a big windfall, the Herald has learned.

The family of the late Boston police officer has brought the wrongful death suit against Read and two Canton bars after O’Keefe died following a night out with an allegedly drunk Read, who drove him to another cop’s home at the end of the night.

Advertisement

Read’s criminal murder trial ended in a mistrial earlier this year, and now a second trial is expected to start in January. While that trial is pending, Read’s civil attorneys and the two Canton bars are trying to delay the wrongful death suit.

But in a new filing from the O’Keefe family lawyer, the family is pushing for the civil lawsuit to go on as the criminal case plays out.

“The O’Keefe family also has compelling reasons to lock in testimony from Karen Read, who seeks not only to poison the jury pool with her regular communications with the media, reporters and/or bloggers, but also has one foot out of Massachusetts now that her house has sold,” the family lawyer Marc Diller wrote in the new filing.

“It is feasible for both (criminal and civil cases) to proceed concurrently without imposing undue burden upon witnesses or parties,” the lawyer added. “To avoid prejudice based on witness unavailability, failed memories and/or Karen Read’s attempts to poison the jury pool through her public statements, this Court should exercise its discretion to DENY a stay of the civil case pending the criminal matter’s resolution.”

Read’s civil defense attorneys did not immediately respond to comment on Wednesday.

Advertisement

Read’s home

Read bought her four-bed, three-bath, two-story colonial on nearly a full acre lot at 481 Gilbert St. in Mansfield in 2017 and listed it for sale over the summer for $849,900, records show.

The law firms for both David Yannetti and Alan Jackson, Read’s attorneys in the criminal case, in September each received large mortgages from Karen Read on the home at 481 Gilbert St., according to North Bristol County Registry of Deeds records.

Two legal experts the Herald spoke with confirmed that it’s common for lawyers to put up a mortgage for a client to secure legal fees when a home sells. Indeed, each mortgage document states that Read owes $200,000 plus interest, a debt to be made in regular payments with the full debt paid off no later than Oct. 1, 2054.

Neither Yannetti nor Jackson returned Herald calls for comment on this mortgage arrangement.

The home on the west side of Gilbert Street was built in 1972 and was most recently appraised at $598,800, according to Mansfield town property records.

Advertisement

The case

Read is charged with second-degree murder (Count 1), manslaughter while operating a motor vehicle under the influence (Count 2), and leaving the scene of an accident resulting in death (Count 3).

Following the mistrial earlier this year, her attorneys filed a motion to have Counts 1 and 3 dismissed in the next trial as they claim that jurors from the original trial have come forward to say they were ready to acquit her on those charges unanimously and were only hung on Count 2 but didn’t know that they could return a partial verdict.

Trial Judge Beverly J. Cannone denied the motion and Read’s team has since appealed to the SJC. That appeal is pending.

Originally Published:



Source link

Advertisement

Massachusetts

A magical holiday village is tucked inside Massachusetts’ most famous candle store

Published

on

A magical holiday village is tucked inside Massachusetts’ most famous candle store


Yankee Candle is a staple in the Bay State, famous for its colorful jars full of fragrance and warm light.

And while its candles can essentially be bought from anywhere, the mothership of the iconic candles lies in South Deerfield at Yankee Candle Village.

The flagship store, known for its ginormous collection of Yankee Candle scents and retail goods, is a winter holiday destination for those in New England.

  • This is the most popular candle scent in Massachusetts, according to The Loupe

Leading up to Christmas, the store turns into a complete holiday stop.

Now on prominent display are the brand’s many different winter scents, including such classics as Red Apple Wreath and Balsam & Cedar, and such holiday scents as Christmas Cookie and North Pole Greetings.

Advertisement

Bavarian Christmas Village, arguably the most festive room in Yankee Candle Village, is Christmas all year. Guests will stroll through an enchanted forest featuring a 25-foot-tall Christmas tree, nutcrackers, winter village displays and even indoor snow that falls every 4 minutes.

  • ‘Disneyland’ Leverett estate of Yankee Candle founder Michael J. Kittredge II for sale at $23 million

But scattered throughout the flagship store are hints of Christmas and a winter wonderland — from the home section filled with holiday kitchen decor to the Toy Shop filled with jolly trinkets.

Santa even pays a visit to the Yankee Candle Village, hosting a storytime with kids every Monday through Thursday at 11:30 a.m.

And if the shopping and holiday joy become overwhelming, the store even has cafes that offer a bite to eat. Guests can also indulge in sweet treats in its candy store or try freshly made fudge.

Yankee Candle Village is located at 25 Greenfield Road in South Deerfield. It is open daily from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

  • Yankee Candle will close 20 stores; parent to lay off 900 employees



Source link

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Massachusetts

Two stranded dolphins rescued from Massachusetts marsh

Published

on

Two stranded dolphins rescued from Massachusetts marsh


It swims in the family.

A mother and calf wandered off the beaten path and got stranded in a Massachusetts marsh, forcing an emergency mammal rescue crew to save the wayward dolphin pair.

On Dec. 8, the Wareham Department of Natural Resources responded to a report of two stranded dolphins in the area of Beaverdam Creek off of the Weweantic River, a 17-mile tributary that drains into Buzzards Bay, which directly connects to the Atlantic Ocean.

When crews arrived, two common dolphins were located alive and active, but partially out of the water stranded in the marsh, according to the Wareham Department of Natural Resources.

Advertisement

Responding authorities alerted the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) Marine Mammal Stranding Response Team, based in Cape Cod.

IFAW team members put the dolphins on stretchers and brought them to safety, where they conducted preliminary tests on the wayward dolphins.

The IFAW team placed the dolphins onto stretchers to bring them to safety. Wareham Department of Natural Resources

“Our teams were easily able to extract the animals and transport them via our custom-built rescue vehicle,” Stacey Hedman, senior director of communications for IFAW, said.

The dolphins were weighed; the smaller of the two weighed approximately 90 lbs, and the larger mammal around 150 lbs.

Upon further analysis, it was revealed that the dolphins were an adult female and a socially-dependent juvenile female, a mother and calf pair.

Advertisement
The small dolphin weighed 90 lbs, with the larger one coming in at roughly 150 lbs. Wareham Department of Natural Resources
Upon further analysis, it was revealed that the dolphins were an adult female and a socially-dependent juvenile female, a mother and calf pair. IFAW

According to Hedman, IFAW had some concerns over the mother’s decreased responsiveness and abnormal blood work, though it was deemed the pair was healthy enough to release back into the ocean at West Dennis Beach in Dennis, Mass.

“By releasing them into an area with many other dolphins around, this would hopefully increase their chances of socialization and survival. Both animals have satellite tags that are still successfully tracking,” Hedman said.



Source link

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Massachusetts

Man seriously injured after being thrown from moving vehicle during domestic dispute

Published

on

Man seriously injured after being thrown from moving vehicle during domestic dispute


A 19-year-old Massachusetts man was seriously injured after he was thrown from a moving vehicle he had grabbed onto during a domestic dispute Thursday morning.

Duxbury police said they responded to a report of an injured male who might have been struck by a vehicle on Chandler Street around 5:22 a.m. and found a 19-year-old Pembroke man lying in the roadway with serious injuries.

Through interviews with witnesses, officers learned that the man had gone to his ex-girlfriend’s residence on Chandler Street to confront her current boyfriend. An altercation ensued, during which police said the 19-year-old appears to have jumped on the hood of a vehicle and was then thrown from the moving vehicle.

The incident remains under investigation, police said. At this time, they said no charges have been filed.

Advertisement



Source link

Continue Reading

Trending