Person Tim Nuttall Trial 1Trial 2Canton firefighter-paramedic Tim Nuttall was among the first responders to arrive at 34 Fairview Road on January 29, 2022, and testified that Karen Read repeatedly said "I hit him" at the scene. ← All People
🗣️ Witness

Tim Nuttall

Trial 1Trial 2
836 lines 10 proceedings 2 trials
Courtroom still of Tim Nuttall.

About

Tim Nuttall is a Canton firefighter-paramedic who responded to the 911 call reporting an unresponsive male at 34 Fairview Road on January 29, 2022. He was one of the first medical professionals to examine John O'Keefe, documenting his injuries and initiating emergency care. His testimony centers on two things: the physical condition of O'Keefe when first responders arrived, and his account of hearing Karen Read say 'I hit him' at the scene — a statement he did not record in any report and first disclosed to Trooper Proctor ten days after the incident.

Key Points

  • Nuttall described finding O'Keefe unresponsive in the snow with a hematoma above his right eye, a back-of-head injury with matted blood, blackened eyes, and congealed scratches on his right upper arm — injuries he noted appeared non-bleeding and cold, suggesting prolonged exposure before discovery.
  • Nuttall testified that while rendering aid, he asked a bystander 'Do you know this person?' and received the response 'I hit him, I hit him' — placing Karen Read's alleged admission as a direct answer to his question, a detail central to the prosecution's case in both trials.
  • During cross-examination in both trials, Jackson established that Nuttall never documented the 'I hit him' statement in any report, never told hospital staff, and did not disclose it to investigators until February 8, 2022 — ten days after the incident — when he spoke with Trooper Proctor.
  • During Trial 2 cross-examination, Jackson used a selected dash cam segment to challenge Nuttall's account, eliciting that Read was not near him while Flatley performed CPR. Nuttall said that segment was not the statement moment; on redirect, he identified an earlier sequence of Read running toward the responder group, and on recross Jackson elicited that Flatley was not yet performing CPR at that earlier point despite Nuttall's earlier description.
  • Nuttall acknowledged under cross in both trials that his original account had Read speaking 'to another female' rather than directly to him, a distinction that shifted between his February 2022 statement to Proctor and his trial testimony.

Trial Record (10)

Trial 1 First Criminal Trial Apr 29, 2024 – Jul 1, 2024 3 proceedings

Day 2

Direct Tim Nuttall Adam Lally 2 highlights 135 lines spoken
Summary

Paramedic Timothy Nuttall described finding John O'Keefe unresponsive in the snow, emergency treatment and injury observations, and a reported statement from an unidentified individual at the scene.

Highlights (2)
Quote

“So I found him supine, laying in the snow. I immediately went to him and checked him for signs of life. We found none. We found no breathing, no pulse. So we immediately began performing high-quality CPR.”

Nuttall's firsthand account described the patient's condition when emergency personnel reached him and the immediate treatment response.

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Quote

“So as I was ventilating at the head, there was a small delay in just getting equipment, nothing significant. Just enough time that as I was ventilating, I was able to ask did anybody see anything, did anybody -- what happened? And there was one individual that replied several times, I hit him. I hit him.”

Nuttall testified that he heard the reported statement from an unidentified individual while providing care.

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Cross Tim Nuttall Alan Jackson 2 highlights 153 lines spoken
Summary

Nuttall acknowledged limits in his memory of the scene and was questioned about differences between his trial account and his prior statement concerning "I hit him."

Highlights (2)
Quote

“There is quite a few reasons that somebody could get an egg such as that over their head. I mean, you can get hit with a golf ball, for instance.”

Nuttall declined to attribute the hematoma to a single cause.

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Redirect Tim Nuttall Adam Lally 1 highlights 9 lines spoken
Summary

Nuttall said the observed injuries could have many causes and clarified his recollection of repeated statements heard while treating Mr. O'Keefe.

Highlights (1)
Quote

“As stated, a lot. It's not typically just physical altercations. It can be, again, a golf ball could hit you in the head that could cause similar injuries.”

Nuttall emphasized that the observed injuries could have multiple possible causes.

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Trial 2 Retrial Apr 22, 2025 – Jun 18, 2025 7 proceedings

Day 1

Direct Tim Nuttall Hank Brennan 6 highlights 139 lines spoken
Summary

Firefighter-paramedic Timothy Nuttall described finding John O'Keefe unresponsive in the snow, assisting with resuscitation, and hearing a statement he attributed to the defendant.

Highlights (6)
Quote

“There was, as I noted when I got out of the truck, quite a bit of screaming. It was quite chaotic.”

Nuttall described the scene conditions while explaining why the video did not capture all sounds and conversations.

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Show 2 more
Key Moment

Nuttall testified that he later learned the patient was John O'Keefe and joined the effort to treat the condition as a workable cardiac arrest in a hypothermic setting.

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Key Moment

Nuttall described the airway treatment, transport preparation, and injuries he observed, including a hematoma above O'Keefe's right eye, abrasions on his right arm, and blood in his hair at the back of his head.

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Cross Tim Nuttall Alan Jackson 3 highlights 148 lines spoken
Summary

Nuttall acknowledged inconsistencies between prior and current accounts of an alleged statement and of John O'Keefe's clothing.

Highlights (3)
Quote

“Correct. I believe I said "I hit him, I hit him" — twice — on the stand last year.”

Nuttall acknowledged the difference between his earlier and current accounts of the number of repetitions.

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Quote

“To be perfectly honest, sir, I did not remember until right now.”

Nuttall said he had not initially recalled that the meeting included discussion of his description of O'Keefe's clothing.

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Quote

“They were deep. I infamously referred to them as furrows. They were quite deep. You could tell that there had been some material removed.”

Nuttall described the scratches he observed on O'Keefe's right arm.

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Cross Tim Nuttall Alan Jackson 2 highlights 127 lines spoken
Summary

Defense counsel challenged Nuttall's memory and prior account of the alleged statement, then used dash-camera video to examine his description of the resuscitation scene.

Highlights (2)
Quote

“Those injuries could be sustained in a numerous amount of ways. Yes, it could be. It could be from that. It could be from others as well.”

Nuttall did not attribute the injuries to one cause and agreed a punch was one possible cause.

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Quote

“I do distinctly remember "I hit him. I hit him. I hit him."”

Nuttall distinguished his present recollection of the alleged statement from the account defense counsel attributed to Trooper Proctor's report.

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Redirect Tim Nuttall Hank Brennan 2 highlights 56 lines spoken
Summary

Nuttall used a timestamped video to identify the emergency-response sequence and again said the defendant told him, "I hit him," three times.

Highlights (2)
Quote

“I don't remember the interview with Trooper Proctor. I remember it happened. I don't remember the substance of what was discussed entirely. And I remember — we discussed that morning.”

Nuttall distinguished limited recall of a later interview from his recollection of the emergency scene.

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Recross Tim Nuttall Alan Jackson 3 highlights 62 lines spoken
Summary

Jackson used Nuttall's treatment focus and video footage to challenge the timing and detail of his recollection of hearing "I hit him."

Highlights (3)
Quote

“I heard "I hit him." But again, it was in the background and it was not my focus.”

Nuttall qualified his recollection of additional alleged statements as background sound during patient care.

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Quote

“Correct. Again, the clip that you showed me, that was not when it was said. That segment that you showed, that was not when it was said. It was said prior to that when the three of us were together.”

Nuttall maintained a different timing for the alleged statement when confronted with the video sequence.

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Locations Touched By This Testimony