DEDHAM, Mass. — Massachusetts State Police Colonel Geoffrey D. Noble and the Town of Canton issued statements on Thursday afternoon in response to an explosive new lawsuit filed by Karen Read that alleges a system-wide failure of law enforcement led to her wrongful prosecution over three years.
The 87-page lawsuit, which names the state police and Canton police, alleges negligence, civil conspiracy, and misconduct tied to the investigation into John O’Keefe’s death, claiming investigators deliberately focused on Read from the start while ignoring other possible suspects because they formed a “biased and predetermined” case against her.
“This case is about two institutions — the Massachusetts State Police and the Canton Police Department — and a culture of bias and corruption that they built, tolerated, and hid from the public for years," Read’s attorneys said in a statement.
The suit names fired Massachusetts Trooper Michael Proctor and ex-Canton Police Sgt. Sean Goode, claiming they were “unfit for positions of public trust” and had conduct that compromised the integrity of the case.
“Michael Proctor and Sean Goode did not slip through the cracks; they are emblematic of the failure to responsibly exercise the trust and faith the public puts in these institutions,” their statement read. “Proctor and Goode were unfit for positions of public trust, and yet they were handed badges, promotions, and ultimately control of homicide investigations despite harboring deep-seated and abhorrent anti-woman, racist, antisemitic, and homophobic ideologies for more than a decade.”
Read’s attorneys, Alan Jackson, Damon Seligson, and Aaron Rosenberg, included a slew of vulgar, profanity-laced text messages between Proctor and Goode in the filing, which are highlighted by the rampant use of derogatory racial remarks aimed at African Americans and Asians, as well as offensively explicit references to women.
Noble called the messages “disturbing,” noting the “racist, sexist, and abhorrent comments absolutely do not reflect the values of the Massachusetts State Police.”
Noble’s full statement on the lawsuit reads as follows:
“These disturbing messages are entirely inconsistent with any basic standard of decency and certainly with the expectations of a Massachusetts State Trooper. These racist, sexist, and abhorrent comments absolutely do not reflect the values of the Massachusetts State Police and are not tolerated within our ranks. They underscore and fully support my decision to terminate Michael Proctor.”
As Superintendent, my role requires me to act in the best interest of the Department. In this moment, that means moving forward with a focus on upholding our standards, strengthening accountability, and supporting the honorable women and men of the State Police who serve our communities with professionalism and integrity. We do so keenly aware of the ways in which this misconduct harmed the public trust on which our mission depends.”
The Town of Canton offered no comment on the lawsuit, expressing the “utmost faith and confidence” in new Canton Police Chief Michael Daniels:
“The Town has not been served, and as such we have nothing to review with legal counsel at this time. We have no comment on the press elease issued by the Read legal team.
The Town of Canton has the utmost faith and confidence in the new leadership of Canton Police Department under Chief Michael Daniels, and we would refute any broad stroke characterizations about the brave and dedicated men and women who serve in the Department. The Department has made significant strides forward over the past two years, including the acceptance and implementation of findings and recommendations in the outside audit report. The Department is poised to move further ahead as a modern public safety agency, which the citizens of Canton rightfully expect and deserve.”
Proctor, who served as the lead investigator in the Read murder case, was fired from his role within the state police in March 2025. He was relieved of his duty without pay after a mistrial was declared in Read’s first trial, and his last day with the Norfolk District Attorney’s Office followed soon thereafter.
Proctor came under fire for a series of disparaging texts he sent about Read, which he read aloud in court during her first trial. Proctor admitted on the stand that the texts were “unprofessional.” He called Read things like a “whack job” and other derogatory words. He also talked about her medical issues and wrote, “No nudes so far,” while going through her phone.
Goode, who responded to the scene of O’Keefe’s death, submitted his resignation from the Canton Police Department this week. He also testified during Read’s first trial. He was suspended from the department in October 2025 and placed on leave shortly after investigators uncovered additional “troubling” text messages on the phone of fired Massachusetts State Trooper Michael Proctor.
In the filing of the new lawsuit, Read’s attorneys vowed that the “truth is coming, and with it an unflinching reckoning.”
Read was previously charged with second-degree murder after prosecutors alleged she backed over O’Keefe with her SUV and left him for dead during a snowstorm in Canton in January 2022. She was ultimately acquitted in June 2025 after a mistrial was declared in her first trial the year prior.
Read currently faces a wrongful death civil lawsuit filed by John O’Keefe’s family. She is also suing multiple people who testified against her in her two murder trials.
Boston 25 News has reached out to the Canton Police Department for comment on the new lawsuit.
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