truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth so help you go yes I do thank you gotcha thank you anytime you're ready Mr Val thank you uh good morning sir good morning sir could you uh please St your name and spell your last name for the J it's uh Christopher Albert uh a lb r t and uh where do you live sir I live at 22 Maple Street Unit L Canton Mass and uh how long have you lived there uh almost two years be sorry go ahead and uh how long have you lived in Camp uh since 1974 and so pretty much your whole life pretty much since I was four and prior to living uh but where did where did you live in Canton before that uh seven Meadows AV uh in Canton and how long did you live at seven Meadows from 2001 to 2021 about 20 years and uh who if anyone you live with now I live with um my wife Julie uh my oldest son who just came home from the Navy um my middle son Colin and my youngest son Dylan and uh how long have you and and your wife Julie uh been mared uh roughly gosh she going to kill me um 21 years around 21 years you mentioned you and your wife Julie you have three sons yeah um and how old are they my oldest is 25 uh my midle is 20 and my youngest is 16 now uh do you work sir yes I do what do you do for work I'm self-employed I own a a small pizza shop what's a what's the name of the pizza it's called DNA pizza and how long have you have you owned that 25 years this match and uh prior to that did you work sort of in the same industry same industry pretty much my whole life and uh does your wife work she does not um does she help out with the the DNA pizza shop she does some of this behind the- scenes stuff yes now when you lived on Meadows Avenue uh did you have occasion to become familiar with someone named John O yes I did and how is it that you how is it that you knew John O um so he he bought the one Meadows have the top house um I don't know exactly maybe like 2017 so he became my neighbor and I guess just from me driving by his house and coming home I saw him would wave to him and stuff and that's how I initially became to know who John was and you mentioned he bought the house at sort of the the top of the street is that correct yeah it's the very if you're coming off Pleasant you take a right down Meadows it's the first on the right and then um on Meadows app about how many how many houses are on Meadows uh well between us or all down the whole street you mean first down the whole street and then yeah so roughly on that whole street I would say there's like close to 30 houses from top to bottom on both sides and then how about in between one and seven so there's two there two houses between uh mine and John's and uh your house is both odd numbers are they on the same side same side yeah now you said that that's how you initially came to know John O'Keefe uh how did your relationship sort of uh go on from there so over the years like um he he was friendly with some other folks that I was friends with um so I we' maybe be out occasionally and bump into him but he would also come to my pizza shop a lot um he would take his uh his nephew um Patrick in my pizza shop a lot so it was not uncommon for him to stop by a couple days a week usually just grab a slice now um you grow up in C correct yes and uh do you have any siblings I do I have six and um um what are what are the names of your six so my oldest is uh my older brother Brian um I have a sister Kathleen um I have a young she's older than me and then I'm next in line and then I have a brother Kevin then a brother Keith Brendan and Timmy seven of where where is it that You' sort of fit in in that sort of I'm the third oldest now your older brother Brian what does he do for work he's uh Boston police officer or he was he's recently retired and your brother Kevin what does he do he's a Canton police officer and John o'keef were you familiar with what he did for yes yeah I knew he was a bosson police officer as well now sir if I could turn your attention to um January 28th 2022 do you recall that day yes I do and uh do you recall what day of the week that was it's a Friday I believe and uh you working at the DNA pizza shop on that I was and at some point in time in the afternoon uh who if anyone of not sort of came into to De John came in that day with his uh with his nephew Patrick and uh you recall what what did they get that day I think they got two slices of pizza if I recall correctly and what if any conversation did you have uh with Mr O as far as plans for later in the year so he asked me if I had any plans that night and I said um unfortunately it's Friday I'm working pretty much till close and uh I said but it's my nephew's birthday and I know a bunch of people are heading out and I was planning on meeting up with them later when I got out of work so I uh I think I said to him um not I I said to him I'll uh I'll shoot you a text later if you're around maybe we can hook up so in that sense sort how would you describe your your relationship with Mr that was a good relationship yeah would you consider yourself friends yeah absolutely now um pushing forward uh on January 28th uh about what time was it if you know that you sort of closed up shop at so the shops stays open till 10: um I know that I I I left some time a little bit before 10 um I had my wife Dro me off some clothes in the was like a ritual she would because I those nights are tough for me to get out early and go home so she dropped me off some clothes and uh I remember just changing quick washing up a little bit and then leaving so I think I left before the store actually closed a few minutes now during the time prior to you leaving uh the pizza shop what if any conversation uh via text that you have with Mr O um he asked where I was I said I was still working um and he said something like uh why don't you to talk to the boss see if you can get out of there and I just said I'm married to this place it's tough um I'll text you when when I leave and then um then I shot him a text I think when when I got down to waterfall and I said uh where are you and go and where did he say that he was he was at cf's CF McCarthy's can he familiar with both of those establishments as far as CF McCarthy is in waterfall yes I am and with regard to your pizza shop uh where is C McCarthy's information to that and where is waterfall so if I was sitting at my front door looking out CF mathy would be to my right and waterfall would be down the street diagonal maybe like 200 yards on the opposite side of the street uh so both sort of walking distance from where you were yeah yeah now your home on Maple uh where is that in in relation to those businesses on Washington including your own so Maple Street is like um probably from my pizza shop is maybe like a 5minute walk you know it's not far um in a little closer to Waterfall so maybe it's like a 7-minute walk from d and like a 5 minute walk from waterfall and are there any sort of um any area where you live is there any sort of like Town buildings or anything like that yeah so um the I kind of live behind the library like you take a left on Maple and the library is like two buildings after me on the left hand side um and then the town hall is a little further down on the right and the library that's around where you live is that the only Public Library that's the uh I besides what's inside schools yeah that's the only public library and so again I'm sorry about what time is it that you leave D to go to walk just before 10: maybe like 9:50 is and as far as uh meeting up with people who is it that uh directs you to to go to water spe I think my wife said are you coming down are you are you there um she was down there so I had a conversation with her I think that's how I headed down there you went there to meet your wife correct yeah yeah she was down there and you've been to the waterfall before yes and so when you walk into the waterfall um where did you go as far as if anyone did you recognize when you came so pretty much when you walk in it's just kind of like open and uh my wife was there uh Matt was that Matt mccab was there Jim mccab was there um my sister-in-law Nicole was there my niece Caitlyn was there um I think when I first walked in that's who was there and uh you mentioned Jennifer and Matthew m c zah yeah and how do you know them uh oh well I grew up with um I didn't grow up with Jen she's younger than me but um she's she's lived in Canton for a long time she's uh my brother Brian is married to her sister Nicole so I've known her my pretty much my whole life and you were testifying earlier about some of the people that you and Mr o' sort of knew in common would Mrs M be one of those people yes yeah and when you walk in um relative to The Establishment um where abouts were were those people situated so they were on like a table that was close to the bar it's like set up they have like three tables in a row and they I think we were the maybe either in the middle or the next table to the bar with those three sort of tables together if you know about how how long a table are we talking about I would say they about a six foot table and was this a low top high top or something it's like a high top and located close to the bar is that correct yes what if anything do you recall from that evening as far as entertainment uh Within within the waterfall there was a live band that was playing to the side about how close to to your table was a live oh within like 6 or 7even feet probably better to say pretty loud in there pretty loud yeah and when you walk in where do you sort of where do you go in in reference to sort of the other people there I go right over to the table and um I think I walked right over said hello to them sat down and uh what if anything did you order when you got that um I ordered a beer and did you uh did you eat while you were there as well I did yeah I was stabing I didn't eat all day so I um order some food appetizers and throughout the course of the evening um what is it you're at a bar