Disgraced Lead Investigator Terminated Over Vulgar, Offensive Texts About Karen Read

The Massachusetts State Police trooper who led the investigation into the Karen Read case has been fired less than a year after his vulgar messages about the murder suspect were exposed during the trial.

Michael Proctor’s offensive messages came to light when Read was being tried in the 2022 killing of her boyfriend John O’Keefe, a Boston police officer.

O’Keefe was found bloodied and injured in the snow in Canton, Mass., in the morning on Jan. 29, 2022. Read’s lawyers later argued she had been framed in his killing.

Her trial ended in a mistrial on July 1, when a jury failed to unanimously decide whether she drunkenly ran over and killed O’Keefe in 2022. She is scheduled to go on trial again in April.

During the trial, Read’s lawyers made Proctor read aloud the words he used to describe her to fellow troopers, CBS News reported at the time. 

The testimony revealed his use of words such as “whack-job” and “c—” to describe the financial analyst and then-adjunct professor.

Proctor also admitted to messaging his sister that he hoped Read would die by suicide.

“Hopefully she kills herself,” he was made to read out in court, CBS News reported at the time.

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Hours after Read’s trial ended, Proctor was relieved of duty, PEOPLE previously reported. Days later, he was suspended without pay, according to CBS.

On Wednesday, the Massachusetts State Police announced Proctor’s firing in a “dishonorable discharge,” the Boston Herald reported.

Massachusetts State Police Col. Geoffrey Noble said in a statement that the MSP’s mission is “to deliver the highest level of police services depends on the public’s trust in our professionalism and integrity,” per the outlet.

“It is incumbent upon me, as well as every member of this Department, to hold one another accountable when any member compromises our mission by failing to uphold our values,” he said.

Massachusetts State Police did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comments.

In a statement to PEOPLE, Proctor’s family said they were “disappointed” about what they termed a “wrongful termination.” The statement said that “the messages prove one thing, and that Michael is human — not corrupt” and “not incompetent” to serve as a homicide detective.