Why was Karen Read case's lead investigator Michael Proctor fired? Explained 

Michael Proctor, the lead investigator in the Karen Read case, was fired from his position as a Massachusetts State Police trooper on Wednesday morning, according to Police 1. His termination follows his testimony during Read’s trial last year, where he admitted to sending derogatory text messages about her, calling her a “whack job” and even expressing that he wished she would kill herself.

After three days of hearings between January and March, Michael Proctor was found guilty by a State Police Trial Board, of violating two State Police regulations- unsatisfactory performance and alcoholic beverages.

Karen Read's trial and the death of John O'Keefe are the focus of the ID docuseries A Body In The Snow: The Trial of Karen Read, which premiered on March 17, 2025.

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Why has Michael Proctor been fired? Details explored

Michael Proctor had been leading the investigation into the 2022 death of Karen Read’s boyfriend, a Boston police officer. According to NBC News, the State Police Trial Board decided to dishonorably discharge Proctor after three days of hearings, during which he was found guilty of three charges of unsatisfactory performance and one charge of consumption of alcohol while on duty between January 2022 to August 2022.

The first charge is directly tied to the Read investigation, where the board found Proctor guilty of sending “derogatory, defamatory, disparaging and/or otherwise inappropriate text messages” about Read to others. During Read’s trial, Proctor testified that he texted his sister and high school friends about Read, even stating that he wished she would die by su*cide.

The second charge stems from a cold case investigation on Cape Cod, during which Proctor and a Canton Police detective had drinks together. According to Police 1, Col. Geoffrey Noble, who declared Michael Proctor guilty, said in his statement:

“My decision to terminate Mr. Proctor follows a thorough, fair, and impartial process. I have weighed the nature of the offenses, their impact on our investigative integrity, and the importance of safeguarding the reputations of our dedicated women and men in the State Police. This decision reflects our unwavering commitment to upholding our values, enhancing public trust and ensuring the highest standards of service and accountability.”

Meanwhile, Proctor’s family expressed disappointment with the board’s decision, stating:

“Despite the Massachusetts State Police’s dubious and relentless efforts to find more inculpatory evidence against Michael Proctor on his phones, computers and cruiser data, the messages on his personal phone ... are all that they found...The messages prove one thing, and that Michael is human — not corrupt, not incompetent in his role as a homicide detective, and certainly not unfit to continue to be a Massachusetts State Trooper."

Michael Proctor now has the option to appeal this decision to the Civil Service Commission.

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What is Karen Read accused of? Details explored from A Body in the Snow: The Trial of Karen Read

Massachusetts resident Karen Read was accused of killing her boyfriend, Boston police officer John O'Keefe. According to prosecutors, she struck him with her car and left him to freeze in the snow in January 2022. However, the defense argued that Read was framed for O'Keefe's death and that his fellow officers were responsible, claiming he was killed during a fight.

Karen Read's trial and John O'Keefe's death are the subject of the ID docuseries, A Body In The Snow: The Trial of Karen Read. The series premiered on Monday, March 17, 2025, and airs over three consecutive nights.

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Catch A Body In The Snow: The Trial of Karen Read for more details about the case.