so you're drinking correct sure and uh what sort of what were you drink uh Mite is that sort of normally what you would drink when you go out yeah now you mentioned that initially when you get there it's yourself your brother Brian his wife uh the maves and your niece Caitlyn is that correct no my brother Brian wasn't there yet yeah it was it was jeen McCabe Matt mccab my wife um Caitlyn and Nicole thank you for correct yeah no problem sorry so at some point shortly after the our at some points uh who if anyone else Ares and and sort of joins your your table your group so uh my brother Brian and um and a a gentleman named Brian Higgins they came and joined us and is Brian Higgins is that someone that you had met previously yeah a few times um and how did you know him um I don't know how I initially met him but um just probably just seen him around I I knew that he he worked um as an ATF agent I knew that he he um had he worked inside the Canton Police Department so I think I knew him from that just being around fair to say you knew him sort of through your your brothers either Brian or Kevin or yeah that's that's the only way I met him and about how long after you arrived was it that that they arrived I would probably within like 35 35 minutes roughly and uh what if anything did you know about sort of where they had been prior to or or what they had been doing earlier so they were in New York um at a a police officers funeral um they went there for the ceremony and that snowstorm was coming so they decided that they were going to drive back early to beat the storm you mentioned uh well as far as going out on that particular evening what what was that in reference to so my nephew uh Brian um it was his birthday and so when you say your nephew Brian who's whose son is that so that's my older brother Brian's son Brian so Brian Jr Brian Jr yeah call him Brian Jr um and was he president at the waterfall that night he wasn't no he decided that he um didn't want to go out and when your brother uh your older brother Brian and Mr Higgins come in where is it that they go sort of in in relation to so they walk in and they come directly over to the table now at some point later in the evening who if anyone else uh also joins your your group or your table so uh John John O'Keefe came um with Karen Reed and um how did you know Karen Reed at that time um I met her a couple times she also had been in the pizza shop a couple times and um driving by the street when I would come home she would be outside one medals and uh just to be clear when we're speaking about Miss Reed do you see her in the courtroom today yes I do you just identify as to where she seated uh she's sitting right over there between the two attorneys ask record reflect identification of the defend okay now prior to Mr op coming into the waterfall uh you mentioned some text Communications with him is that correct yes and what if any other Communications did you did you have with Mr O before he got there um I don't think nothing before I got to the waterfall not before you got to the waterfall before Mr O'Keefe got to the waterfall with Mr O'Keefe yes um just that we where was he where were we going where was he going to be what if any communication do you recall in regards to who was there who was going to be with Mr O'Keefe yes yeah so I think at some point he said who's there um and I I said uh my brother Brian I said Brian and he saidou brother Brian I said yeah Brian and Brian Higgins are there and he said where's your brother Kevin and I said I don't have I have no clue LOL or something and when um Mr O'Keefe and Miss Reed come into the bar where is it that they go upon coming back they walked directly in um came towards our table um just a strike stried up conversation think I think John came over to my wife and said hello to her first Maybe and then um just kind of got with the group started talking now fair to say Mr o'keef knew your your wife Julie as well yes and how would you describe their relationship as far as you good good relationship and when they come when Mr o'keef and uh the defendant come over to the area you and your wife is what offending thing um Did You observe the defendant um well when they came over I think they started talking at one point when they first came over uh the defendant came in with a glass um underneath their jacket and I thought that was kind of funny and I laughed about it and made a comment about it and uh what if anything did you notice sort of about the glass what was in the glass anything like that it was just a tall like cylinder glass uh with some clear liquid in it and a lime and that was under a coat when she came yeah it was like she pulled it out if you know about what time was it that uh that Mr M re came so I got there close to 10 I would say 1045 is to the best of my real action and following uh sort of the blows and all that kind of stuff as far as uh after they first came in where where did they go from uh I think the defendant sat down and I think um I think well John went to the bar and got a beer and you know is that sort of what John would typically drink yeah but light I think and you mentioned that the defendant sat down where did she sit down in relation to to you and your wife I think right next to not I think next to my wife now with regard um to just the how would you describe sort of the the general sort of tone or or demeanor within the group at at the waterfall that night it was fine everyone was just having a good time no no arguments anything like that no not at all and specifically between uh Mr o' and the defendant what if anything did You observe between that I didn't notice anything abnormal now if you recall uh what was Mr o'i wearing on that uh blue jeans baseball hat and kind of like a pullover light sweatshirt type of grayish garment I don't know what you would call it it wasn't like a hoodie and it wasn't it's like a long sleeve shirt is that what he was wearing when he walked in yes at any point in time did you see him with like a a jacket or or anything like that no now as far as your observations in Mr o'keef uh what if anything did You observe about that clothing as far as any tears or any shment of it at all no I didn't notice anything it looked fine to me and as far as Mr o'keef his person himself what if anything did You observe as far as any Ines or anything like that when didn't see anything looked normal now after Mr o'keef went to the bar and got a beard do you know where he went from there just came back over to the table started chatting people up and when you say the table was that sort of your area or was there a different area no the same table the same high top some people sitting some people standing and as far as sort of this length that you described about 6 ft or so of that table um if you recall sort of where where were people situated around table um I mean I was sitting at one point cuz I was eating so I was sitting in one seat my wife was sitting in another seat Matt and Jen was sitting in another seat um I recall John standing a lot I don't think he sat at all um I think Karen was sitting at one point probably like situated near maybe across from my wife or next to my wife now as far as uh Mr o'keef was concerned do you recall anything specific that you discussed or talked about while you were there that night no nothing in particular and throughout sort of the course of of the time that you were there um what if any discussion was there as to going someplace or wanting to go someplace uh after the waterfall so um we have this like little ritual that when one of my when one of my uh nieces and nephews turned 21 we go back to the pizza shop like you know after hours and turn on the oven and make pizzas and stuff and um was talk about um going back there uh Miss Reed asked if we would could go back and make pizzas up at my pizza shop a couple times um and then there was some talk about maybe after um someone mentioned going back to my brother's house after and just to be clear your brother's house which brother my brother Brian and where did your brother Brian live that uh 34 Fe viw you familiar with that address yeah I used I used to live there grew up there so prior to it being your brother Brian's house was that your parents house my parents house yeah so that's where you and your siblings essentially grew up from the time that you moved to c yes now as far as going over to your pizza shop to to make pizzas things like that um is that something that the defendant talked about once or more than once a few times and you referenc sort of this ritual when one of your nieces or nephews turned 21 um and it was your nephew Brian Jr's birthday the following day is that correct yeah was he turning 21 at that point I think so I can't can't remember exactly if he was 20 or 21 I think he was turning 21 now so in relation to this evening of January 28th uh that the ritual that you were talking about when was the last time before January 28th that that you had done that if you know um trying to see who else turned 21 um can't remember exactly I know it was recent I remember doing it I just can't remember the date and that's all I'm really asking so was it recent to January 28th yeah it was uh it was sometime before that but I within like a couple months I think someone turned 21 maybe we just went there and so what if any conversation for your end as far as uh obviously it's your pizza shop so what if any conversation from your end was there in reference to to doing that to doing that that night so we were doing a weight loss competition uh me Matt mccab and my brother Brian and um we had like two more weeks left in it and we do it we pretty every year it's like a charity we do it and um the proceeds go to like scholarship funds so I said no because I didn't we were doing this weight loss challenge and and I just didn't want to give in and you know eat pizza two weeks before we were weighing in and your wife truly um how