Day 7 - April 30, 2025

Judge Beverly J. Cannone · Trial 2 · 4 proceedings · 2,726 lines

Day 7 of 36

Appearing:

Jennifer McCabe's testimony culminates in her account that Read said 'I hit him'; on cross and recross, Jackson challenges prior accounts and scene observations, while McCabe disputes parts of his characterizations and maintains she reported the statement.

Full day summary

Day 7 opens with a brief evidentiary ruling permitting the prosecution to introduce McCabe's reference to 'Bella's mom's house' as motive evidence. ADA Brennan then completes McCabe's direct examination, playing the 911 call and eliciting her account that Read told a female first responder 'I hit him' three times and asked McCabe to Google hypothermia after police arrived — testimony central to the prosecution's theory. On cross, Jackson challenged McCabe's initial omission of contacts before a separate law-enforcement interview as a lie; McCabe denied intentional deception and said she had forgotten whom she called. He also explored her family's law-enforcement ties and whether witnesses were separated after the morning's events. On recross, Jackson used grand-jury passages, Trooper Proctor's report, and accounts attributed to Lank and Goode to argue that the declarative 'I hit him' was absent from prior accounts. McCabe said she would need to review the full grand-jury transcript, maintained that she told Proctor and Lank the statement, and disputed parts of Jackson's characterization. Jackson also explored visibility and observation limits: McCabe testified that she focused on the SUV rather than the ground or all surroundings and, while departing, was looking toward the back seat rather than the lawn.

Key Moments

Judge Cannone rules that McCabe's reference to 'Bella's mom's house' while giving O'Keefe directions is admissible as motive evidence — Karen Read overheard it.
McCabe testifies that Read told a female first responder 'I hit him. I hit him. I hit him.' and that she personally directed McCabe to Google hypothermia after police arrived.
Jackson establishes on cross that McCabe told federal investigators she had only contacted her husband and Kerry Roberts before their April 2023 interview, omitting calls to Brian Albert, Peggy O'Keefe, and the DA's office.
Jackson reads grand-jury passages attributing questions to Read and asserts that 'I hit him' never appeared; McCabe says she would need to review the 227-page transcript and maintains she reported the statement to police.
Jackson presents a Trial 1 colloquy in which McCabe described seeing Read and Roberts attend to O'Keefe after McCabe got out and came around the car; McCabe agreed to that account but denied Jackson's assertion that it showed a clear view from the car.

Notable Quotes

Jennifer McCabe

“She told the first responder, 'I hit him. I hit him. I hit him.'”

McCabe's account of Read's unprompted admission to a first responder is the prosecution's most direct evidence of consciousness of guilt — and the statement Jackson will spend the rest of the day dismantling.

Alan Jackson

“Not one time — not one time, Miss McCabe — did you utter the phrase 'I hit him' as it relates to my client in front of that grand jury on April 26th, 2022. Did you?”

Jackson's recross centers on his assertion that McCabe's prior grand-jury and police accounts omitted 'I hit him'; McCabe said she would need to review the full grand-jury transcript and maintained that she reported the statement.

Jennifer McCabe

“I explained that I had forgotten to mention a couple of people that I had reached out to.”

McCabe's explanation that she 'forgot' calling Brian Albert, Peggy O'Keefe, and the DA's office when speaking to federal investigators underscores Jackson's broader witness-coordination theory.

Watch this day Day 7 — McCabe (Direct cont/Cross) Watch with synced transcript →

Procedural

Procedural - Motions

21 lines

Before the jury is brought in, prosecutor Hank Brennan raises an evidentiary issue regarding Jennifer McCabe's phone call with John O'Keefe. Brennan seeks to admit McCabe's testimony that she gave O'Keefe directions by referencing "Bella's mom's house," which Karen Read overheard — offered as evidence of motive. Defense attorney Alan Jackson argues the statement doesn't cure the hearsay problem from the prior day's testimony. Judge Cannone clarifies that she had previously misunderstood Brennan's offer as attempting to introduce the nature of the relationship between Bella and John O'Keefe, and rules the narrower offer — that McCabe gave directions referencing Bella's mom's house — is admissible. Brennan states that clips 12 and 12A would establish the predicate for the statement and that he expects to play them after McCabe's testimony; Judge Cannone permits the clips to come in.

Direct

Jennifer McCabe Hank Brennan

535 lines

ADA Hank Brennan resumes direct examination of Jennifer McCabe on Day 7, picking up from the discovery of John O'Keefe's body at 34 Fairview Road. The jury hears the full 911 call (Exhibit 45), in which McCabe reports an unresponsive man in the snow, describes possible facial bleeding, and relays that one woman is performing CPR. McCabe testifies that Karen Read told a female first responder 'I hit him' three times, that Read asked McCabe to Google hypothermia while they stood outside a police cruiser around 6:23-6:24 AM, and that McCabe's multiple sclerosis impaired her ability to type in the cold. Brennan walks McCabe through dashcam video (Exhibit 4) corroborating the scene timeline. McCabe describes waking Brian and Nicole Albert at Officer Lank's request, her later interview with Troopers Proctor and Bukhenik, and creating a timeline at Peg O'Keefe's request.

Cross

Jennifer McCabe Alan Jackson

1252 lines

Alan Jackson methodically questions Jennifer McCabe about her conversations with Kerry Roberts, their presence in an anteroom before Roberts's grand jury testimony, and their accounts of January 28-29, 2022. Jackson then questions McCabe about her initial answer to a separate law enforcement agency, when she named only Matt McCabe and Kerry Roberts and said there was no one else; she later called back and acknowledged additional contacts, explaining that she had forgotten to mention them. Jackson characterized the omission as a lie, while McCabe denied intentional deception and said she had forgotten who she called. During that line of questioning, Judge Cannone reminded jurors that only answers to questions are evidence. He also explores family and law-enforcement relationships, including an indirect Proctor-Albert connection through Julie Albert's sister, and questions whether witnesses were separated after individual conversations with Michael Lank. Jackson further examines vehicle positions, McCabe's request for a Julie Nagel screenshot, and McCabe's testimony that she did not remember seeing the Alberts' German Shepherd when she entered 34 Fairview.

Recross

Jennifer McCabe Alan Jackson

912 lines

Defense attorney Alan Jackson recrosses Jennifer McCabe about her observations outside 34 Fairview, her prior testimony, and accounts of what Karen Read said. McCabe testified that, despite darkness and snow, she could see the SUV from the storm door, but said she was focused on the vehicle rather than the ground or all of the surroundings; when leaving, she said she was looking toward the back seat and not at the lawn. She also testified that she did not see John O'Keefe on the lawn. Jackson read a Trial 1 colloquy in which McCabe described getting out of the passenger side, coming around the car, and then seeing Read and Roberts attending to O'Keefe. McCabe agreed that was how she had answered, but denied Jackson's later assertion that she had described seeing the activity clearly from the car. Jackson also examined grand-jury testimony and police-report wording concerning Read's statements. He asserted that the declarative 'I hit him' did not appear in the grand-jury testimony and reports; McCabe said she would need to read the 227-page transcript, testified that she told Trooper Proctor, and disputed Jackson's characterization of what she told Sergeant Lank.

+1 procedural segment

◀ Day 6 Trial 2 Day 8 ▶

Day 7 - April 30, 2025

Jennifer McCabe — Direct (Part 2)

Jennifer McCabe — Cross (Part 1)

Jennifer McCabe — Recross