Commonwealth v. Read — Trial ArchiveGreg Woodbury
Testimony Impact
Lt. Greg Woodbury of Canton Fire responded to 34 Fairview Road on January 29, 2022, where he assessed John O'Keefe's injuries and observed his position in the snow. He later responded to a Section 12 call for Karen Read, during which he witnessed her emotional state and heard her repeatedly ask whether O'Keefe was dead. His Trial 1 testimony addressed both the physical evidence observed at the scene and Read's demeanor during the Section 12 encounter.
Challenges & Responses
What attorneys challenged during examination and how the witness responded.
On cross, Yannetti pressed Woodbury on whether he observed actual tears from Karen Read, to which Woodbury acknowledged he did not see tears but described her emotional display as distressed. Woodbury also clarified on cross that the scratch marks on O'Keefe's arm extended above the elbow, not just on the forearm as initially described, adjusting his account when shown Exhibit 382.
Notable Quotes From The Record
“He was lying supine on the ground — on his back. He was parallel to the street, about 8 feet away from the snowbank.”
Establishes O'Keefe's exact position relative to the street and snowbank when found.
“He had a hematoma, or bruising, of the right eye — was very prominent. There was some scratches on the right forearm — was most of the external injuries we noted.”
First responder's observation of visible injuries during secondary survey in the ambulance.
“That someone said she'd hit him, and he was last seen —”
Stricken testimony about what firefighter Moffin relayed — briefly entered the record before being sustained on objection.
“She kept repeating, 'Is he dead? Is he dead?' She seemed very concerned about that.”
Documents Karen Read's emotional state and primary concern when firefighters returned for the Section 12 call.
“I didn't see any actual tears, but — that type, that type of emotional display.”
Woodbury described an emotional display while qualifying that he did not see actual tears.
“Being hypothermic, he was very pale overall, so the skin wasn't pinked up yet. It's hard to really judge the rest of the skin that way until it's warmed up.”
Establishes that O'Keefe's hypothermic condition limited what could be observed about injuries or lividity at the scene.
“It was the right — like forearm to arm. I was trying to signal, like, right up here — but yeah, I guess that's— it wasn't just on the— just not just— it was the arm area. What I mostly noticed was forearm, but there was some around there.”
Woodbury described the observed area as forearm to arm, saying he mostly noticed the forearm with some marks around there.
Key Moments
- Woodbury placed O'Keefe's body precisely — lying supine, parallel to the street, approximately eight feet from the snowbank — establishing the physical layout of the scene for the jury.
- During his secondary survey of O'Keefe in the ambulance, Woodbury observed a prominent hematoma on the right eye and scratch marks on the right forearm, providing the first detailed first-responder account of O'Keefe's visible injuries.
- Woodbury testified that O'Keefe's hypothermic condition — leaving his skin very pale and not 'pinked up' — limited what could be assessed about injuries or lividity at the scene, a detail the defense drew out on cross.
- When called back to respond to a Section 12 order for Karen Read, Woodbury observed her repeatedly asking 'Is he dead? Is he dead?' — a detail both sides cited, prosecution as evidence of consciousness of guilt and defense as evidence of genuine grief and shock.
- A portion of Woodbury's testimony was stricken after he began to relay what firefighter Moffin had told him about Read — the court sustained the objection before he could complete the statement, briefly introducing and then removing the hearsay from the record.