During the retrial of Karen Read, John O'Keefe's 14-year-old niece provided testimony indicating that O'Keefe's relationship with Read had intensified but also soured. Following the deaths of her parents, she and her brother lived with O'Keefe, who began dating Read in 2020. Initially, the relationship was lighthearted, but her testimony highlighted increasing arguments and emotional distance, particularly late in 2021 and leading up to his death in January 2022, suggesting complexities that may relate to the ongoing legal case.
"They were fighting a lot," both at home and over the phone, the niece recalled. She said she once overheard O'Keefe talking on the phone with Read, and "you could tell he was frustrated."
O'Keefe's niece testified he began dating Read in 2020, and Read stayed over at the family's home more frequently as the relationship progressed.
She and her younger brother lived with O'Keefe for several years after their mother died of brain cancer and their father had a fatal heart attack just months later.
The teen told jurors she and Read would get food and go shopping together, though their relationship "kind of depended on the day."
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