Karen Read is heading back to court for round two -- a judge just greenlit a second murder trial in the death of her BF, John O'Keefe ... weeks after declaring it a mistrial following a hung jury.
Massachusetts Judge Beverly Cannone has penciled in Read’s retrial for January 27, 2025 ... dropping the news Monday in front of both the prosecution and defense attorneys.
The date isn't locked in yet because Read's lawyer, David Yannetti, mentioned to Judge Cannone he's got another trial lined up right before then.
But, Read's retrial might not even go down ... Cannone said she'll be hearing arguments August 9 on a defense motion to dismiss the case, and she's expecting an earful from both sides before making her ruling.
The move comes after Read's lawyer, Alan Jackson, argued earlier this month a retrial would amount to double jeopardy.
He argued in the legal docs the judge should’ve acquitted Read -- accused of drunkenly running over Jackson in '22 -- on both the murder charge and the charge of leaving the scene causing injury and death ... because the jury unanimously found her “not guilty” on those charges.
But, as we reported ... there was no mention of the jury’s unanimity when the judge declared the mistrial.
It was revealed the jury was only hung up on the vehicular manslaughter charge, with a 9-3 vote leaning toward guilt. But for now, it looks like a fresh jury will get a shot at reaching a verdict.