Commonwealth v. Read — Trial Archive Law Enforcement · Boston PD
Kelly Dever
Trial 2
276 lines 7 proceedings
About
Officer Kelly Dever was assigned to the Canton Police Department dispatch room overnight on January 28–29, 2022. In an August 2023 law-enforcement interview, she said she had seen Brian Higgins and Canton Police Chief Kenneth Berkowitz enter the Sallyport with the SUV; by Trial 2 she said new information had convinced her that memory was false. She also testified about a contested claim that defense attorneys threatened her with perjury during a pretrial call and about a meeting with Boston Police Commissioner Michael Cox before trial.
Key Points
- Dever confirmed under direct examination that she had told law enforcement agents on August 9, 2023, that she saw Brian Higgins and Chief Kenneth Berkowitz go into the Sallyport together and alone — the core prior statement the defense had sought to introduce — but testified that she no longer believed that memory was accurate.
- Dever testified that Boston Police Commissioner Michael Cox summoned her to his office and told her to 'do the right thing'; Jackson questioned her about the unusual meeting and its timing.
- On cross-examination, Dever accused the defense team of becoming aggressive during a pre-trial phone call, raising their voices and threatening to charge her with perjury — a claim she said was the clearest word she remembered from the exchange.
- During redirect, Jackson confronted Dever with the lack of documentation for the alleged perjury threat: she had reported it to the FBI, she said, but acknowledged there was no formal report — only an email in which someone acknowledged she had said she felt pressured.
- On re-redirect, Brennan asked Dever whether affirming the August 2023 account would implicate two fellow officers. Dever disputed that the prior account was true and said she was testifying truthfully.
Trial Record (7)
Trial 2 Retrial Apr 22, 2025 – Jun 18, 2025 7 proceedings
Day 24
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