Day 4 - May 3, 2024

Katie McLaughlin testified that John O'Keefe was wearing jeans, a dark-colored light zip-up jacket, and one sneaker; she said his clothing was soaked through and that she saw no tears or holes. Shown Exhibit 18, she identified 34 Fairview Road as the call address and said she remembered the patient as off the road, to the left of the house near a fire hydrant.

Defense counsel used Exhibit 381 to examine Katie McLaughlin about the positions of Karen Read, a civilian woman, and a police officer when McLaughlin reported hearing a statement. McLaughlin agreed that her January 30 report to Trooper Michael Proctor described Read as turning to her friend and repeating the statement. She said she did not personally make a contemporaneous report or note, and, after disputing that her testimony was different, agreed her story had evolved. The judge also limited testimony about an ambulance conversation after an objection.

Outside the jury's presence, the court marked four social-media items as Exhibits H through K for identification and allowed defense counsel to question Katie McLaughlin about them, while warning that admission could be difficult. McLaughlin testified that she had known Caitlin Albert since high school, shared mutual friends with her, and appeared with her in old photographs, but initially characterized Albert as an acquaintance rather than a close friend. After further questioning, she said she would consider Albert a close friend. McLaughlin said she had never discussed the call or case with Albert and did not know at the time of the response that 34 Fairview was the Albert family home.

Katie McLaughlin testified outside the jury's presence that Caitlin Albert was an acquaintance rather than a close friend and that they had no one-on-one relationship. McLaughlin said she did not know whose house was adjacent to the treatment area when she responded to John O'Keefe. The court excluded the photographs under the stated Rule 14 objection but allowed limited questioning about the relationship, socialization, and social-media friendship connection.

After the jury returned, Judge Cannone explained that discussions with counsel are intended to ensure the jury sees and hears only appropriate material. Defense counsel then announced continued cross-examination.

Defense counsel questioned Katie McLaughlin about her relationship with Caitlin Albert and her knowledge of the connection between Caitlin Albert and 34 Fairview. McLaughlin said she had known Caitlin Albert since high school and shared mutual friends with her, but said she did not recognize the house as Caitlin Albert's when she responded that morning. The judge sustained an objection to the argumentative form of questioning and instructed counsel to use strict impeachment. McLaughlin then agreed that her statement to Trooper Proctor was not the same as the statement she gave jurors the prior day.

On redirect, Katie McLaughlin described Caitlin Albert as an acquaintance rather than a close friend, said their social contact was limited to large groups, and testified that she did not know who lived at 34 Fairview Road when she responded. She said she later learned Albert-family names through news or media reports, not conversations. The court sustained an objection to one question about McLaughlin's duty to respond and, at sidebar, barred questioning her about the Kearney matter while permitting limited follow-up about media reports.

Defense counsel briefly questioned Katie McLaughlin about social-media friendships and sought to connect described social activities to Caitlin Albert. The court sustained the prosecution's objections to the final questions, and McLaughlin was excused.

Defense counsel asked to make a final record concerning the court's ruling and described the matter as a legal motion. The judge instructed counsel to first explain what he intended to do, noting that he had already had ample opportunity to do so.

Defense counsel asked the court to reconsider excluding four photographs, arguing that they were impeachment material concerning Katie McLaughlin's relationship with Caitlin Albert. The court denied the request. During the jury's view, counsel directed attention to the roadway, residence, and vehicle; paperwork was removed from the vehicle and marked Exhibit "L" for identification. The judge later instructed jurors to use the view as evidence but to disregard any measurements taken or attempted as independent investigation.

Canton Fire Lieutenant Greg Woodbury described responding to a person-in-the-snow call, finding Mr. O'Keefe on the ground, and coordinating CPR and other treatment before the ambulance transported him to Good Samaritan Medical Center. He testified that responders later returned for a Section 12 call involving Karen Read, whom he described as distraught and resistant to hospital transport. The court struck a partial account of information relayed by McLaughlin and deferred further argument about the proposed questioning until after lunch.

Defense cross-examined Lieutenant Woodbury about the Section 12 transport of Karen Read, her emotional state, and the statements he personally heard. Woodbury identified a photograph of John O'Keefe's right arm; it was admitted as Exhibit 382 and later replaced with a redacted copy. He said O'Keefe's hypothermia made it hard to judge other skin conditions and described the arm scratches as extending beyond the forearm.

Daniel Whitley, a Canton Fire Department paramedic, described responding to Fairview Road in heavy snow for a Section 12 transport of Karen Read. He testified about the ambulance crew, conditions on the road, Read's reported questions about the person transported by Ambulance 1, and the arrival at Good Samaritan. The judge sustained objections that prevented Whitley from recounting statements by Officer Saraf and other third parties.

Defense counsel questioned Daniel Whitley about collecting medical history during a hospital transport. After Whitley reviewed Jason Becker's report, he said it refreshed his memory about the medical history taken from Karen Read; no details of that history were stated in this excerpt.

Jason Becker, a Canton firefighter and paramedic, described responding to Fairview Road for a possible Section 12 evaluation of Karen Read. He testified that Read was crying and distraught, asked repeatedly whether the earlier patient could be dead, and was cooperative with the ambulance crew after the Section 12 process was explained. Becker said she discussed Mr. O'Keefe's children and a prior argument, and he reported that she later asked whether she could have hit him. After a sidebar over authentication, the court admitted Becker's own report as Exhibit 383 but not the separate engine report through him.

Defense counsel questioned paramedic Daniel Whitley about the time scope of his drugs-and-alcohol questions during Karen Read's transport. Whitley said the question concerned the time of transport and the preceding hours, not prior days. After the court overruled an objection to questioning from Trooper Michael Proctor's report, Whitley reviewed it, said it refreshed his memory, and agreed he had reported that Read said she consumed alcohol the previous night. He also said she gave no details about the form of an earlier interaction with the person she referred to as her husband.