Jurors in the high-profile case of glamorous murder suspect Karen Read accused of killing her cop boyfriend have reached a deadlock.
The jury sent a note to the judge on Friday saying they are 'unable to reach a unanimous verdict' less than four full days into the deliberations.
But Norfolk County Superior Court Judge Beverly Cannone ordered the jurors - made up of six men and six women - to reach a verdict as they had not spent a sufficient amount of time.
Read, a 44-year-old financial analyst and college professor, is accused of drunkenly knocking over her boyfriendJohn O'Keefe following an argument.
Throughout the trial she has raised eyebrows with her attention-seeking behavior in court such as snacking and winking at cameras.
Read faces up to life in prison over the alleged murder of her boyfriend, and has raised eyebrows with some of her behavior during the trial
Read is facing murder charges over the January 2022 death of her police officer boyfriend John O'Keefe, who prosecutors say was hit by Read in her car after a drunken night out
Cannone told the jurors to have lunch and take a respite before they get back to work.
'We all know how hard you've been working. Lunch will be arriving shortly. When it comes I'd ask you to clear heads, have lunch and begin your deliberations again,' the judge said, according to CNN.
Read faces up to life in prison for the murder of O'Keefe, who was found dead outside a friend's home in January 2022.
Prosecutors allege that Read hit him with her car following a drunken argument as she dropped him off at the home for an after party. They claim to have found pieces of her car's taillight around his body.
She is alleged to have drunkenly driven over O'Keefe following a drunken argument.
She had spent the evening drinking with her boyfriend and a group of friends at the Waterfall Bar and Grill in Canton, around 14 miles south of Boston, and the group were invited to his friend Brian Albert's home for an afterparty.
Read, who prosecutors say drank several alcoholic drinks beforehand, decided to drop O'Keefe at the afterparty before she went to his home - that he shared with his orphaned niece and nephew - to sleep at around 1am.
Court documents revealed that the couple had been bitterly arguing for weeks beforehand. On the night O'Keefe died, Read left him a voicemail calling him a 'f****** loser', adding 'John, I f****** hate you.'
The couple had been dating for two years at the time of O'Keefe's death. He had been serving on the Boston Police Department for 16 years.
Read has long denied having any involvement in the January 2022 death of O'Keefe -instead claiming she is being framed by police in a vast conspiracy.
She said earlier this week that she is willing to testify and would love toprove her case herself.
Norfolk County Superior Court Judge Beverly Cannone slammed Read's courtroom antics on Wednesday, during a discussion with her attorney over the verdict slip handed to jurors
Prosecutors allege that Read hit O'Keefe with her car after an argument, while she contends that she was framed by party attendees and members of the Boston Police Department
As her trial began, Read received a slew of support from true crime fans and locals who have been camped outside the courthouse with signs reading 'Free Karen Read'
The jurors have to decide if Read is guilty or not guilty of second-degree murder, which inMassachusettsis punishable by life in prison with the possibility of parole, Yahoo News reported.
Read also faces lesser charges of manslaughter while operating a vehicle under the influence, punishable by five to 20 years, and leaving the scene of an accident resulting in death, punishable by up to 10 years, as per the news outlet.
Since Tuesday afternoon, they have been deliberating on the case including, a police cover-up, claimsof improper conduct and sexist text messages from a lead investigator.
The juror's note to Judge Cannone that was sent just after noon on Friday, the prosecution and defense asked her to consider different outcomes in her decision on what to tell the jury.
'It is far, far, far too early in their deliberative process to even consider giving them any kind of Tuey-Rodriguez instruction or anything close to that,'Norfolk County Assistant District Attorney Adam Lally said
In the state of Massachusetts when jurors are unable to agree on a verdict there is a special model that is followed referred to as a Tuey-Rodriguez.
Read has come under scrutiny for a perceived flippant attitude in court, including winking at cameras and snacking during proceedings
Read and O'Keefe had been out drinking on the night of his death, before she drove him to an afterparty while she went home to sleep. He was found dead on the lawn of the afterparty's home hours later
'The note doesn't really indicate affirmatively that they can't come to a conclusion, it just says they haven't come to a conclusion through their deliberative process at this time.'
Defense attorney David Yanetti argued the jury should be read the Tuey-Rodriguez criminal model instructions, indicating that they would like the court to proceed toward having a hung jury, as per CNN.
Read could be seen shaking her head after being confronted by the judge, who responded bluntly: 'All right, we're done.'
Throughout her trial, Read's claims that she was framed have attracted a number of fans, who are often seen staked outside the courthouse insisting on her innocence.
Many have taken to wearing light pink to show their support, leading Judge Cannone to file a ruling at the start of the trial banning such clothing and keeping supporters from coming within 200 feet of the courthouse.
