Thursday, 4:30 PM
Prosecution corroborates testimony in Worthington trial
(Globe file photos)
Christopher M. McCowen, 34, (left) is accused of killing Christa Worthington, 46, (right) in a murder trial on Cape Cod.
By Megan Tench, Globe Staff
The prosecution in the Christa Worthington murder trial brought another law enforcement officer to the stand today to corroborate earlier testimony about a disputed statement police say the defendant gave to investigators.
State Police Sergeant William Burke confirmed in Barnstable Superior Court what earlier witnesses had told jurors about a six-hour interrogation in which Christopher M. McCowen, 34, acknowledged that he not only knew the victim, but had had consensual sex with her the night she was killed.
McCowen told investigators, Burke testified, that he helped beat Worthington, 46, in her Truro home in 2002 after they had sex. However, McCowen insisted that his friend, Jeremy Frazier, was the one who killed Worthington that night, Burke said.
Frazier has testified that he had no part in the murder and was not even at Worthington's home that night. The defense has questioned the veracity of McCowen's statement, which was not tapped.
During cross examination, however, defense attorney Robert George was able to introduce another character into an already complicated trial.
Frazier was carrying a cell phone the night of the murder that had been paid for by another man who he worked with at a moving company that had done some work for Worthington, George said. That man – who the Globe is not identifying until the charges can be verified – served 15 years in prison for murder, George said.
When asked if police looked to see if the man had anything to do with Worthington’s death, Burke said no.
