One woman asked her friend, as they walked out of C.F. McCarthy’s: “Did you hear about the verdict?”
Prosecutors had alleged that a drunken Read intentionally had backed her SUV into O’Keefe while dropping him off at an after party at a Canton home and left him to die as a blizzard set in.
Jurors disagreed, finding Read not guilty of second-degree murder, manslaughter while operating under the influence, and leaving the scene of a crash resulting in death.
The jury found her guilty only of a lesser charge of drunken driving. She will serve one year of probation as a first-time offender.
Her first trial ended in a mistrial last July.
Walking down Washington Street, Denis Pombriant, 70, admitted he has tried to “stay at a level of abstraction” from the Read trial.
Still, he was “glad” when he heard about the verdict.
“I’m not at all surprised,” Pombriant said. “I don’t think the facts said really fit the circumstances or her life. She’s not a perfect individual, but she lived a reasonable life.”
“To then add, all of a sudden, oh, ‘she drove over her boyfriend and left him for dead,’” he continued. “It just doesn’t fit.”
Pombriant, who has lived in Stoughton for 40 years, also said there was “so much misconduct” on the part of the police.
“It’s very disappointing to see the whole thing play out,” he said.
Neal Fassnacht, 46, said he also has been “trying to avoid” the trial.
Fassnacht, who has lived in town for five years, said the trial had become “hard to watch.”
“In the beginning, it seemed very obvious that somebody driving drunk during a snowstorm would have probably accidentally have caused this,” he said. “It’s just kind of hard to watch something that seems obviously guilty, and then you see people who are standing outside with signs saying, ‘Free Karen Read.’”
“It’s turning into people just buying into weird conspiracy theories,” he continued.
Mary Kennedy, on the other hand, wore a bright pink shirt and her dog, Ruby, sported a pink collar.
Kennedy said she’s been “consumed” by the case.
Kennedy, from Walpole, was walking Ruby, a miniature golden doodle and said she’s been following the Read trial from the beginning. She even spent time at Norfolk Superior Court in Dedham waiting for a verdict.
“I screamed at the top of my lungs,” Kennedy said when she heard the verdict late Wednesday afternoon.
The case has caused so much tension in town, some residents declined to give their full names.
Patrice and Sully, for example, walked out of C.F. McCarthy’s around 6:10 p.m.
“It’s like a civil war,” Sully said of the atmosphere in Canton.
“You don’t talk out loud,” Patrice said.
In a statement after the verdict was announced , Canton Select Board Chair John McCourt acknowledged the toll the case has taken on residents.
The Canton community “has been deeply affected,” he said.
“This case has been the subject of intense public interest, scrutiny and speculation for three years,” McCourt said.
“Today’s outcome may bring a sense of relief to some and continue to raise questions for others,” he continued. “We encourage members of the community to move forward together, treating one another with respect through civil, constructive dialogue.”
Officials at McCarthy’s and the Waterfall declined comment to the Globe.
Marianne Kinn, 40, of Stoughton, walked out of C.F. McCarthy’s around 6:15 p.m. She said she was talking to someone inside the bar and the pair didn’t agree on the Read trial.
But the conversation was “healthy” and they “disagreed respectfully,” Kinn said.
“It’s a touchy subject for a lot of people,” she said.
Maureen Rocci, 69, has lived in Canton her whole life.
“I’m very happy at the results,” Rocci said as she stood outside the Waterfall Bar and Grille waiting for her weekly trivia group.
However, she said her thoughts also were with the O’Keefe family.
“I feel sad because … justice will never be served,” Rocci said. “It’s a relief for her, but it’s sad for John O’Keefe and his family.”
“Nothing like this” has happened in Canton in her lifetime, Rocci said.
“This is beyond, beyond,” she said. “It’s divided the town. It’s very sad, and hopefully Canton can heal.”
Greg Williams, 27, and Andrea Dorbu, 26, were out for a walk downtown. The couple live in an apartment above the Waterfall Bar and Grille.
“I feel like it’s a sad situation either way, because at the end of the day someone lost their life,” Dorbu said. “Prayers for all involved … we don’t know what really happened.”
Ava Berger can be reached at ava.berger@globe.com. Follow her @Ava_Berger_. Tonya Alanez can be reached at tonya.alanez@globe.com. Follow her @talanez.