long was she at the bar for not long when I got there she um probably was only there for maybe 35 40 minutes she had a migraine she wanted to go home so she left um so she indicated she had a migrain and she was going home yeah she didn't feel well and um was that before or after Mr o'keef and Miss Reed she left after they arrived so then she must have been she must have left later than that yeah now later on in the evening what if anything did you uh buy uh for the group um so at one point towards the end of the night I bought a round of Fireball shots um for the group and um and who who partook in that if you I don't remember exactly um probably half of the people there took them I don't remember everyone I wasn't paying paying attention and when you say sort of towards the end of the night when when was it that things sort of wrapped up water I think they they called last call at right before 12 I pretty much right before 12 it all started wrapping up and as far as uh the group that you were with uh at the high top table uh who if anyone from that group left first so my wife left first obviously she didn't feel well she left earlier um then Brian and Brian left my sister-in-law left Matt and Jen left I left probably second to last I probably left last with with John and Karen are right around the time that John and Karen left and do you recall as far as uh you're leaving around the same time do you recall walking out together or seeing them outside or or where is it that you recall sort of leaving at the same time my best recollection is I walked out roughly the same time and I walked out the building and I come up Washington to the right and they was either shortly after shortly before me and they walk up to the left and um when you say walk up Washington did you walk home that night yeah I walked home and so when you came out of the bar what if anything did you notice sort of about the the weather or what was going on with that just thought it snowing it was cold out and it it just started snowing the ground had like a light coat could you still sort of see the the the street of oh yeah yeah you could still see it and you mention you walked out towards Washington and Mr o' and Miss Reed did as well yes and which dire did you go in the same direction different direction when you come out you come out the building you have to go to the left in order to get onto Washington so I come out to the left and then go to the right onto Washington and they would go to the left on Washington you were sort of walking opposite directions I'm watching yes now as far as um throughout sort of the course of the evening did you have occasion to see sort of what Mr o'keef uh mentioned that he went to the bar and he got a beer was that the only beer that you saw him having or did he have one I'm sure he had more than one yeah I saw him with more than one so you saw him but essentially when I'm asking is throughout the course of the evening when you saw him drinking other than maybe the fireball shot you saw him just drinking beer just beer yeah and as far as Miss Reed was concerned what if anything to observe her drinking course just um a clear liquid in a uh glass I assume it was some sort of vodka drink was that the same glass that she had come into the establishment with under her coat or was it a different glass later on believe it was the same one so you uh leave from the waterfall and you're walking home is that right correct fair to say you didn't go to 34 Fairview that I did not and about what time was it that you got sometime between I'd say five pass and 10 pass 12 somewhere in that window and uh was your wife home at that point she was and as far as your children were concerned how many of your three sons were living with you at that time at that time two my 16-year- old well he wasn't 16 years old at the time but my 16-year-old and my 20-year-old and um so 16 and 20 now was that 16 and 20 now so that'd be like 14 and 18 then I guess and so you're old the time he was in the N San Diego in the Navy and if you know or did you check or anything as far as your kids when you got home were they there if you know no I ran I ran right upstair is that was freezing I went right into my room um essentially you went to bed is that correct correct you with the uh Court's permission uh I would ask to um publish for the jury just a small portion of from what's been marked as exhibit 53 the waterfall surveillance okay M Gilman if I could have from channel three and second video down you could just pause there for a moment um Mr Albert uh looking up at the screen do you recognize generally what picked up on that screen yeah so those are the tables that I was speaking of that are like there like two or three in a row yeah I'm sorry yes [Music] I don't have any my apologies thank you very [Music] much so sir what I'm handing to you is a laser pointer basically just click that button pointed okay um Mr Albert using that laser poter that I just handed to you if you could uh direct the jury's attention to about where the high top is and then about where you were seated at that high top so here's the high top and I can't really see myself to be honest with you this far away but somewhere somewhere I think I ate on this this side here and as far as the bar is concerned where would that back here wait oh this is oh so this is from walking into the waterfall okay so the bar is after so that's the high top next to the bar the bar's back there and um as far as the band that you were talking about that was playing if you could direct J's attention where that was on this side over here it's kind of fuzzy but that side and M Gilman if I could ask you to uh fast forward to [Music] 1054 I would ask if you could play that from 1054 to about 1056 I'm sorry you could just pause briefly Miss now Mr ala looking up at the screen uh as far as the door that you came out and the door that you eventually exited from the waterfall do you see sort of that general area where that is in the video no cuz I think it's offline here I think it would be over here it would be off sort of towards the left is that yeah like down this way m g if you could press as far as uh two individuals sort of walking in do you recognize who those individuals are I do that's John O'Keefe and uh M Reed and again m g if you could just run it through [Music] 1056 [Music] for for thank you Mr you can never take that down now Mr Rob as far as your son uh Colin do you know sort of where he was that night yes um so he was at my brother Bryan's house for my nephew's birthday and um he came home sometime after you is that correct correct and essentially you came in went to bed so do you know what time your son came home do you know just answer yes or no whether you know yes and how do you know that because he opened the bedroom door and said good night guys I love you I'm home and uh about how long after you got home was was it that Su I'd say within 10 minutes as far as sort of coming into your room is that something that was required of your kids when they came home he would always do that yeah that was something just to let us know that they were home now turning your attention to the next day on the 29th uh about obviously at some point you woke up do you recall about what time that was uh um 8ish 8:30ish so sometime between 8 and 8:30 yeah I was still in bed I like I woke up but I didn't leave my room and what was it that or who was it that woke you up that at at that time I just woke up on my own and when you woke up um what did you what happened after you woke up shortly after I woke up um my wife entered the room but that was a little bit later I don't know exactly what time um and she in she informed me that something had happened to John and uh what what was it that you told um I don't know the exact words that she said but basically that that John had died and what if anything did she indicate to you as to where John I done that he was found um somewhere on the front lawn of 34 fiew and following receiving that information um where did you go or where did you wi I was I was in shock I was like what are you talking about like what do you what do you mean and then I jumped up and uh she's like let's let's we have to go over let's go over to your brother's house and uh about what time was it did you know that you got over to your brother's house sometime approximately like after 9:00 I don't remember exactly what time we went over there maybe 9 or 9:30 and when you arrived at your brother's house uh if anyone was there um to the best of my recog recog sorry excuse me from what I remember I was there uh my wife was there my brother Brian Nicole Brian Higgins was there um I believe Matt mccab was there and Jen mccab was there when you came into the home sort of where where were they in relation just sitting at the kitchen table and if you know about how long did you stay at your brother's house when you came over maybe an hour and where did you go from there afterward just home now as far as um subsequent to this at some points uh within the the days of fall did you have occasion to uh speak with uh some Troopers or members of the State Police yes I did and how many troopers from the state police did you talk to two and where was that at my uh condo thanks I have no further questions okay cross examination thank going on that just started snowing it was cold out and it it just started snowing the ground had like a light coat could you still sort of see the the the street of oh yeah yeah you could still see it and you mention you walked out towards Washington and Mr O and Miss Reed did as well yes and which dire did you go in the same direction different direction when you come out you come out the building you have to go to the left in order to get onto Washington so I come out to the left and then go to the right onto Washington and they would go to the left onto Washington May you sort of walking opposite opposite directions I'm Wasington yes