‘Turtleboy’ blogger released on personal recognizance after allegedly violating restraining order

DEDHAM, Mass. — A Massachusetts blogger known as “Turtleboy” was arraigned Thursday for allegedly violating a restraining order following an incident at the home of an ex-girlfriend back in December.

Aidan Kearney, 42, of Holden, was released on personal recognizance after a hearing in Dedham District Court, where a judge ruled he didn’t need to be held in jail because he’s not physically dangerous.

In late December, Kearney surrendered to police in connection to an alleged assault and battery incident at a Medfield home after police issued a BOLO for him. In that incident, Kearney is accused of shoving and threatening his former girlfriend after he learned she’d been summoned to testify in front of a grand jury.

A crowd of supporters cheered for Kearney as he walked out of the court. The blogger has gained a sizeable following for defending Karen Read, the woman charged in the death of her Boston police officer boyfriend John O’Keefe.

Aidan Kearney, blogger behind ‘Turtleboy News’

On Tuesday, Read’s legal team told Judge Beverly Cannone that a federal investigation found inconsistencies and conflicts that should lead to the dismissal of her second-degree murder case.

“The damage on the car was inconsistent with having made contact with John O’Keefe’s body. In other words, the car didn’t hit him, and he wasn’t hit by the car. Period. Full stop,” Read’s attorney Alan Jackson said.

A day after that hearing, 25 Investigates first reported that the Massachusetts State Police Internal Affairs Unit was investigating State Police Detective Michael Proctor for a potential violation of department policy in connection with Read’s murder case.

An attorney for Proctor told 25 Investigates on Thursday that his client “remains steadfast in the integrity of the work he performed investigating the death of Mr. John O’Keefe.”

Read is accused of running down O’Keefe in reverse with her Lexus SUV and leaving him to die in a blizzard in Canton in January 2022.

Kearney’s case wasn’t dismissed during Thursday’s hearing. He’s due back in court in April.

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