The Read trial did produce a verdict — on law enforcement

Karen read’s murder trial was an eightweek string of embarrassments for law enforcement agencies in massachusetts. the high-profile proceedings revealed both iffy local police work — collecting evidence in a red Solo cup, in one infamous instance — and tolerance for misogyny within the ranks of the State Police.

and now, those agencies may get to experience those embarrassments all over again.

the judge declared a mistrial on monday, after jurors were unable to reach a unanimous verdict on the charges. Norfolk County prosecutors have said they will retry the case, which would effectively bring the spectacle at the Dedham courthouse back for Season 2.

read was accused of murdering her boyfriend, Boston police officer John o’keefe, by ramming him with her car on a snowy night in Canton in 2022. the case became an unlikely national story, fueled by social media that amplified conspiracy theories that read had been framed and the undeniable soap opera aspects of a case where stormy personal texts between read and o’keefe became part of the record.

if there’s an upside to a potential second trial — a big if, but bear with us — it’s that by keeping law enforcement’s missteps and problems in such a prominent spotlight, it might keep up the pressure on departments to address them.

Let’s start with the State Police. Evidence showed the lead State Police investigator on the o’keefe case, michael Proctor, sending crude and misogynistic text messages to friends and fellow troopers. Not only were the messages boorish, but they gave ammunition to the defense to raise doubts about the whole case.

as bad as the messages were, their disclosure in a high-profile setting served a purpose, showing the extent of the culture problem that the State Police’s next leader will need to solve. Police departments need a climate in which officers hold one another accountable and where texts like Proctor’s wouldn’t be tolerated — for the sake of their own cases, if nothing else. governor maura Healey has moved slowly in selecting a new colonel for the State Police, but the revelation of the Proctor messages fueled calls to pick a leader and change agent from outside the ranks.

there were other missteps; when federal authorities looked into the case, they reportedly turned up records that the state prosecutor had ignored. other conduct revealed by the trial was simply embarrassing. Canton police, according to testimony, collected evidence from the crime scene in red Solo cups and carried it in a Stop & Shop bag.

altogether, read’s lawyers had plenty of fodder to portray law enforcement as sloppy and to raise doubts about the potential bias of investigators. the US attorney is also reviewing the case and may yet turn up more details that could be uncomfortable for law enforcement.

the trial highlighted some of the new realities for law enforcement everywhere. Police and prosecutors are under a microscope like never before. they are operating in an environment of widespread distrust of authority, conspiracy theories broadcast on social media, and technology that collects and preserves the personal communications of cops and robbers alike. a second trial, if it occurs, would highlight those challenges all over again.

there will be more murder investigations and trials in massachusetts after this one. it’s for the sake of those cases that law enforcement should take the read trial as a wake-up call. Defense lawyers will always prod and poke to find ways to cast doubt on law enforcement. But police and prosecutors don’t have to make it so easy for them.

Police departments need a climate in which officers hold one another accountable and where texts like Proctor’s wouldn’t be tolerated — for the sake of their own cases, if nothing else.