In this episode of Zone 7, Crime Scene Investigator, Sheryl McCollum, sits down with Linda Kenney Baden, a former prosecutor and private defense attorney to dissect the legal intricacies, discrepancies, and various ethical issues surrounding the trial of Karen Read. They cover the problems with evidence collection, the lead investigator's conduct, and the lack of a clear cause of death. Sheryl and Linda also discuss the role of experts in the retrial, what could be expected during the new trial, and the emotional toll on both Read and O'Keefe's families.

On January 29, 2022, Karen Read is accused of killing her boyfriend, Boston police officer John O'Keefe, with her SUV during a snow storm. Read's second trial is now set to begin with jury selection on April 1, 2025 after months of additional pretrial hearings following the mistrial.

Guest Bio and Links:

Linda Kenney Baden is a former prosecutor and seasoned criminal defense attorney known for her work on high-profile cases such as Phil Spector, Casey Anthony, and Aaron Hernandez. She is a contributor to Law & Crime and the Huffington Post, and co-hosts coverage on Justice Served TV. She brings decades of legal expertise to the public discourse on justice and ethics in the courtroom.

Listeners can learn more about Linda Kenney Baden at her website, on X @KenneyBaden

Show Notes:

• (0:00) Welcome back to Zone 7 with Crime Scene Investigator, Sheryl McCollum  
• (1:15) Sheryl welcomes guest, and former prosecutor Kinda Kenney Baden to Zone 7
• (2:00) Discussion on case coverage and high-profile trials
• (3:30) Analyzing the evidence and prosecution's strategy
• (6:30) Ethical concerns and prosecution tactics
• (13:15) “ I looked at what they did in the first trial, but I was stunned by what they didn't do.” - Sheryl McCollum
• (13:45) Glass evidence and shards that don’t match
• (15:00) Crime scene failures and inconsistencies
• (18:30)  ”As somebody that's been in this business for 42 years, I have never in my life seen a homicide case with a lead detective that didn't go to the scene, doesn't have chain of custody, has a confession that nobody bothered to write down, has glass they can't explain, has an injury they can't explain, has a tail light busted they can't explain.” - Sheryl McCollum
• (19:00) Ethics of prosecutors 
• (23:00) Battle of the experts 
• (23:30) The Sandra Birchmore case
• (27:00) The Proctor factor - bias and controversy
• (30:30) Hypotheticals and jury considerations
• (36:00) Trial two predictions and new expert strategy
• (40:00) Trial round two - what to expect
• (44:30)  ”40% of homicides go unsolved. You know, that's not a very good record. And also, 95% of convictions come from plea bargains, which is often coerced.  It's like we have the worst of both worlds. We don't convict the guilty enough and we coerce the innocent too much.” -Bill Maher
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Sheryl “Mac” McCollum is an Emmy Award winning CSI, a writer for CrimeOnLine, Forensic and Crime Scene Expert for Crime Stories with Nancy Grace, and a CSI for a metro Atlanta Police Department. She is the co-author of the textbook., Cold Case: Pathways to Justice. Sheryl is also the founder and director of the Cold Case Investigative Research Institute, a collaboration between universities and colleges that brings researchers, practitioners, students and the criminal justice community together to advance techniques in solving cold cases and assist families and law enforcement with solvability factors for unsolved homicides, missing persons, and kidnapping cases.  

Social Links:

• Email: [email protected]
• Twitter: @ColdCaseTips
• Facebook: @sheryl.mccollum

Instagram: @officialzone7podcast

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