Commonwealth v. Read — Trial ArchiveKarina Kolokithas
Karina Kolokithas was part of the social group that gathered at the Waterfall Bar & Grille on the evening of January 28, 2022, the last documented public setting where Karen Read and John O'Keefe were seen together. She testified about the couple's demeanor that night, the circumstances of their departure, and Jennifer McCabe's invitation to continue the evening at 34 Fairview Road. She appeared in both trials, offering firsthand observations about Read's statements regarding O'Keefe and the sequence of events as the bar closed.
Trial 1 vs Trial 2
In Trial 2, Kolokithas's testimony was more compact — two proceedings compared to four in Trial 1, with no redirect or recross. The prosecution's direct examination in Trial 2 focused on Read's demeanor, sobriety, and coherence at the bar, while defense attorney Hank Brennan's cross shifted the emphasis toward the celebratory mood of the evening and O'Keefe's character as kind and generous — a different framing than Trial 1's cross, which had focused on the McCabe invitation and the compressed timeline between the bar and 34 Fairview Road.