Expert: Karen Read’s media appearances may be smart legal strategy

Were Karen Read’s unorthodox media interviews a next-level strategic move from her defense?

Maybe, according to one Massachusetts legal expert following the case.

Read, 45, is accused of killing boyfriend John O’Keefe, 46, in a drunken hit-and-run Jan. 29, 2022, outside a party in Canton, Massachusetts.

After her first trial, which ended with a deadlocked jury last year, she sat down with multiple reporters to tell her side of the story, a move many legal experts have called ill-advised. But it may have a payoff because jurors appear focused on a lesser charge that she may have admitted to on video.

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“She was ‘testifying’ when she made those statements, knowing they could be used in court,” said Grace Edwards, a criminal defense trial attorney. “Crazy as it seems, this may have been a strategy to give the jury something to hang their hat on and find her guilty of the OUI and get this done.”

She was referring to the charge of operating under the influence, a topic jurors asked multiple questions about Tuesday during the third day of deliberations after more than 30 days of trial testimony.

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“That’s an interesting theory – fall on the sword for the OUI to spare her the more serious offenses,” said Randolph Rice, the Maryland legal analyst and attorney who represents the family of slain mother of five Rachel Morin. “That would be a risky play for the defense.”

Read the verdict slip:

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Still, he said, the common thinking is that defendants should avoid speaking to the media.

“I’m sure the Karen Read camp is feeling good right now,” he added. “Cautious optimism.”

The top charge against Read, second-degree murder, could land her a life prison sentence if she’s convicted. Lesser charges include drunken driving, manslaughter and leaving a deadly accident.

WATCH: Karen Read recounts night of drinking at local bar in 2024 television interview

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The manslaughter charge also includes additional lesser charges that jurors could find her guilty of, including operating a motor vehicle under the influence of liquor, which carries a much lighter sentence and doesn’t include the homicide charge.

Read did not take the stand in her own defense but spoke to reporters outside court almost every day. After her mistrial last year, she sat for numerous news and documentary interviews and even invited a magazine writer to stay at her house for a weekend.

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Special prosecutor Hank Brennan subpoenaed the unedited source material from reporters and played a handful of clips in court in front of the jury.

In one, which appeared to be related to what jurors had questions about, Read discussed spiking her own drinks in the hours before O’Keefe’s death because she didn’t think the bartender was making them strong enough.

“The drinks that they were pouring me at McCarthy’s, which was where I consumed most of the alcohol, was the weakest vodka tonic,” she said. “It tasted just like all soda water with lime, not that I need it to be a martini, but it might have a splash of vodka in it.”

Jurors asked the judge four questions Tuesday, many of them focused on the OUI charge.

1. “What is the timeframe for the OUI charge? 12:45 or 5 a.m.?”
2. “Are video clips of Karen’s interviews evidence?”
3. “Does convicting guilty on a subcharge, for example offense 2 No. 5, convict the overall charge?”
4. “If we find not guilty on two charges but can’t agree on one charge, is it a hung jury on all three charges or just one charge?”

Jurors failed to reach a verdict by the end of the day Tuesday. Deliberations resume Wednesday morning at 9 a.m. ET.

“I still think it’s good for her right now,” Rice told Fox News Digital. “Reading between the lines, I think they can’t find the intent needed for two counts and are trying to figure out the reckless component.” 

Read faces up to life in prison if convicted on the most serious charge of second-degree murder. Some of the OUI-related charges also carry multi-year penalties, Edwards said.