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- [00:00]
Katie Ring
Foreign hey everyone, it's Katie. If you're loving Crime House Daily, you need to check out Crimes of, the newest show from Crime House. Crimes of is a weekly series that explores a new theme each season from Crimes of the paranormal, unsolved murders, mysterious disappearances, and more. Their first season is Crimes of Infamy, the true stories behind Hollywood's most iconic horror villains. Crimes of is a Crime House original powered by Pave Studios. Listen wherever you get your podcasts or find them on YouTube at Crime House Studios. New episodes out every Tuesday.
- [00:55]
Doug
This is Crime House.
- [00:59]
Narrator/Reporter
Juror in the Karen Reed case pleads guilty to leaking.
- [01:02]
Advertiser/Commercial Voice
Secret information that Jessica Leslie served on the grand jury investigating Reed and the death of her boyfriend, John o'. Keefe. It is illegal to disclose what happens in grand jury proceedings.
- [01:13]
Katie Ring
Karen Reed is officially a free woman. But the question remains who was responsible for John's death and will anyone else face consequences? While we haven't heard anything from the FBI, but Karen Reed did make a bombshell announcement in her first civil hearing that might bring some semblance of consequences. Hi, I'm Katie Ring, a true crime analyst, self defense instructor and fierce advocate for victims. And this is Crime House Daily, your essential true crime companion. Every weekday morning and night here at Crime House Daily, we dig into the true crime stories making headlines right now, where justice is unfolding, arrests are happening, and new evidence is emerging. Every morning, First Watch gets you up to speed on the biggest cases, and every night Night Watch takes you deeper. If you want to follow a case from the first 911 call to the final verdict, this is the place for you. Follow Crime House Daily wherever you get your podcasts, leave a review and for ad free listening. Subscribe to Crime House plus on Apple Podcasts. For video, check out our YouTube channel RimehouseDaily. This episode discusses active criminal cases and breaking news. The information we share is based on what's publicly available at the time of recording and may change as new evidence comes to light. We aim to inform, not to decide guilt or innocence, so everyone mentioned is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Today we're covering two major cases in the news. The first case takes us to Massachusetts, where Karen Reid has announced that she plans on suing the McCabes, Alberts, Brian Higgins, and the Massachusetts State Police. A grand juror in her trial has also admitted to leaking secret testimony, raising new questions about how one of Boston's most infamous cases was handled behind closed doors. She was sentenced just recently to so we're going to break down exactly what happened. The second case comes out of Colorado where a woman named Carmen Galligan was deemed unfit to stand trial after she was accused of attempting to kidnap a child from a schoolyard.
- [03:40]
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- [04:12]
Katie Ring
Before we get into today's main stories, I want to bring up another case I've been watching. Frank Somerville, a former news anchor who is also from the Bay Area, was arrested for allegedly assaulting his daughter after an altercation broke out. He apparently described the whole incident in a since deleted Facebook post. The San Francisco Chronicle came out with an article that reports that he had also attacked his girlfriend last year in his Oakland home while allegedly very drunk. We have a First Watch episode coming out that follows this case more closely, so make sure to stay tuned for that. For today's case, we are back with some updates surrounding the entire Karen Reid trial Saga. On Monday, September 22, Karen Reed appeared in a Plymouth courtroom for a hearing regarding the wrongful death lawsuit filed against her by the family of her former boyfriend and the man she was accused of but found not guilty of killing Boston Police Officer John o' Keefe and she made a bombshell announcement. She plans to sue the Alberts McCabes or as we call them, the McAlberts and the state police. Karen's defense attorney Damon Seligson announced that they intend to pursue conspiracy and civil rights claims against disgraced former Trooper Michael Proctor, Sergeant Yuri Buchanic and Detective Lieutenant Brian Tully. He also named Brian and Nicole Albert, Jennifer and Matthew McCabe and Brian Higgins. If these names are new to you, we did a five part deep dive on the Karen Reed trial and retrial for the launch of our show, which I highly recommend you give a watch if you're new to this case. But for the purpose of this episode, I will give you a very high level overview because this will also lead us to the second development in this saga that has to do with a member of the grand jury that originally indicted Karen. On January 28, 2022, Karen Reed and her boyfriend, 46 year