now as far as um throughout sort of the course of the evening did you have occasion to see sort of what Mr o'keef uh mentioned that he went to the bar and he got a beer was that the only beer that you saw him having or did he have more I'm sure he had more than one yeah I saw him with more than one so you saw him but essentially what I'm asking is throughout the course of the evening when you saw him drinking other than maybe a fireball shot you saw him just drinking beer just beer yeah and as far as Miss Reed was concerned what if anything did You observe her drinking course just um a clar liquid and a uh glass I assume it was some sort of vodka drink was that the same glass that she had come into the establishment with under a coat or was it a different glass later on believe it was the same one you uh leave from the waterfall and you're walking home is that right correct fair to say you didn't go to 34 Fairview that I did not and about what time was it that you got some time between I'd say five pass and 10 pass 12 somewhere in that window and uh was your wife home at that point she was and as far as your children were concerned how many of your three sons were living with you at that time at that time two my 16y old well he wasn't 16 years old at the time but my 16-year-old and my 20-year-old and um so 16 and 20 now is that 16 and 20 now so that'd be like 14 and 18 then I guess and so you're all the time he was in the N San Diego in the Navy and if you know or did you check or anything as far as your kids when you got home were they there if you know no I ran I ran right upstairs I was freezing I went right into my room um essentially you went to bed is that correct correct you with the uh Court's permission uh I would ask to um publ for the jury just a small portion uh from what's been marked as exhibit 53 the waterfall surveillance okay M Gilman if I could have from channel three and the second video down you could just pause there for a moment um Mr Albert uh looking up at the screen do you recognize generally what's picked it up on that screen yeah so those are the tables that I was speaking of that are like there's like two or three in a row yeah I'm sorry I appro yes I don't have any my apologies thank you very [Music] much so when I'm handing to you was a laser poter basically just click that button pointed okay um Mr Albert using that laser poter that I just handed to you if you could uh direct the jury's attention to about where the high top is and then about where you were seated at that high top so here's the high top and I can't really see myself to be honest with you this far away but somewhere somewhere I think I ate on this this side here and as far as the bar is concerned where would that back here wait oh this this is oh so this is from walking into the waterfall okay so the bar is after so that's the high top next to the bar the bar is back there and um as far as the band that you were talking about that was playing if you could direct the jury's attention where that was on this side over here it's kind of fuzzy but that side and it's Gilman if I could ask you to uh fast forward to 10:54 I would ask if you could slay that from 1054 to about I'm sorry you could just pause briefly Miss G profession now Mr ala looking up at the screen uh as far as the door that you came out the door that you eventually exited from the waterfall do you see sort of that general area where that is in the video no because I think it's offline here I think it would be over here it would be off sort of towards the left is that yeah like down this way Miss G if you could press as far as uh two individuals sort of walking in do you recognize who those individuals are I do that's John O'Keefe and uh Miss Reed and again M govern if you could just run it through 1056 [Music] this for thank you Mr G you can never take that time now Mr Al as far as your son uh Colin do you know sort of where he was that night yes um so he was at my brother Brian's house for my nephew's birthday and um he came home sometime after you is that correct correct and essentially you came in went to bed so you know what time son came home do you know just answer yes or no whether you know yes and how do you know that because he opened the bedroom door and said good night guys I love you I'm home and uh about how long after you got home was was it that your son got home I'd say within 10 minutes as far as sort of coming into your room is that something that was required of your kids when they came home he would always do that yeah that was something just to let us know that they home now turning your attention to the next day on the 29th uh about obviously at some point you woke up do you call about what time that was um 8ish 8:30ish so sometime between 8 and 8:30 yeah I was still in bed I like I woke up but I didn't leave my room and what was it that or who was it that woke you up that at at that time I just woke up on my own and when you woke up um what did you what happened after you woke up shortly after I woke up um my wife entered the room but that was a little bit later I don't know exactly what time um and she in she informed me that something had happened to John and uh what what was it that you told um I don't know the exact words that she said but basically that that John had died and what if anything did she indicate to you as to where John had died that he was found um somewhere on the front lawn of 34 fair viiew and following receiving that information um where did you go or where did you your I was I was in shock I was like what are you talking about like what do you what do you mean and then I jumped up and uh she's like let's let's we have to go over let's go over to your brother's house and uh about what time was it if you know that you got over to your brother's house sometime approximately like after after 9:00 I don't remember exactly what time we went over there maybe 9 or 9:30 and when you arrived at your brother's house uh who if anyone was there um to the best of my recog recog sorry excuse me from what I remember I was there uh my wife was there my brother Brian Nicole Brian Higgins was there um I believe Matt mccab was there and Jen mccab was there when you came into the home sort of where where were they in relation just sitting at the kitchen table and if you know about how long did you stay at your brother's house when you came over maybe an hour and where did you go from there afterward just home now as far as um subsequent to this at some point uh within the the days of fall did you have occasion to uh speak with uh some Troopers or members of the State Police yes I did and how many troopers from the state police did you talked to when you spoke two and where was that at my uh condo thank I have no further questions okay cross examination thank you RoR good morning sir morning sir Mr Albert you and I have never met correct I don't believe so you've testified that uh you've essentially lived in Canton your whole life correct correct moved there when you were 4 years old correct and the house to which you and your family moved was 34 Fairview correct yes you lived there for how long 53 33 years and you uh currently own DNA Pizza in Kenton correct I believe you testify that you've owned it for approximately 25 years correct uh clearly uh you have a lot of ties to the city of Ken would you agree sure you live there yes you work there yes your family there yep you raised your kids there Y and you also are a town selectman in the city of K recently elected the town of Canton I should say sat Town correct uh and not only that but your brother Kevin Albert is a police officer in Canton he is your brother Brian Albert with whom you grew up uh is currently retired but had been a Boston police officer who lived in K correct correct you would agree with me that Brian Albert only moved from Kenton after John O'Keefe was found dead on his front lawn correct can you rephrase that I'll phrase it the exact same way and ask for a yes or no if you can do that um you would agree with me that your brother Brian Albert only moved from Canton at after John o'keef was found dead on his front line objection can you answer that can you answer that yeah I just don't understand the phrase but he moved he moved shortly after that yes uh your brother Tim Albert uh lives with your parents in Ken correct correct and Tim Albert and your parents live directly across the street from the Canton Police Department correct correct do you know whom they bought that house from jaction the objection sustained you still live in Ken correct with your wife Julie Albert correct and your son Colin Albert correct along with my other two sons yes and you would agree that your entire family has deep roots in the town of Ken a guess you would agree with me that the Albert family is well known in the town of Kim we have a big family and you would agree with me that the Albert family is a powerful family in the town of Ken jaction as a town selectman you have some power do you not um I'm one of five Selectmen and as a police detective Kevin has some power does he not Jackson sustained and you also have close friends on the Canton Police Department do you not jackon I'll allow that I have some now you know that Massachusetts State Police Trooper Michael Proctor is the lead investigator on this case correct I know that one of your wife's best friends is Michael Proctor's sister Courtney Proctor correct jackon okay that's sustained you've got another Witness you can ask that up Mr you know Court Proctor correct jaction allowed yes and you know her to be Michael Proctor's sister correct that's correct you attended Michael Proctor's sister's wedding correct jaction may we approach sure you CL over I believe you testified sir that uh you've known Michael Proctor's sister for about 20 years jaction I I I don't think he said that but we'll let that we'll let that stand and then move on please about 20 years sure if that's I believe