Person Laura McLaughlin Trial 1Trial 2Assistant district attorney for the Commonwealth in Karen Read’s criminal trials. ← All People
🏛️ Prosecution · Norfolk County DA

Laura McLaughlin

Assistant district attorney for the Commonwealth in Karen Read’s criminal trials.

Trial 1Trial 2
152 lines 35 proceedings 2 trials

About

Laura McLaughlin represented the Commonwealth in Karen Read’s criminal trials. At the first trial’s charge conference, she addressed proposed jury instructions on homicide and motor-vehicle offenses. She asked the judge to include language about using a motor vehicle as a dangerous weapon, arguing that it could help jurors assess intent and recklessness. Judge Cannone said she would include it. McLaughlin also sought a consciousness-of-guilt instruction, arguing that missing Ring video and the movement of Read’s vehicle after John O’Keefe’s death supported an inference of concealment. Defense counsel responded that there was no evidence Read could access or delete the video and that moving the vehicle to her parents’ home did not show guilt. The judge reserved her decision on the instruction. During the retrial, McLaughlin sought to introduce two recorded clips and identified the Commonwealth’s next witness.

Trial Record (35)

35 proceedings

Trial 1 First Criminal Trial Apr 29, 2024 – Jul 1, 2024 25 proceedings

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Direct Nicholas Guarino Direct Examination: Phone Records and Location Data Nicholas Guarino Adam Lally 1 highlights 1 lines spoken
Summary

Guarino presented phone, voicemail, and location-data evidence; Judge Cannone excluded a Google search for DUI attorneys from the Commonwealth's case-in-chief.

Highlights (1)
Key Moment

After argument outside the jury's presence, Judge Cannone excluded from the Commonwealth's case-in-chief a January 29 Google search for DUI attorneys, finding its prejudicial impact outweighed its probative value.

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Trial 2 Retrial Apr 22, 2025 – Jun 18, 2025 10 proceedings

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