old John O', Keefe decided to pregame one of the largest nor' easters by going out and drinking with some of their friends at local bars in Canton, Massachusetts. A little after midnight, when the bar started to close, Brian, Albert and his wife Nicole invited the whole group back to their house for an after party because it was their son Brian Jr's birthday. So Karen and John got into Karen's car and she drove them to Brian's. We don't know what the conversation was like during that drive, but prosecutors allege that the two got into a fight and that in a fit of rage, Karen threw her car into reverse, backed up into her boyfriend and left him for dead. Karen, however, said that her and John were not very close with the homeowners. So Karen asked John to check out the vibes before they committed to going in. She says she waited in the car, but 10 minutes went by and John never returned. He wasn't even responding to Karen's calls or texts and she thought he just forgot about her and she wasn't feeling great anyways, so she drove off pissed. On the way home and throughout the night she calls him over 50 times and leaves him a ton of angry voicemails and texts. She sent the last one around 1am before falling asleep. Then around 4 or 5am, Karen woke up and noticed that John still wasn't home. And she immediately knew something was wrong because the night before she had texted John she was going back home and that he needed to come home because his niece and nephew would be all alone. Karen was bluffing and ended up staying over, but she knew that John would never leave the kids alone, no matter what was going on in his and Karen's relationship. So she called the woman who had invited them to the party the night before, Jennifer McCabe. Jen was also the sister in law of the homeowner whose house they went to, Brian Albert. Karen was frantic and also called another one of John's close friends, Carrie Roberts, who was not present the night before. But Karen thought she may know where John was. The three women end up meeting up and they drive around to search for John. They first went back to John's house and when they didn't discover him there, they drove to 34 Fairview Road, the location of the afterparty and the previous night. The entire ride Karen was screaming and freaking out. She knew something was wrong and when they got to Brian's house, her fears were confirmed. From the car, Karen spots a mound in the snow. It was John lying motionless on the ground. Karen kicked at the door and once Carrie unlocked the doors, she ran to him and started performing mouth to mouth. And John's friend Carrie started chest compressions. Meanwhile, Jen calls 911. Unfortunately, the efforts of the two women and the medics are not enough to save John o' Keefe and he was soon pronounced dead. His cause of death was listed as blunt impact injuries to the head and hypothermia. Jen McCabe along with a few paramedics, testified that at the crime scene Karen said, I hit him, I hit him, I hit him. And admitted to hitting John with her car. However, this narrative conveniently changed from trial to trial as people claim their memories got better with time. With this supposed confession, Karen becomes the number one suspect and is arrested four days later on February 2, 2022. And on June 10, 2022, a grand jury indicted Karen on second degree murder, manslaughter while operating under the influence of alcohol and leaving the scene of a crime. The evidence seemed stacked against her, but as we know, the story was far from over. In June of 2022, Karen Reed pleaded not guilty to the murder of her boyfriend John o' Keefe, and her defense claimed she was framed. They said there was evidence that members of various law enforcement agencies killed John o' Keefe and covered it up. The trial began In April of 2024, a little over two years after John's death. Again, we go over all of the details in depth in the Karen Reed series, but here are a few of the important ones. The activities of the family members in attendance at the after party and as well as another guest named Brian Higgins were all very suspicious. That same night, records showed that Jen McCabe googled Hoss Long to die in cold at 2:27am hours before John's body was discovered. This was later debated by experts in the trial, but was still shocking. There were also a curious number of calls between the partygoers and that they all claim were just butt dials despite records showing calls were answered. Brian Albert also sold his childhood home, which was the scene of the crime for under asking in a hot market, rehomed his family dog of seven years and disposed of his phone the day before he received a court ordered subpoena to preserve it. Brian Higgins curiously also got rid of his phone on a military base the exact same day. Totally a coincidence. And there are a whole bunch of sketchy texts and group chats between the group. Which brings us to the now disgraced former trooper Michael Proctor, who was the lead investigator in this case because the texts found on his phone were