didn't didn't you testify to that on direct examination just moments ago when Mr La was asking you questions next question Mr un objection suain how long have you known Michael proper for I mean I know he's Courtney sister uh brother I couldn't tell you exactly how long I've known him for about 15 years or so roughly all right uh who is Kenneth brookwoods uh the former Canton Police Chief and how do you know him uh his son and my son uh the same age so they played on some sports teams when they were younger together I think that's when I first came to know Ken you became friendly with him I became friendly with him sure and uh how would you characterize your relationship with him friends you've seen him socially uh really uh you've uh been out for drinks with him uh I think maybe once and you've known him for how long 20 plus years and you say you've only been out with him for drinks one time in those 20 years I can't even remember if it was W drinks one time yeah no uh what other types of activities have you done together I can't think of any I think he came to an event that I held one time it's about it have you been out with him in a group setting um that event that I just mentioned yeah and what event was that it was my campaign event um when I was running for select board he was one of your supporters he came by did he donate money money to your campaign I think he did may we approach CH yes a photograph sir I'm going to uh display a photograph with the Court's permission on the screen and I'd ask you to take a look at it and if you let the jury do you have a hard copy of it yes we do have a hard copy so why don't you show it to the witness and put it in EV thank you okay and we'll take that into evidence and then that makes sense may I apprach [Music] yes Hey sir I've handed you a photograph do you recognize what that depicts yes what does it depict uh me and uh Kenny bwoods and uh is that a fair and accurate representation of you and Kenny burwitz you mean is the pitcher us yes yes okay I would offer that mind okay wait wait wait wait 55 uh may that be published to the jury on the screen you want sure so Mr Albert that's obviously you on the right and Kenny burwitz on the left correct have you seen that photo before I believe I've seen it do you recall when I believe that's my fundraiser for when I was running for the select board the event that I spoke of earlier okay and when would it have been that you saw that photograph um I'm not sure I don't know if it was on my Facebook page when I was running for select board it looks familiar has Mr Lally shown you that photograph no has he informed you that the defense would be introducing that photograph during this trial NOP you can take the photo down this Cas the light um you would agree with me that one of your functions as a selectman is is to oversee Public Safety in the town yes and you would agree that the police department is a key component of Public Safety in the town of Ken yes um so part of your duties as a town selectman is to oversee the Canton Police Department correct Jack I'll let him have it is that one of your duties sir I believe so I'm new at that I'm I'm recently elected so I'm just going through it but yeah I believe so um and you became a town selectman shortly after Kenny burtz retired correct I'm not sure when Kenny retired um but you would agree with me that Kenny burkowitz has both personal and professional relationships with you and members of your family correct can you can you rephrase that you would agree with me that the former Canton police chief Kenny burwitz has both personal and professional relationship with you and members of your family objection on it's the same question go ahead and answer that question I'm not sure I agree with that question well your your brother Kevin Albert worked under Chief Burts correct correct would you consider that to be a professional relationship with them too yes and your brother Brian Albert attended chief burkwitz his retirement party did he not I have no idea but your brother Brian is also a friend of Kenny brookwoods is he not he may be not sure U and as far as your uh you know ties to the Canton Police you would agree with me that uh Lieutenant Michael lank is a member of the Canton Police Department correct he is and you've been friends with him for a years correct I've known him for a long time you've been childhood friends with them since the age of 12 correct somewhere around there maybe earlier and you're tight with him I don't know if I call it tight um he's not an enemy of yours is he oh God no no he's a friend of yours correct sure and does sure mean yes yes now your older brother Brian you've already testified was a Boston police officer for years correct correct and he achieved some notoriety on a television show did he not Jackson he was in The Fugitive unit correct uh and you know that your brother Brian was also a trained boxer correct jaction suain Brian is a lot bigger guy than you are correct Jackson assist uh your brother Brian Albert is someone who is close to his family correct yes uh and when I say his family I'm talking about not just his uh you know wife and children but also his extended family correct yes you were part of his family obviously correct yes and your son Colin is part of his family correct yes the Albert family is close correct yes you all essentially grew up in C correct correct and you hung out with each other growing up correct we were siblings so of course yes uh and uh you still hang out with each other quite often correct like all of us in various combinations we have different relationships with one of with my siblings sure uh but you see some more than others but you hang out with your family do you not yeah mostly during holidays uh and you uh go out for drinks together correct occasionally and you're protective of each other correct like most families and if uh if someone had a dispute with a member of the Albert family Brian wouldn't be happy about that correct jackon same you know that Brian would stick up for your kids correct jaction your son Colin is particularly close to your brother Brian is he not jaction I'll let him have that do you know yes uh in fact uh your son Colin was a football player through high school was he not yes what was his number in high school yes 34 I believe was that for 34 Fairview I don't think so now you testified you moved to Maple Street in Canton not long before January 28th of 2022 correct correct and before that you lived at seven Meadows AV in Canton correct and that was when John o'keef was your neighbor correct correct believe you testified he was a couple of houses away from you yes uh and he was your neighbor for a series of years was he not yes while he was living in the neighborhood you knew that he was a working as a Boston police officer correct correct and uh you were familiar with him correct and what do you mean can you what do you mean by familiar you knew who he was you know you uh became familiar with yeah he was my neighbor I knew who he was right uh and you knew that he was not married correct yes and at a certain point you knew that he was dating Karen Reed yeah at some point all right now you would agree with me that uh your family has a police background sir correct I wouldn't agree with that statement two of your brothers are or were police officers correct out of seven of us yes uh and you knew friends of your brothers who were also police officers or in law enforcement correct correct and you had already testified that you know some members of the Canon Police Department correct correct and you socialized with police officers did you not have I sure um you've been to bars with police officers correct correct and you've drank with police officers right sure and we were friendly with police officers correct yes and with regard to uh I'd like to ask you some questions about people specifically connected to this case um we've established that uh Lieutenant lank has been a friend of yours for years correct yes uh we've established that uh you know former police chief Kenneth burkwitz uh in such a way that you feel comfortable calling him before this jury Kenny burz correct I know Kenny y uh and he you're he's actually donated to your campaign when you were running for Town selectman correct correct and uh you also knew uh Michael Proctor prior to January 29th of 2022 correct correct uh you've attended social events together with him have you not jackon I'll let that one question couple so at some point Michael Proctor uh came to question you did he not along with another Trooper correct and at the point in time when Michael Proctor came to question you you knew who he was correct yes you knew him by face correct correct and you knew him by name correct correct there was no need for Michael Proctor to formally introduce himself to you was there jaction um what did he say when he first walked in the door in terms of introductions Jack Su may we be seen as Side by sure [Music] um without getting into the precise wording um you'd agree with me that there was no need for Michael Proctor to formally introduce himself to you for that uh meaning correct yes he didn't need to say how do you do I am Michael Proctor correct no no um do you consider the Proctors to be the Albert second family objection do you consider that no um you are aware that there are members of the Proctor's family who consider who have posted publicly that the are second family correct so the objection is sustained and I'm striking that question disregard now at the time that Trooper Michael Proctor showed up to question you sir uh you knew that Karen Reed had been charged in this case correct yes and you knew that John O'Keefe had been found dead on your brother's lawn correct correct did it occur to you that it was odd that that the state police sent somebody from the Proctor family to interview you on February 10th of 2022 just all right now um you've testified that on