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Karen Read Tells Her Story (Part 2): A New Trial Looms in Massachusetts

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Karen Read Tells Her Story (Part 2): A New Trial Looms in Massachusetts


Read housed Yannetti, Jackson, Little, and herself in the same hotel throughout the trial so they could maximize preparation time. She paid $1.2 million leading up to and during the nine-week court proceedings between bails; accommodating, feeding, and transporting three lawyers; and hiring private investigators and experts. For that, she used her savings, about $500,000 from her since-depleted legal fund, and $400,000 donated by friends and family. She now has more than $5 million in deferred legal bills and a second trial looming.

The first one was “trial on a budget,” according to Read. Since she couldn’t afford to fly out support staff from Jackson and Little’s firm, Read became the support staff herself. She negotiated rates with two Uber drivers to shuttle the team to and from court. Read is aware her team has been photographed exiting (discounted) SUVs and surrounded by (volunteer) security, and dining out (the bill often picked up by friends or family members). As for criticism that her team occasionally enjoys upscale restaurants, she says, “You try feeding Alan Jackson McDonald’s.”

“We don’t typically work that closely with clients,” says Little, who became partner during trial due to her long hours. “But in this case, we needed every hand on deck.”

“LOCK THIS WHACK JOB UP”

About 10 months after O’Keefe’s death, the Office of the US Attorney for Massachusetts empaneled a federal grand jury as part of an investigation into an unspecified federal crime related to Norfolk County’s handling of Read’s case. The impetus is unknown; Levy will not comment on active investigations and, nearly two years into the probe, his team has not yet reached a conclusion. “When the FBI steps in, that usually is an indication that they are in possession of some information that is extremely damaging to the law enforcement agencies involved,” says Tom Nolan, a 27-year Boston police officer turned criminal justice professor at Emmanuel College who is not involved in Read’s case. Last year, the Alberts, McCabes, and other witnesses were subpoenaed to testify before the federal grand jury, according to state court proceedings.

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It is incredibly logistically complicated to pursue a federal investigation into an active state murder investigation—in part because two agencies are interviewing the same witnesses simultaneously. Zach Hafer, a former federal prosecutor and Cooley LLP partner, tells me, “I can’t think of a time in my 14 years in the US Attorney’s Office where that happened. Presumably, it’s some type of federal obstruction or witness-tampering investigation—a cover-up of some sort.”

“In these types of cases, it is common for prosecutors to grant certain witnesses immunity to help them determine what happened and whether there is a provable federal crime. The US Attorney’s Office has always prioritized the prosecution of law enforcement misconduct,” says Hafer, pointing out that making false statements to a federal agent is a felony carrying a five-year sentence. “So even if an individual wasn’t guilty of the underlying offense—here, murder—lying about it after the fact to federal investigators is another potential charge.”

Shortly before the trial began, the feds provided more than 3,000 pages of findings to the defense and prosecution, including Proctor’s texts about Read.
A sampling:

she’s a babe, weird fall river accent though, no ass

She’s got a leaky balloon knot, leaks poo

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Waiting to lock this whack job up

Hopefully she kills herself.

The federal investigation found that Brian Albert destroyed his cell phone the day before receiving a protection order to preserve it and its contents. (Albert said the timing was a coincidence, and he was due for an upgrade.) Also: that on January 30, Higgins, the ATF agent who’d been at the Alberts’, asked another federal agent for advice on extracting phone data. Months later, he drove to a military base to dispose of his destroyed phone and SIM card. (Higgins testified that the target of a different investigation had found his contact information.) The feds also determined that Higgins went to the Canton Police Station—where he worked from—after leaving the Albert home, though he was off duty and had been drinking. (He says he was reshuffling cars.) He spent much of the following day, a Saturday when he was still off duty, there—passing through the garage where Read’s car was eventually kept—until about 6 p.m. The federal investigation found a 22-second call between Albert and Higgins at 2:22 a.m.—five minutes before McCabe’s alleged “hos long to die in cold” search. The men said that both the dialing and pickup of those calls were “butt dials.”

Though the federal findings were disclosed, Morrissey appealed to Cannone days before the trial began to prohibit mention of the federal investigation in court, arguing that it would be prejudicial. Cannone approved the request, meaning Read’s lawyers could not so much as utter the letters “FBI” before the jury. When questioning forensic reconstructionists hired by the Department of Justice, for example, the most Jackson could say was that they were hired by an independent agency. Several jurors reportedly took that to mean they worked for an insurance company.



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Massachusetts

Mass. House votes to set new rules for DiZoglio’s audit

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Mass. House votes to set new rules for DiZoglio’s audit


Twenty-eight lawmakers dissented Wednesday as the Massachusetts House voted to set new terms around what state Auditor Diana DiZoglio would be able to review in the legislative audit voters authorized her to carry out in 2024.

Almost all House Democrats voted for the measure, which also proposes to make more state government records accessible to the public. Three Democrats — Cambridge Rep. Mike Connolly, Attleboro Rep. Jim Hawkins and Fall River Rep. Alan Silvia — joined the body’s 25 Republicans in voting no.

Speaker Ron Mariano said the bill responds to an ongoing call from voters for more transparency out of Beacon Hill and provides a path forward in lieu of a what he called “politically motivated audit conducted in violation of the Constitution.”

Leaders of the House and Senate have resisted DiZoglio’s audit push, arguing that a probe by the auditor’s office would run afoul of the separation of powers laid out in the state Constitution, bringing the legislative branch under the review of a piece of the executive branch.

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“We are not accountable to any constitutional officer,” said Rep. Mindy Domb, an Amherst Democrat. “We are only accountable to our constituents.”