also shocking. He had a group chat with his high school friends, where he proclaimed that the homeowner wouldn't catch any because he's a Boston cop too. He also made some despicable comments about Karen, including calling her the C word. Proctor was also caught texting his superiors that he was looking for nudes on her phone and texted his sister that he wished Karen would just kill herself. And unsurprisingly, it turns out that he also had deep connections with the Albert family and that just 10 days before John's death, Julia Albert babysat his kids. These details are just the tip of the iceberg. The trial was like a never ending web of personal relationships and accusations. At the same time, Internet sluice seemed to be one step ahead of every new revelation. And the city of Canton was deeply divided on whether Karen was guilty or not, including the jury on Karen's first trial in July of 2024, after two months of testimony and deliberations, the jury was deadlocked and the case was declared a mistrial. Which meant Karen would have to go through the process all over again. About a year later, In April of 2025, the second trial kicked off and after another drawn out saga, the jury finally returned a verdict. On June 18, 2025, Karen was acquitted of all charges except driving under the influence, which she got one year of probation for, meaning that in the end she was not convicted of murder. But despite the not guilty verdict and all of the evidence presented in trial, John's family is still convinced Karen is guilty and wants her to pay. So they filed a wrongful death lawsuit against her and are also claiming emotional distress. But in the first hearing on Monday, September 22, Karen's lawyer announced their plans to sue the McCabes, Alberts and Brian Higgins for allegations of civil conspiracy and civil rights violations and that they are also going after the Massachusetts State Police for conspiracy, civil rights violations and negligent training, supervision and retention of troopers. Karen's team alleged the partygoers diverted attention away from themselves and towards Ms. Reed and collectively conspired to ensure what happened in the house was not explored or investigated. He also claimed that the Canton police could be accused of negligent failure to secure the Sally Port garage where Karen's SUV was held. And lastly, he proposed that these be filed as part of this civil case to streamline the process and conserve the court's time and resources. The Plymouth Superior Court Judge Daniel o' Shea said, quote, not how the court system likes this stuff to work folks. So not sure how that will play out, but as always, we will Keep you updated. Now there's another update that isn't about Karen herself, but has to do with her grand jury hearing and how people seem to know so much about this case before it even went to trial. Before a criminal case like this makes it to trial, they have to go through something called a grand jury hearing, where jurors decide whether or not the prosecution has a strong enough case to move forward and take the defendant to trial. In this process, these jurors are obviously given access to a high volume of sensitive information, which is why grand jury sessions are kept extremely secretive. The authorities don't want any information reaching people who could potentially be placed on the jury should the case go to trial. Due to all of the evidence the defense presented in this case, it is clear that officials at the Massachusetts DA's office had a feeling that the public would be interested in this case because they end up monitoring the grand juror's social media activity and communications during and even after the hearing. They haven't said what exactly they were keeping tabs on, but they eventually found something pretty shocking. A 34 year old grand juror, identified as a woman named Jessica Leslie, had been leaking sealed information to people, including, quote, the names of various witnesses appearing before a federal grand jury, the substance of witness testimony, and other evidence presented to the grand jury. Apparently, investigators realized Jessica had been disclosing privileged information over the course of almost two years between August 11, 2022 and March 4, 2024. That was the period of time immediately following the grand jury hearings up until right before Karen's first trial began. So on July 11, 2025, about a month after Karen was found not guilty of murder, Massachusetts authorities charged Jessica with one count of criminal contempt. Less than a month later, on August 4, Jessica pleaded guilty at a federal court in Boston. And Jessica's sentencing hearing was scheduled for September 26, 2025. Per her agreement, she was sentenced to serve one day in jail deemed served, then 24 months of supervised release. In a case that already involved potential corruption, Leslie's actions may have resulted in a ton of wasted time and resources. Here at Crime House, we'll be on the lookout for any breaking details and we'll be sure to share them with with you here.