January 28th of 2022 that day that Friday that you were working uh John o'keef stopped into to DNA Pizza your shop correct correct and there was discussion about whether you would be going out that night and if so where you would be correct correct now you've previously on direct examination characterized your relationship with him as being friends correct correct uh it's fair to say however that prior to January 28th of 2022 um you had never exchanged personal information with John oi correct you you mean I'm sorry you mean like phone numbers or what Sone number prior to that day no I didn't at that point in time he had lived in your neighborhood for four to five years correct correct so I believe you've testified that that night after working you went out around 10 minutes a 10 p.m. roughly before going out did you have anything alcoholic to drink I think I may have had a beer at my pizza shop I don't remember exactly um so you have a refrigerator there that you can keep drinks Cal correct among other things and uh you do have beers in that fridge for sometimes personal use sometimes uh do you know how many beers that you would have had before going out no and would you have uh drank that beer as you were cleaning up at the end of the night prob did you have anything to eat at the pizza shop no when did you last eat before you went out at 950 or so when did I last eat yes it's a long time ago I'm not sure and you knew that your wife Julie was starting the night at CF mccarth correct yes and you couldn't meet her there because you were still working right correct but at some point you heard that Julie and others were headed to the waterfall correct yes and that was where you plann to go after you closed up D E Pizza correct with regard to the time that you left 950 or so is your best estimate of when you're closing the doors and walking over to the waterfall yes and the waterfall is a short walk to DNA Pizza yes maybe about 3 minutes about that and your plan was to walk there that night correct correct you had not taken a car to DN Pizza anyway right I don't believe so um so what time did you get to the waterfall shortly before 10: I don't know exactly all right and I believe you've testified that John o' Keith and Karen Reed were not there when you arrived right correct and the food that you ordered you remember what appetizers you would have gotten probably like potato skins and and some sort of chicken tenders I I would guess it's two years ago so I don't remember exactly and did you order a drink along with the appetizers I believe so all right and that would have been the mill of light that you talked about correct then not long after you got there Brian Albert and Brian Higgins showed up correct correct and you have met Brian Higgins prior to that night yes uh in fact you had testified that um you had seen him around quite a bit correct few times uh and you knew him I believe your testimony was from him working inside the Kenton police station correct I knew that he worked there um did you testify on direct examination quote I knew him from working inside Canton PD yes and you've been inside kanton police correct maybe twice in my life uh you knew that Brian Albert your brother and Brian Higgins were uh friends correct I knew they knew each other um so are you saying that they were acquaintances no I I no I guess she's they're friends you guess they're friends yeah they're friends was there something confusing about my question the first time I asked it Jackson in any case uh would you agree that shortly before Brian Albert and Brian Higgins arrived at the waterfall or shortly after they did there was was a couple um whom uh you know you I believe you call them a Greek couple because their last name is difficult to pronounce for everybody uh but do you remember them being there yes all right if I mention the name kak keus does that ring a bell or that was that's them yeah that's them okay and and the whole group was either standing or sitting around a high top table correct and at 9:45 p.m. you texted John o'keef while you were at the waterfall correct correct um would you agree with me that the language of your text was quote get over here or I'll up your lawn end quote that was one of the [Music] texts I moment may I approach sure oh do we have this say marks okay I'm sorry I don't think I asked to approach go that's fine thank um I've placed a document before you sir take a look at that and tell the jury whether or not you recognize it yeah I recognize it what is it uh it's a text message two text messages okay and who are the participants in that text message exchange uh me and John and what is it that you said and at what time so the first oneach okay one over as I did yesterday so before you consider any electronic Communication in your deliberations you must first find that it's more likely true than not true that the person who either authored or sent or created or transmitted the communication was in fact John O'Keefe uh and this witness um Chris Albert uh if you do not find the it's more likely to than not that John O'Keefe sent one or that this witness um was the person who sent the message or transmitted it then you may not consider it um in deciding this case so you have clarification a bit Mr Yanti at this point I do yes and just for the record uh and for the juror's edification this is part of exhibit 48 which is already in evidence uh but I would ask that this particular uh exchange be posted on the screen with the Court's sure okay uh and so you'd agree that the when you say it was two text messages they're both with regard to the same subject correct what do you mean I don't follow you it says get over here right and then the second is a continuation of that if not I'm going to up your lawn correct so you mean that's to tell him to come over to the waterfall right okay I just didn't understand what you meant that's fine so you you're telling John o'keef this correct yeah I'm telling him to come over and meet us all right and that little emoji that face emoji after if not I'm going to up your lawn that's yeah it's a laughing face right so you're saying that you know you're cracking up yeah it's a joke sorry thank you sorry okay apologize okay we can take that down um at about 10:45 p.m. or so I believe you testify that that was when j o Keef walked into the bar with his girlfriend Karen Reed that's what I thought yeah um would you agree with me that um between the time you arrived and the time you eventually left that you did go up to the bar within that establishment a few times I'm sure I did and bought a few rounds of drinks I'm sure including that one round of Fireball shots correct um what was the state of your sobriety when John and Karen arrived probably fine fine all right you didn't feel like intoxicated or unable to you know perceive what's going on you were still in control of your faculties yes uh and is it true that uh after John and Karen arrived that your wife Julie didn't want to stay any longer or or or too much longer she didn't want to she she had a headache so she wanted to go home right uh and by that point in time you had been there about an hour maybe a little less when Karen and John arrived right yeah about an hour all right and you were having fun sure and so Julie drove home but you stayed correct correct all right and in terms of Karen Reed's drinking as far as you could see she had that uh glass that she came in with that appeared to have a clear liquid in it correct correct and I believe you said either a lime or a lemon thought I said a lime but yeah okay uh and you assumed that that was you know vodka and soda water or vodka in some type of mixer correct that was clear correct uh and if she was while drinking that night if she was mixing in water in between alcoholic drinks it would have been impossible for you to discern which drinks were water and which drinks were VOD correct yeah I would have no idea you can't tell that by eyeballing a drink right no because both liquids are clear yes and in order to discern that you'd actually have to be given a sip to see right okay all but in any case Karen did not appear to be under the influence of alcohol to you I didn't notice anything she wasn't stumbling correct no she wasn't swaying I didn't notice she didn't appear to be unbalanced correct I didn't notice anything she wasn't slurring her words nope she wasn't talking gibberish correct no um she was engaging in normal conversation and she appeared to be under control yeah uh and would you agree with me that she also appeared to be affectionate with John o'i um I wasn't really watching their interactions too much to be honest all right but in any case you never saw any arguing between the two of them I wasn't really paying attention to the their and you interactions you didn't perceive any tension between them correct I didn't notice anything irregular okay and from your observations of Karen Reed that night and you were there uh probably over 2 hours were you not total about that yeah uh from your observations of Karen that night you would have had no problem with her driving a car correct I wouldn't even have thought about it okay now would you agree with me that of the group that you had met out that that you were the last person to leave the waterfall on January 29th of 2022 I believe so now you previously well you testified on direct examination today I believe that you thought you got home between 12:05 and 12:10 a.m. on January 29th correct that's what I remember um if I suggested to you that you didn't even leave the bar until 13 a.m. would you quarrel with that would I quarrel with it yes no I guess not I mean um and is is your memory exhausted as to the precise time that you left the bar is it exhausted right in other words do you not remember the precise time that you left the bar that early morning so over two years ago I don't I don't know the precise time that's why I said between 12:5 and 1210 that that