ABC News' exclusive interview with Karen Read to air at 9 p.m. on '20/20'

Published: Sep 05, 2024 Duration: 00:04:17 Category: News & Politics

Tags : ABC News manchester new hampshire Boston karen read john o'keefe WMUR 20/20

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WE HEAD TOWARDS EARLY NEXT WEEK. IT IS THE NEW ENGLAND CASE THAT'S FIXATED THE NATION THIS SUMMER. KAREN REID IS THE WOMAN CHARGED WITH SECOND DEGREE MURDER IN THE DEATH OF HER BOSTON POLICE OFFICER BOYFRIEND, JOHN O'KEEFE. HER FIRST TRIAL ENDED IN A MISTRIAL, AND IT IS THE SUBJECT OF TONIGHT'S ALL NEW EPISODE OF 2020. WE'RE JOINED BY ABC NEWS CHIEF NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT MATT GUTMAN, WHO SAT DOWN WITH KAREN REID AND JOHN O'KEEFE'S FAMILY. MATT, THANKS SO MUCH FOR JOINING US. TELL US, WHY DID KAREN REID AGREE TO SIT DOWN AND TALK ABOUT HER MISTRIAL? SHE TALKED ABOUT HER TRIAL AND ABOUT HER CASE AND THIS WAS ALMOST ABOUT A YEAR AGO. WHAT WAS INTERESTING ABOUT THAT IS THAT IT'S VERY UNUSUAL FOR A DEFENSE ATTORNEY WHO IS REPRESENTING SOMEBODY WHO FACES MURDER CHARGES TO ALLOW THEIR CLIENT TO SIT DOWN FOR A NO HOLDS BARRED INTERVIEW BEFORE TRIAL. AND THIS IS ONE OF THE THINGS THAT'S SO DISTINGUISHES THIS CASE FROM ALMOST ANY OTHER THAT I'VE WORKED ON, BECAUSE THE DEFENSE HERE ESSENTIALLY WENT ON THE ATTACK, ALLOWING THIS CASE TO BE TRIED IN SOME WAYS IN THE COURT OF PUBLIC OPINION BEFORE THE TRIAL, EVEN BEGAN. AND SO WHAT THEY WANTED TO DO IS PUT FORTH THIS SORT OF ALTERNATE SERIES OF EVENTS, AN ALTERNATE THEORY OF WHAT THEY ACTUALLY BELIEVE HAPPENED THAT NIGHT, AS OPPOSED TO WHAT THE PROSECUTION BELIEVES, WHICH WAS THAT IN A FIT OF RAGE, KAREN REID BACKED UP HER SUV REALLY FAST INTO JOHN O'KEEFE, A POLICE OFFICER FROM BOSTON PD OF 16 YEARS, ESSENTIALLY, WHO HAD ADOPTED HIS TWO. HIS NIECE AND NEPHEW, KILLING HIM AND LEAVING HIM IN THE SNOW TO DIE. BUT THAT IS NOT WHAT THE DEFENSE SAYS OR BELIEVES HAPPENED. AND IN PRETRIAL MOTIONS, THEY LAID OUT THIS COVER UP POSSIBLE CONSPIRACY, WHICH THE PUBLIC LEAPED UPON AND THAT'S WHERE WE GOT TO. AND THAT'S WHERE WE ARE TODAY WITH THIS STORY. SO SHE OFFERED HER VERSION OF EVENTS AND, YOU KNOW, I CAME UPON SOMEONE WHO WAS VERY, VERY ASSERTIVE, VERY CONFIDENT OF WHAT THEY BELIEVED AND DID NOT IN ANY WAY BETRAY EVEN A SHADOW OF A DOUBT THAT SHE DID NOT KILL JOHN O'KEEFE. OBVIOUSLY, THE PROSECUTION BELIEVES SOMETHING VERY, VERY DIFFERENT. SO AT THIS POINT, HER NEXT CASE IS SCHEDULED FOR JANUARY. DID SHE TALK ABOUT PREPARING FOR THAT? NO, BUT THEY TELL US ESSENTIALLY THAT IT'S GOING TO BE THE SAME THING. THE PROSECUTION IS GOING TO PRESENT VIRTUALLY THE SAME CASE WITH THE SAME CHARGES. THERE IS SOMETHING ELSE THAT FACES KAREN REID IN THE NEAR FUTURE, AND THAT IS A WRONGFUL DEATH. CIVIL SUIT BROUGHT FORTH BY JOHN O'KEEFE'S FAMILY AGAINST HER. SO SHE IS GOING TO BE INVOLVED IN TWO VERY SIGNIFICANT TRIALS AND LEGAL PROCEEDINGS IN THE COMING MONTHS. IT'S UNCLEAR HOW THAT IS GOING TO AFFECT HER, BUT ONE THING THAT I THINK THAT THEY'VE GOT TO BE WORRIED ABOUT IS THAT IT'S GOING TO BE EXPENSIVE. IT'S UNCLEAR HOW SHE'S GOING TO FUND BOTH OF THESE TRIALS CONCURRENTLY. JEANNE, WHAT DID THE LOVED ONES OF JOHN O'KEEFE TELL YOU AND DID THEY TALK ABOUT THE MISTRIAL AND THAT UPCOMING TRIAL? THEY WERE HEARTBROKEN BY IT. OBVIOUSLY, THEY WANT JUSTICE FOR JJ, AS THEY'VE BEEN CALLING JOHN O'KEEFE, AND IT WAS ALSO HARD FOR THEM TO EXPERIENCE THE HATRED THAT THEY WERE SUBJECTED TO BY SOME OF KAREN REID'S SUPPORTERS GOING UP THE STEPS TO THE DEDHAM COURTHOUSE THERE FOR THIS MURDER TRIAL. THE FAMILY OF THE VICTIM WAS SHOUTED DOWN, TOLD THAT THEY HAD DONE SOMETHING WRONG, AND IT WAS HEARTBREAKING FOR THE FAMILY MEMBERS AND THEIR CONCERN IS THAT JOHN O'KEEFE, THIS LOVABLE BEAR OF A GUY WHO EVERYBODY LOVED, WHO TOOK IN HIS NIECE AND NEPHEW AFTER HIS SISTER DIED, AND THEN HER HUSBAND, HIS BROTHER IN LAW DIED, ESSENTIALLY ADOPTED THEM. THIS LOVABLE GUY WAS LOST IN THE SHUFFLE OF THE KAREN REID STORY AND CIRCUS AROUND THE TRIAL. AND SO THEY REALLY WANTED TO BRING IT BACK TO WHO THE VICTIM WAS IN THIS CASE. AND I THINK THAT THEY DID A PRETTY ADMIRABLE JOB OF THAT IN OUR INTERVIEW. JEANNE, A LOT OF PEOPLE WILL BE WATCHING YOUR INTERVIEW. ABC NEWS CHIEF NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT MATT GUTMAN, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR TIME. THANK YOU. TONIGHT'S ALL NEW TWO HOUR 2020. KAREN REID. THE PERFECT STORM STARTS AT 9 P.

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