BOSTON (AP) — Karen Read has filed a lawsuit against the Massachusetts State Police and the town of Canton, alleging misconduct and negligence in the investigation that led to her prosecution in the death of her Boston police officer boyfriend.
The lawsuit filed Thursday in Bristol County Superior Court argues that Read's acquittal last June revealed “an embedded culture of bigotry, misogyny, systemic failures, and institutional rot at the very core of both organizations.” It alleges that the town and the police department were negligent in the hiring, training and supervision of officers and seeks damages for legal fees, lost income, emotional distress and reputational harm, among other claims.
The complaint reproduces dozens of text messages, recordings and other communications attributed to former state trooper Michael Proctor and former Canton police Sgt. Sean Goode. Among them are messages in which Proctor referred to Read as a “whack job” and wrote that he hoped she would kill herself. The lawsuit also cites messages that it says included use of the n-word and, in one instance, a comment by Proctor that “Hitler was really on to something.”
Read's lawyers argue that those materials show both men were unfit to participate in the investigation and that their conduct reflected broader failures in oversight by state and local law enforcement.
In a statement on Thursday, State Police Superintendent Col. Geoffrey Noble called Proctor’s messages “racist, sexist and abhorrent” and said they supported his decision to fire the former trooper. Noble said the comments did not reflect the values of the department and pointed to changes that have been made since he became superintendent. He also noted that the investigation predated his tenure.
“These disturbing messages are entirely inconsistent with any basic standard of decency and certainly with the expectations of a Massachusetts State Trooper," Noble said, adding that agency officials are, "keenly aware of the ways in which this misconduct harmed the public trust on which our mission depends.”
The town of Canton said it learned of the lawsuit through news reports and a press release from Read’s legal team and had not yet been served with the complaint. The town said it had “the utmost faith and confidence” in Police Chief Michael Daniels and disputed what it described as “broad stroke characterizations” of Canton police officers contained in the lawsuit. Officials said the department has implemented recommendations from an outside audit and is modernizing the agency.
Proctor’s attorney, Matt Hamel, told NBC10 Boston that focusing on “anything other than Ms. Read’s own conduct” was “telling and predictable” and said “anything Mr. Proctor did or said in his personal life, years before Officer O’Keefe was killed, had no bearing whatsoever on the investigation of Karen Read.”
Read walked out of court a free woman about a year ago after more than three years and two trials over the death of her boyfriend, Boston police officer John O’Keefe, who was found on the suburban lawn of a fellow officer’s home after a night of heavy drinking during a snowstorm.
Prosecutors said Read hit O’Keefe with her SUV on the January 2022 night of a party, leaving him to die in a blizzard. Read faced charges of second-degree murder, manslaughter and leaving the scene. The jury acquitted her of those charges, but convicted her of a lesser charge for drunken driving.
Her lawyers successfully defended her, painting a sinister picture of police misconduct and theorizing that O’Keefe was in fact killed by colleagues who then covered it up.
The trial centered in part on lead investigator Michael Proctor, whom defense attorneys described as biased against Read from the beginning. The Massachusetts State Police trial board found Proctor guilty of sending crude and defamatory text messages about Read while leading the investigation into her. He was fired and became a central figure for Read supporters who believe the investigation was tainted.
Goode was placed on leave in November 2025 when the town was notified about allegations of misconduct. He resigned earlier this week, according to news outlets.
FILE - Karen Read speaks after she was found not guilty of second-degree murder June 18, 2025, in Dedham, Mass. (AP Photo/Josh Reynolds, File)
PARMA, Italy--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jun 5, 2026--
A slimmer Tagliatelle pack that saves 150 tons of cardboard and cuts transport-related CO₂ emissions by 20% 1; ready-made sauce jars made with around 65% recycled glass; the progressive scaling of regenerative agriculture practices across Barilla’s value chain and initiatives supporting inclusion and equal opportunities across the Group’s production sites and communities. These are just some of the “sustainability” stories the Barilla Group is sharing on World Environment Day with the publication of its 2025 Sustainability Report. The report comes just after Barilla was named the world’s most reputable company in the food sector for the third year running and, for the first time, ranked among the global top 10 in the Global RepTrak 100 2026.
This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260603162436/en/
“The future of the planet will increasingly depend on our ability to spread culture and education,”says Paolo Barilla, Vice Chairman of the Barilla Group. “For Barilla, this means caring for communities, promoting strong values, and investing in technologies and production systems that protect the environment and safeguard people’s health.”
CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT ACROSS OUR PRODUCTS
Barilla’s passion for good food has driven the company to improve the nutritional profile of its entire portfolio without compromising on taste: 89% of volumes sold contain no more than 5 grams of sugar per serving, 90% contain no more than 0.5 grams of salt per serving and 90% provide a source of fiber 2. That same passion also fuels innovation, with more than €47 million invested in Research, Development and Quality in 2025. A symbol of this commitment is BITE (Barilla Innovation & Technology Experience), the new global Group innovation hub established in Parma next to the company’s historic pasta plant. Here, ideas are transformed into prototypes and industrial processes thanks to the work of more than 200 professionals, including food technologists, researchers, food designers, chefs and sensory experts, supported by a collaboration network of 84 universities and research centers.
€30 MILLION INVESTED TO QUADRUPLE PHOTOVOLTAIC CAPACITY ACROSS BARILLA PASTA AND BAKERY PLANTS IN 2025
On the energy front, €30 million was invested as part of a €168 million five-year plan through 2030 for Barilla’s production sites 3, spanning energy efficiency, more careful water management and the development of renewable electric energy systems. In 2025, five new plants activated in Foggia, Melfi, Ascoli Piceno, Cremona, in Italy and Thiva, in Greece, increased the installed photovoltaic capacity across production sites to over 8 MW, more than four times higher compared to 2022. Equally significant is the company’s progress on water conservation: at sites located in water-stressed areas, recycled and reused water rose by 196% compared with 2022, moving Barilla closer to its 2030 target of +250%. 4
SUSTAINABLE AND REGENERATIVE AGRICULTURE ACROSS BARILLA’S GLOBAL VALUE CHAIN
Climate change and the pressure on natural resources require an evolution of agricultural practices, with a strong focus on the health of soil and ecosystems. In this context, Barilla’s commitment fits in: in 2025, the company purchased 4,160 tonnes of soft wheat from regenerative agriculture (with a target of 250,000 tonnes by 2030), aimed at restoring soil health and biodiversity while reducing water use.
Through its Barilla Sustainable Farming (BSF) program, active across key crops including cereals and basil, the Group sourced over 816,000 tons of raw materials since 2010, engaging nearly 7,000 farmers.
Building on this long-standing framework, Barilla is progressively scaling regenerative agriculture practices aligned with FAO principles, such as crop rotation, minimum tillage and organic fertilization, with the objective of improving soil health, enhancing biodiversity and reducing greenhouse-gas emissions.
COMMITMENT TO THE COMMUNITY: 4,000 TONNES OF FOOD DONATED AND €2 MILLION FOR SOCIAL CAUSES
Barilla’s presence in local communities also takes shape through projects that interest the Group’s production sites and public spaces, all rooted in the idea of food as a point of connection between different worlds. Through initiatives spanning food access and social inclusion, the Group works in partnership with non-profit organizations and local stakeholders in the countries where it operates.
In 2025, Barilla donated 4,000 tons of food products to non-profit organizations worldwide and allocated € 2 million to social causes, supporting initiatives focused on inclusion, education and social well-being. Alongside community programs, inclusion is also promoted within Barilla’s own operations, through initiatives aimed at fostering equal opportunities and the integration of vulnerable groups across production sites, in line with the Group’s broader People and Social Sustainability agenda.
THE NUMBERS BEHIND RESPONSIBLE GROWTH
Barilla’s sustainability commitment continues to progress alongside its business performance, as reflected in the publication of its two annual reports. In a year marked by an unstable global environment, amid geopolitical tensions, shifting trade dynamics and major cost volatility, the Barilla Group, with 30 production sites (15 in Italy and 15 abroad) and 2 million tons of products sold across 100 countries, reported revenues of €4.837 billion (+1% net of exchange-rate effects). Once again, the company confirms its commitment to the goals set out in the Barilla 2030 Sustainability Compass, which will continue to guide its direction over the next four years.
“Our Sustainability Stories” provide a concise overview of the initiatives and goals we consider most significant, as highlighted in the Barilla Sustainability Report 2025.
“Our Sustainability Stories” and the full Barilla Sustainability Report 2025 are available at www.barillagroup.com.
1 For further details, please refer to Chapter E1 of the Sustainability Report.
2https://www.barillagroup.com/it/sostenibilita/prodotti/
3https://www.barillagroup.com/it/sostenibilita/clima/
4https://www.barillagroup.com/it/sostenibilita/
Renewable Electricity, Soft Wheat Flour From Regenerative Agriculture, Initiatives to Support Local Communities: Barilla Shares These and Other Projects in “Stories of Sustainability.”
