Judge says 'Turtleboy' blogger still has to stay away from witnesses in murder case
DEDHAM − A blogger who calls himself "Turtleboy" lost his bid to lift restrictions imposed after he was charged with witness intimidation in a murder case involving the death of a police officer from Braintree.
The blogger, Aidan Kearney, was arrested and charged in October. He was released and ordered to stay away from witnesses in the case against Karen Read, of Mansfield, who is accused of killing Boston police officer John O'Keefe, a Braintree native.
Prosecutors say Read hit O'Keefe with her vehicle outside a home in Canton on Jan. 29, 2022, after they had been drinking. Read, her defense team and Kearney say she is the victim of a coverup.
Dedham Superior Court Judge Peter Krupp denied Kearny's request to lift the restrictions Thursday in a 22-page order, WCVB reported. However, Krupp did allow Kearney to attend hearings in the case, even if that would bring him within 100 feet of witnesses.
Kearney's effort to support the defense factored into Krupp's ruling, WCVB said.
"To say defendant has taken a pro-defense position on the Read case is to understate the level of his partisanship and advocacy," Krupp wrote.
"In pursuit of his performative journalism and personal brand, defendant has berated witnesses in the Read case, badgered them although they have indicated that they do not wish to speak to him and pressured them to change their testimony," Krupp wrote. "Defendant has been able to increase his following substantially − based on monthly page views and viewership − with his confrontational stories, live videos and inflammatory blog posts about the Read case."
This article originally appeared on The Patriot Ledger: Judge rules against 'Turtleboy' blogger in Karen Read murder case