- [18:08]
Narrator/Reporter
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- [18:37]
Doug
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- [18:52]
Katie Ring
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- [18:55]
Doug
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- [18:56]
Advertiser/Commercial Voice
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- [19:07]
Katie Ring
Our second case today is currently a source of controversy because late this summer the individual in question was deemed mentally incapable of standing trial. The suspect is Solomon Galligan, who according to court records, is a transgender woman who had chosen the name Carmen. On April 19, 2024 at 1:01pm, Galligan walked right into the schoolyard of Black Forest Hills elementary in Aurora, Colorado. Galligan approached a group of fifth graders who yelled stranger danger. To warn each other and alert teachers as they scattered. When the kids started to run away, Galligan lunged at an 11 year old boy, allegedly trying to grab him. Luckily, she was carrying a white blanket and appeared to trip on it, which slowed her down. When she got back up, she followed the students for a few more paces before turning around and leaving the school grounds. After the incident, the children expressed concern to their parents and teachers, who the police were finally called around 2:15pm the boy who had allegedly been grabbed described Galligan's appearance to the police and reported that she had white powder or some other substance on her face and smelled like alcohol. Soon after, the parent of another child saw someone who matched Galligan's description about a mile and a half away from the school at Walgreens. The police picked Galligan up there and escorted her to a hospital, first because she claimed she had been assaulted. The police ran a background check on Galligan and learned that she had been convicted of misdemeanor non consensual sexual contact in Denver in late December 2011. They also found out that she'd been put on probation, failing to register as a sex offender. Later that afternoon, they arrested her on second degree kidnapping charges and took her from the hospital straight to jail. Galligan was held at the Arapahoe county jail on a $25,000 bond, but nobody paid it, so she remained in custody of the criminal justice system for over a year. During that time, Galligan's lawyer raised the issue that she was likely not mentally competent to stand trial. So Galligan underwent her first court ordered evaluation in 2024 conducted by the state Office of Civil and Forensic Mental Health. Her lawyer then requested the first report be supplemented with a second evaluation, which the court granted. Then the court ordered a third evaluation by the state and finally, per the defense's request, a fourth evaluation by an independent psychiatrist was granted. The fourth and final evaluation was completed in June 2025 and the doctor provided an extensive 63 page report. It concluded that Galligan, who suffered from multiple mental health conditions, was not competent to stand trial and wouldn't be in the foreseeable future because of a law that was changed in the summer of 2024. Colorado judges are required to dismiss any case in which the defendant is found incompetent and not restorable to competency. So on July 17, 2025, the defense filed a motion to dismiss the case. The district attorney was given until July 28 to submit a formal response before the judge went on to determine the next steps. At that point, the district court would decide whether the charges could be upheld under Colorado law. If the court agreed that the evaluations proved Galligan was incompetent and unlikely to be restored, they would have to dismiss the case. At the hearing on August 7, the doctor's findings were upheld. Galligan was found mentally unfit to stand trial and not likely to be restored to competency. The judge ordered short term civil commitment but didn't have the jurisdiction to mandate long term care, which is an issue Galligan has faced for almost 20 years. Two decades Galligan's family has spoken up about how much they love her but don't have the capabilities of helping her the way she needs to be helped. Galligan was one of 10 children adopted into the Galligan family when she was very young. Pretty soon after the adoption, Galligan's family started to notice developments with her mental health. She was diagnosed with ADHD, then put into special needs programs. When she was 16, Galligan was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. As she got older, she spent a lot of time at Pueblo State Mental Hospital. The family says they tried everything they could to help Galligan get better when she was home, but it was really hard for them. Sometimes she'd leave, steal things and not want to take her meds. She was arrested for the first time in 2007 when she was still a juvenile. Since then, she's been charged with numerous criminal offenses and her competency has been an issue in every single one of them over the past 18 years. She's been evaluated for competency at least 23 times since 2018. This is at least the fourth time that charges have been brought against her and had to be dropped for for similar reasons. In earlier cases when the laws were different, Galligan was deemed too sick to go to trial, but not sick enough to be sent to a state mental health facility. Galligan's defense attorney, Becca Butler Dines, emphasized that Galligan's lack of treatment early on in life severely exacerbated her mental health problems. Her wish for Galligan is that if she qualifies for release from the state hospital, she'll be put into a facility that can and will treat her long term. When Galligan is released, there is no requirement to notify the parents of the kids who were on the playground that day who spoke up at the Aug. 7 hearing. They were scared because of what happened to their children and outraged at the lack of process in place to protect them. The prosecution and parents are pushing lawmakers to reevaluate Colorado's competency laws and have already begun taking action. And as always, we'll be sure to bring you any breaking updates. What did you think of today's cases? Drop your thoughts and theories in the comments and follow us crimehouse24.7 on TikTok and Instagram and subscribe on YouTube rimehouse daily for ad free listening, join crime house plus on Apple podcasts. You stay curious and I'll stay on the case. See you tonight.