‘Turtleboy’ partially barred from Karen Read physical trial coverage
Aidan “Turtleboy” Kearney, a blogger who has extensively covered the Karen Read case and is indicted on multiple counts of witness intimidation in it, is partially barred from attending the case in person.
“My role in this case, Commonwealth vs. Karen Read, is to assure that the defendant’s constitutional rights to a fair trial are honored and upheld and because of the chilling effect that Mr. Kearney’s presence I find will have on the witnesses testimony, I’m going to excuse him while the named witnesses in the commonwealth’s motion” testify, Judge Beverly Cannone said.
Those witnesses are Julie Nagel, Christopher Albert, Colin Albert, Michael Proctor, Jennifer and Matthew McCabe, Brian and Nicole Albert, Yuriy Bukhenik, and Brian Albert Jr.
“The witnesses have expressed concerns … over his presence affecting their testimony or ability to recall,” prosecutor Adam Lally argued in his motion to exclude Kearney. “For all of those reasons, the Commonwealth would submit the administration of justice and the witnesses being able to testify as well as the witnesses’ own concerns more than meet the test of the substantial reason for Mr. Kearney’s exclusion during the testimony.”
Kearney’s attorney, who said he was just served the motion some 30 minutes before the motions hearing while in Norfolk Superior Court for an unrelated matter, said that “The witnesses’ concerns has no legal materiality under the law.”
“Mr. Kearney has the right to speak on the case. He’s gone through all the proper channels to be here. He has not in any way or wants to or is trying to make any issue of his presence here and he’s just trying to cover the case as best he can.”
Kearney secured an Supreme Judicial Court Rule 1:19 media credential on Tuesday. That allows him to be part of a media pool for any case in Massachusetts. The credentials are held by both established media organizations like the Herald as well as independent media who meet the rules.
Kearney responded on X, formerly known as Twitter, by saying, “The Commonwealth is creating a circus.”
“I have attended every Karen Read hearing I could make it to over the last year with no issues, despite the fact that ‘witnesses’ were in the courtroom. Two judges have ruled that I have a right to be at #KarenRead hearings AFTER I was charged with witness intimidation,” he wrote in another tweet following the decision. “No one is scared. No one is intimidated. They are simply trying to violate my First Amendment rights to Freedom of the Press.”
Kearney was in the media pool throughout testimony on Friday morning, when Julie Albert continued her testimony, and through the motion argument. Nicole Albert took the stand after that motions hearing so Kearney had to exit the courtroom.
His spot in the media gallery is secured when other witnesses not on the list testify, Cannone said.
The case continues today.
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