answers my question thank you um could we have exhibit 5 well with the Court's permission can I publish exhibit 53 it's a short clip from the waterfall sure I think we need the Back start you have [Music] that top if we can pause it for a second please Mr R butt you would agree with me this was clearly the end of the night sure the lights are all on at this point yes the bar appears to have largely emptied out yes okay continue please PA it there we go my co-consul is much better with this than I uh do you know who that person is who's leaving the bar at this point at 12:13 and 43 a.m. see it might be better without that Spotlight okay see it now yeah I believe it's me continue please okay you can take that off the screen um so having now viewed that video with the time stamp of 1213 and about 43 seconds or so does that refresh your memory as to when you left the waterfall yes um that would mean it would have been impossible for you to get home to Maple Street by 12:05 or 1210 correct correct now it was about a maybe a seven minute walk home would you agree with me from waterfall to Maple no I said 7 minutes from D to Waterfall Waterfall to Maple is probably less than 5 minutes so it's your testimony that DNE is closer to the waterfall than the waterfall is to Maple Street de's father away from waterfall than uh farther away from where I live than waterfall is I understand oh I I don't follow you I'm sorry I'll try to clarify I don't I don't mean to be confusing here it's fine um I'm not asking about the distance between DNA and your home I'm trying to compare or ask you to compare the distance between D and the water waterfall and then the waterfall and do you see the difference H I think so would you agree with me that your home is farther from the waterfall than DNA Pizza is from the waterfall I don't follow you I'm sorry okay um so let's let's take it step by step D piz to the waterfall are they on the same street yes um how many establishments if you know are between DNA pizza and the waterfall just a few okay so it's a very short walk from Pizza to the waterfall correct your home on Maple Street is not on the same street as the waterfall correct it's off of the same street but it's not on the same street no uh and your home on Maple Street is farther from the waterfall than DNA Pizza is to the waterfall correct correct okay uh I didn't understand it earlier no I I know and I'm I'm trying to work through this because again I'm not trying to trick you here I just want to get the the answer um so uh you would agree with me that it would take you longer to walk home from the waterfall than it would take you to walk to the waterfall from DNA Pizza correct all right uh and I I believe you said that one walk was 7 minutes and one walk was maybe less than 5 minutes correct yes all right the 7 minute walk would have been the walk home as opposed to the walk to the waterfill correct yes all right so we you have agreed that you left the bar at 1213 almost 12:14 according to the video and it would have taken you about 7 minutes to walk home correct not exactly sure how I think can I see Council time please it's been pointed out to me that I think we're not making a connection here and I think it might be my fault um with regard to uh the timing of how long it took you to go home um I believe your your estimate your best estimate is about five minutes is is that your testimony and when I say home I'm not talking about from d& Pizza I'm talking about that early morning when you're at the waterfall I yeah I'd say around around 5 minutes I think from the waterfall to Maple Street fair enough uh so now if you're leaving the bar like close to you know 124 as indicated on the video you're getting home somewhere around 1219 1220 correct roughly yeah and what were you wearing that night um blue jeans sneakers I think and um a sweatshirt okay and it had started to snow by that point a little bit so the ground was a little bit either slushy or wet not slushy but it could be could have been wet could could have been wet uh and uh the the snow had not yet started to accumulate or had it it didn't start all right uh so uh you know you're walking home but it was cold correct correct um and would you agree that uh in the best case scenario you might have had a little bit more clothing on for that cold walk home think I had a sweatshirt on right but you could have used something else right in light of the weather probably all right because you testified that that by the time you got home you were pretty cold right correct you hadn't you know if it had been about a 5 minute walk that was enough time for you to walk in almost shivering correct sure and given that there was precipitation that you know the snow had started uh the the sweatshirt would absorb the moisture as opposed to repel it correct sure and so you were wet as well when you walked in right sure and by that point in time you were tired correct I don't remember if I was tired but okay I don't remember if I was tired at that point okay uh you had worked all day correct uh till late in the day actually into the evening correct correct um taking pizzas in and out of a Hut oven correct as well as other food that you serve as well correct yep and you're now uh and by the way you you'd had a couple of drinks or a few drinks whatever it was at the waterfall correct correct and you decided not to go to your brother Brian Albert's house correct correct uh that was in part because you weren't up for the continued partying at that point correct yeah I just wanted to go home right uh and so when you you got home would you agree with me that your first priority would have been uh getting out of the wet clothes that you were in correct and where would you have done that within your home in my bedroom and is this a townhouse house or is it a freestanding residence it's a cond condominium condominium how many floors uh there's three floors and your bedroom's on the top floor correct and the entrance is ground level correct when you first entered the home in those wet clothes where was your wife Julie upstairs in the bedroom and was she already washed up and ready for bed think she was lying bed and where did you go when you walked in the ground level I went up to the bedroom all right took off my clothes jumped in bed all right uh and uh do you have a a master bath with regard to your bedroom there's a there's a bathroom yeah all right that would have been where you brushed your teeth yeah uh and washed up but I did you that's where I would do those things but I didn't do that those things do those no okay uh did you grab a drink of water before you went to bed nope all right so you essentially uh came home and I think we agreed it was around 12:20 or so give it take a minute roughly uh and uh you made a beline for your bedroom correct uh did you uh fall asleep shortly thereafter soon after within 5 minutes or so 10 I started to doze off I don't know exactly I don't know exactly how soon after I fell asleep all right sometime within five or 10 minutes would you say I would say more like within 15 minutes 15 minutes okay so um with regard to getting home and we'll call it 1219 because I think that's more consistent with what you said um and understanding that it's just an estimate um if if you're walking in the door at 12:19 it takes you maybe a minute to get upstairs about a minute um you kicked off your sneakers downstairs I imagine maybe I don't remember that was a long time ago okay and then you walked up two flights of stairs probably ran up the stairs because I was cold okay all right so you getting up there around 12:20 or so correct roughly yeah and you believe that you dozed off about 15 minutes later which would have made it about 12:35 somewhere around there all right now when you came home you would agree with me that your son Colin Albert was not home correct not when I first got home uh and in fact I think your testimony was that uh 10 minutes after you got home he opened the bedroom door I think that's what I said yeah do you want to stick with that I'm just trying to recollect what I you know thinking over so obviously it was a little bit longer because you actually woke up when he opened the bedroom door correct uh I don't think so did you not just testify before this jury just I don't know maybe an hour ago that you fell asleep and that your son Colin opened the bedroom door and and woke you up to say good right yeah I guess I guess that's what I said okay all and when you testified to that on direct examination that was when Mr L was asking you questions correct correct and you knew that you were under oath at that time correct correct and you were trying to be as accurate as possible correct trying to be correct all right so in terms of the timing of this um a assuming that he opened the bedroom door after you already fell asleep uh if you're getting home upstairs to your bedroom around 12:20 and it takes you 15 minutes to go to bed and that's around 12:35 then sometime after you're asleep after 12:35 that's when Colin opens the bedroom door correct I don't remember exactly well it's difficult for you to remember how long you'd been asleep for when Colin opened the bedroom door correct correct um you don't know if it was 5 minutes 10 minutes or longer correct I don't know exactly right but it was some time after you fell asleep to the best of my Rec elction now with regard to your son Colin he uh obviously lived in the same neighborhood as John o'keef because that's where your family lives correct correct and back in 2022 uh Colin Albert was 17 years old correct part of the year uh and you knew that uh like most teenagers uh Colin drank alcohol with his buddies correct correct um can you explain uh for the jury who or what is NE cracker what is neber Cracker yes like the character that's what I'm asking it's a character in a cartoon um called Monster House uh and would you agree with me that NE cracker in the movie Monster