Karen Read Sues Massachusetts State Police and Canton Police Over Michael Proctor and Sean Goode Texts

Karen Read, acquitted in 2022 of killing her boyfriend John O’Keefe, sued the Massachusetts State Police and Canton Police and shared alleged text messages between former police officers Michael Proctor and Sean Goode in the lawsuit.

“We value your privacy We and our partners store and/or access information on a device, such as cookies and process personal data, such as unique identifiers and standard information sent by a device for personalised advertising and content, advertising and content measurement, audience research and services development”

Barstool Sports

The complaint says Proctor, the lead investigator in Read’s case, was fired by the State Police in March 2025 in part due to messages he sent about Read, 46, that came to light during her first trial in April 2024.

Boston

Us Weekly reported that Goode resigned on Tuesday, June 2, in the middle of an internal investigation related to the dozens of messages he and Proctor exchanged starting back in 2013.

CBS News said Proctor’s personal phone was preserved and searched as part of the murder trial, and that Read’s attorneys intervened and asked for permission to use the information from his cellphone in future litigation against Massachusetts State Police and Canton Police.

The Boston Globe said Read filed the suit in Bristol Superior Court and alleged the biased and corrupt investigation that harmed her was the natural consequence of MSP and CPD hiring and promoting biased and corrupt law enforcement officers.

Massachusetts State Police Colonel Geoffrey D. Noble condemned the messages as “abhorrent,” saying, “These disturbing messages are entirely inconsistent with any basic standard of decency and certainly with the expectations of a Massachusetts State Trooper.”

Noble added that the comments “underscore and fully support my decision to terminate Michael Proctor,” and said the agency is working to rebuild trust with the public.

Boston 25 News

The Town of Canton said it had not been served with the complaint, and the Boston Herald reported that the town wrote that previous efforts to communicate with Read’s team went unanswered by “the conclusion of the notice period.”

The Boston Globe reported that Canton and State Police, the lawsuit stated, knew or should’ve known about the biases the two men held, and that the agencies “unleashed these two misogynist bigots on Ms. Read to work on the conflicted and corrupt ‘investigation.’”

People reported that the complaint, filed June 4 in Bristol County Superior Court, accuses the Massachusetts State Police and Canton Police Department of negligent hiring, training and supervision, alleging officials empowered investigators whose racist, misogynistic and anti-LGBTQ views rendered them unfit to lead the high-profile probe into O’Keefe’s death.

The lawsuit reproduces alleged messages attributed to Proctor and Goode, including Proctor telling Goode about a crash in Canton and saying, “Let them die,” and Goode allegedly calling Boston Mayor Michelle Wu a “little [expletive].”

“This website is unavailable in your location”

Boston 25 News

CBS News said the text messages were obtained as a part of the prosecution of Myles King in Dedham, and that Proctor’s phone had been under a protective order before Read’s attorneys sought permission to use the information in future litigation.

Read’s attorneys said the complaint seeks unspecified financial damages, and the Boston Herald reported that the complaint filed Thursday in Bristol Superior Court does not specify damages.

The Boston Globe reported that Norfolk County prosecutors had charged Read, 46, with second-degree murder and other crimes for allegedly backing her SUV into O’Keefe in a drunken rage early on Jan. 29, 2022, after dropping him off outside a Canton home following a night of bar hopping.

In a statement to Us Weekly, Noble said the misconduct harmed “the public trust on which our mission depends,” while Read’s suit alleges the investigation into O’Keefe’s death was “unleashed” by agencies that knew or should’ve known about Proctor and Goode’s biases.