Taunton Rep. Lisa Field, a Democrat in her first term, said she was among the 72% of Massachusetts voters who backed the audit ballot question in 2024.

“Due to legitimate concerns and questions about constitutional privileges and separation of powers, we have been stuck on this audit issue for more than a year,” Field said. “Let’s not be like Washington, D.C. and accept such gridlock — not about the audit and not about public records. Let’s not let perfect be the enemy of good progress.”

The House’s bill would authorize DiZoglio to review what it defines as the “administrative functions” of the Legislature, going back to the 2021 fiscal year. Those areas include the adoption of annual budgets, official audits of the House and Senate by independent firms, spending by both chambers, and the execution of any financial settlements with lawmakers and employees.

It would also newly apply the state’s public records law to the governor’s office, and create a process by which people could request and receive certain legislative files.

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Massachusetts is currently the only state where the Legislature, governor and judiciary all claim to be exempt from the public records law.

Warren Republican Rep. Todd Smola described the process that led up to Wednesday’s vote as opaque in and of itself. Mariano last week said the House would take up what he called comprehensive transparency legislation, but did not say when or what, specifically, the bill would do.

The bill was circulated to members of the House Ways and Means Committee around 10:30 a.m. Tuesday, and committee members had a little over a half hour to vote on whether to advance it. Smola, the ranking Republican on the committee, said during that 34-minute window, “we had members on both sides of the political aisle that were calling each other back and forth to say, ‘Can you explain this portion to me?’”

“We are so much better than the process that has unfolded,” he said. “And for the sake of people that are asking us for transparency, that is not transparency. That’s the opposite of transparency.”

Rep. Michael Soter, a Bellingham Republican, said he was particularly concerned with a part of the bill that removes the courts from settling disputes between the auditor and the Legislature.

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He said that by setting its own rules around an audit, the House would be “ensuring the auditor can only see exactly what we allow her to see and nothing more.”

It’s not clear yet if the Senate will pass the bill. Last week, state senators voted to turn over a limited set of documents to DiZoglio. The documents the Senate plans to provide mirror the records she would be allowed to review under the House bill.

Asked if he expected the Senate to agree to the legislation, Mariano on Tuesday said only, “I talked to the Senate.”



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French-Mediterranean Eatery Charts Opening In Boston

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French-Mediterranean Eatery Charts Opening In Boston


BOSTON, MA — An international restaurant group with locations across the globe is preparing to open its first Massachusetts restaurant this year.

LPM Restaurant & Bar, a French Riviera-inspired restaurant founded in London, is set to open on the second floor of the Four Seasons Hotel One Dalton Street in Back Bay, according to Four Seasons. The hotel lists the restaurant as “Opening Summer 2026,” while the Boston Business Journal reported the restaurant plans to open in September.

The Boston restaurant will mark LPM’s debut in the Northeast and its third U.S. outpost, following locations in Miami and Las Vegas, according to a Four Seasons announcement.

LPM, also known as La Petite Maison, was founded in London in 2007 and is known for French-Mediterranean food, Mediterranean ingredients and dining rooms influenced by Belle Époque design.

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The business operates locations in London, Dubai, Miami, Abu Dhabi, Hong Kong, Riyadh, Limassol, Doha, Mykonos, Kuwait, Boston, Maldives and Bangkok.

Four Seasons said LPM will take over the space that formerly housed One Dalton’s breakfast concept, One + One. The restaurant will join other dining options at the hotel, including Zuma and Trifecta.

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Massachusetts high school under investigation after teachers diagnosed with breast cancer

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Massachusetts high school under investigation after teachers diagnosed with breast cancer


A Massachusetts high school is under investigation after “several” teachers have been diagnosed with breast cancer or precancerous conditions.

The state Department of Public Health is set to visit Uxbridge High School on Thursday to “conduct a series of air quality tests,” to determine whether the multiple cases are potentially connected.

Superintendent David Ljungberg and Principal Michael Rubin alerted families and district staff on Monday of the “sombering news,” after Uxbridge High School’s graduation over the weekend.

“We are writing to inform you about a concern we are investigating at Uxbridge High School,” Ljungberg and Rubin stated in the letter. “Several female teachers have been diagnosed with breast cancer or precancerous conditions over the past few years.”

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“It is, of course, possible that these multiple cases are not connected to one another,” the leaders added, “but out of abundance of caution, we are looking into any environmental factors at the school that may be a factor in their diagnoses.”

The 123,000-square-foot school, with an enrollment of roughly 600, was constructed in 2012 at a cost of $45 million, including a $22-million state reimbursement.

Uxbridge school leaders say they notified the state Department of Health and local health board as soon as they became aware of the cases, seeking “counsel about how best to proceed.”

“Massachusetts DPH officials have indicated that there is no evidence of immediate danger in the building and no reason to limit access to or use of the facility at this time,” they wrote in their letter. “In fact, the public health officials have commended our decision to approach them with these concerns, our readiness to partner with them in support of the evaluation process.”

Health officials are assessing the school’s interior and exterior to “ensure there are no issues with the infrastructure that would present risks (including electrical, plumbing, mechanical, HVAC, and other systems)” and the indoor and outdoor air quality on campus.

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The superintendent and principal said that state officials have ruled out water supply as a “risk factor” after “thorough testing.”

“The team has reached out to the women who have been diagnosed, requesting data to evaluate whether there may be a connection among their cases,” Ljungberg and Rubin wrote. “We are grateful for their cooperation.”

They added that the state has said discovering an environmental “smoking gun” is “rare” in workplace investigations.

“However, even if a direct causal link is not established,” the leaders wrote, “the administration is utilizing this process to rigorously test the building and guarantee that it meets all safety standards moving forward.”

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