House was this kind of uh old kudin who didn't want anybody on his lawn correct the character yes he was the get off my lawn guy correct in the movie yeah um what was your nickname and your wife Julie's nickname for John O'Keefe Mr never cracker all right and uh your wife Julie actually had John O'Keefe plugged into his contacts as never cracker correct correct um in fact you were there one time when Julie showed Karen her Karen Reed uh her phone to show how Jal Keef was plugged in as never cracker correct I believe so and this whole nickname started because of a conflict that Colin Albert had with johon o'keef corre not correct uh John o'keef complained to you about things that Colin was doing not correct uh he would tell you that Colin used to throw beer cans or beer bottles in his bushes correct jaction your you can answer that that is not correct uh Jon o Keef told you that Colin used to flip him off correct not correct and say F you to him never Colin used to cut through his yard nope that was Dylan uh you knew that John didn't like people cutting through his yard correct no I don't know that to be true okay so is it your testimony that uh John O'Keefe invited kids to cut through is lawn all the time I don't I don't understand is that a question it it was a question I guess let me withdraw that and ask this if if John o' Kee is never crack uh and he's to get off your lawn guy are you denying that he doesn't like people cutting through his lawn do you want me to can I explain I just asked for an answer to my question Mr L will get up after I'm done and I'm sure you can explain whatever you want so no he's not a no all right well you would agree with me that uh there was a time when John O'Keefe was not home that you and your wife Julie went to his house that is correct and you entered onto his property correct on his front um property yes and you had drinks in your hand corre correct and you thought it would be funny to have a photo taken of you and your wife with drinks in your hand on his property correct correct and you knew it would be funny because you knew it would annoy him correct Jackson you can go ahead can you answer that yeah he was actually asking us to watch his house while he was away um right but that doesn't answer my question which was you he didn't ask you to go on to his property with drinks in your hand and take a photo correct he yes us to watch his property okay but again in answer to my question the answer is no he did not ask us to go on his property and take pictures of ourselves with drinks in our hand correct yeah he didn't ask me to send him a photo um and you would agree with me that uh never cracker wouldn't like a photo of somebody on his lawn with drinks in his hand in their hands correct the car the cartoon character never cracker yes objection your honor sustain next question please Mr I have the [Music] photo may I approach you yes okay Mr Albert I place two photographs before you if you can take a look at those and tell the jury if you recognize what they depict I do what do those photos depict um it's me and my wife straddling Jon's fence with giv a thumbs up in one of them and a smile and another one okay uh and you say John's fence so that's actually on John's property correct uh part of it is yeah I mean I don't know what the easement is from the street to the fence as ownership goes but yeah all right I know the town owns a certain portion of it would you agree with me that that photo was taken in April of 2021 I'm not sure when it was taken but if that's what you have for date then that's it's fine okay who took that picture that's a good question I have no idea U where was your son call that night when you had that picture I have no idea would you agree with me that you texted those photos or somebody texted those photos whether it was you or your wife Julie to John o' Keith [Music] absolutely offer those are fair and accurate representation of photos that you took yeah I would offer those your H all right any objection no your h [Applause] and with the Court's permission may they be published for the jury okay with regard to that first photo uh is that well first of all whose house is that in the background that's John's and that is you on the right and your wife Julie on the left correct we have the second photo please okay uh that is also uh John's house in the background there correct and again that's you on the right and Julie on the left correct correct we can take that photo um now would you agree with me that those photos give some context to the text that you sent him on January 28th when you were trying to get him to come out and you threatened to quote up his lawn if he didn't come out that what do you mean give context to well in other words here you are send texting him photos of you and your wife on his lawn correct yes uh and that's a common theme that explains the January 28th text where you were threatening to up his lawn correct [Music] honor okay um I just have one more area that I want to couple with you sir um you uh prev previously confirmed that when you walked in your door on January 29th of 2022 after coming home from the waterfall um your son Colin was not home correct it's correct um at that time you had no personal knowledge of where he had been that night correct that's correct um since that time you know that he was at your brother Brian's house that night Brian Albert it's correct um your old home correct where gr up yep and you knew that address to be 34 Fairview Road correct and you knew that that was the same house outside which John o'keef was found dead later that morning correct correct I may have a moment just uh one other question sir um when you spoke to Trooper Proctor on February 10th of 2022 you would agree with me that you never mentioned that Colin Albert was at your brother Bryan's house that night correct Jack you're on I don't remember thank you redirect yes okay thank you now Mr Albert you were asked uh some questions about um being a selectman were you a select minut at time on January 28 2022 no about how long after that was it that you came sometime in April that the election was over April second week in April maybe so that's a photograph that you were shown with respect to yourself and the the former Chief burwitz of the kin please when was that um it was a fundraiser so it was probably like two or three weeks before the election so January February March something end of March maybe well after January 2 2023 yes and you were ask some questions about your brother selling the house now prior to your brother's selling house you had sold your house correct correct and why was that why was that it just just made more made sense for us you know was just a just financial decision kids were getting older is that correct yeah one was in the Navy yep another was about to go to college correct and what if any relation uh did that have uh to your for the selling the house so once he found out that I was selling objection know I'm going to allow it once he found out I was selling my house he decided that it might be a good idea for him to sell his house his kids were getting older so I gave him the my real estate's number guy who sold miles and that selling in the house was that something that you would discuss with your brother prior to January 28 2022 yeah soon after let's move on from now with regards um regard to your son Colin when he came home that night you indicated um that it was about 10 minutes after and was that 10 minutes after you arrived home or 10 minutes after you got into bed 10 minutes after I jump in a bed now with reference uh to uh your son Colin he came home you saw him that night correct when he came home yes yeah he just leaned his head in the door and when he leaned his head in the door did you similar to what I had asked you about Mr Keith Did You observe any sort of injuries or anything like that to his face no saw your son the next day as well yes did you observe any injuries to him at any point and you mentioned that you went over to your brother Brian A's house and both he and Mr Higgin with there correct correct as far as your interactions with both Brian Albert and Brian Higgins that following day what if any injuries That You observe on them none now with regard to um the never cracker um what was sort of the origination of of that it's it's a joke it's um so my son Dylan who is my littlest one he was cutting across John's Lawn one day coming home from the school walking this is before John had a fence that went this way like on Pleasant Street so it would just cut off like a couple of minutes he ran across John's Lawn one day this is my littlest son who I don't even know at the time he might have been like nine 10 I'm not sure exactly how old he was and John yelled something to him hey kid get off my lawn so John was just making a joke so Dylan got scared he ran home and told my wife Julie and then Julie in turn called um I think said called Jen maybe and said hey uh John just yelled at Dylan and uh and I think Jen reached out to John and John felt terrible and John came down down the street John asked what kind of candy Dylan liked and John brought Dylan a bag of candy and just said hey I was just kidding it was just so from that point on we called him Mr never cracker and it was a joke between John John thought it was funny and now as far as um those photographs that you indicated that you took on his fence uh sent to when he was away is that correct correct that was after he' actually to watch his house while he was away yeah and how did he respond to those photographs he thought it was hilarious we actually showed um him other people that photo too they thought it was funny all right we're going to wrap it up Mr one last question so after you sent uh the text message as far as to come over here and then made the the reference to his lawn ke then came over to the water yeah he came over after nothing F nothing f all right you are all set MRT