Allegations of bias against trooper in Karen Read case could impact multiple Massachusetts prosecutions
DEDHAM - Allegations of bias and misconduct against currently-suspended Massachusetts State Trooper Michael Proctor could impact several prosecutions, according to documents filed in court on Friday.
In three separate court fillings on Friday, the Norfolk County District Attorney's office informed the court and attorneys that it had received an extraction of Trooper Proctor's work phone from Massachusetts State Police.
Controversy about Proctor's work stemmed from information on his personal phone revealed at Karen Read's trial.
Proctor has been facing disciplinary consequences within State Police since July 1, the day Karen Read's trial ended in a mistrial. Proctor was accused by Read's defense team of bias and conflicts of interest in his role as the lead investigator of John O'Keefe's death. He also read unprofessional profanity-laden texts about Read from his personal phone when testifying in her trial.
The Norfolk DA's office sent what's known as a "Brady" letter to a number of local attorneys last month who represent defendants facing charges in an investigation on which Trooper Proctor worked. "The Brady rule, named after Brady v. Maryland, requires prosecutors to disclose material, exculpatory information in the government's possession to the defense," according to Cornell Law School.
On Friday, prosecutors filed court documents in three separate cases – Karen Read's, Brian Walshe's, and Ingolf Tuerk's – regarding a recent extraction by state police of Proctor's work phone.
In the court filings, prosecutors told the court they are working to determine "what – if any – information on Trooper Proctor's work phone or cloud account is discoverable in this or other cases," writing that after a preliminary review, information on his work phone could reveal sensitive data about open investigations that would "be contrary to the interests of justice."
Karen Read is accused of killing her boyfriend, Boston Police officer John O'Keefe, by hitting him with her car in 2022. Her trial ended in a mistrial due to a hung jury in July of 2024, and a second trial is scheduled for January of 2025.
Brian Walshe is accused of killing his wife, Ana Walshe, who went missing after New Year's in 2023.
Ingolf Tuerk, a former prominent urologist, is accused of killing his wife in Dover in 2020.
Prosecutors wrote in their filings that Trooper Proctor is not expected to testify in either Tuerk's or Walshe's trials, both of which are scheduled for later this year.
In court paperwork, prosecutors said they were "willing to and able to" conduct searches of Proctor's work phone for relevant exculpatory information for each case, as they have agreed to do in other cases impacted by Proctor's work. The DA's office also wrote that it was willing to hire an independent third party to conduct said searches.
