February 28, 2007 Ruling on images pleases both sides

By HILARY RUSS STAFF WRITER BARNSTABLE - Grisly images of Christa Worthington won't be showing up on television any time soon after a judge's ruling yesterday, but they're not completely off-limits.

The pictures in question are three exhibits that helped convict Christopher McCowen of the 2002 rape and murder of Worthington.

Judge Gary Nickerson ordered yesterday that the images not be copied, photographed or reproduced in any manner. They remain, however, open to the public and media outlets to inspect.

After the high-profile murder trial concluded in November, the CBS broadcasting network filed a motion to make copies of One cardboard box contains all the evidence of how Christa Worthington spent her last moments. evidence in the case, according to the network's attorney, Jon (JUSTIN SUTCLIFFE/GAMMA) Albano of Boston, who appeared in court yesterday. More: Complete coverage of But that request sparked a motion by Cape and Islands District murder trial Attorney Michael O'Keefe to ''permanently impound'' the images, according to court documents. O'Keefe said of the CBS motion that he simply sought to keep the images from being broadcast or reproduced in media outlets or on the Internet.

Before Nickerson heard the motion, O'Keefe and Albano agreed to the limits sought by the district attorney. After a hearing behind closed doors in the judge's lobby, Nickerson endorsed the deal.

His ruling leaves room for CBS or anyone else who wants to reproduce the images to appeal to him or to a higher court in the future. ''We got what we were looking for,'' O'Keefe said.

O'Keefe's intent, he said, wasn't to restrict media access but to limit the release of photographs that ''can serve no legitimate purpose other than to be viewed salaciously.''

CBS's show ''48 Hours'' is working on a broadcast about Worthington's murder, as are other programs, including NBC's ''Dateline.'' ''We agreed that this is a sensible way to proceed,'' Albano said.

Two still color photographs, along with a portion of crime-scene video footage, are subject to the restriction.

The photographs depict Worthington's body on the floor of her home, her legs spread, her face battered and bloody, and her corpse surrounded by a pool of congealed blood. She is bare from her chest down.

During the five-week trial, the two pictures and the portion of video were not allowed to be broadcast by Court TV, which aired much of the trial live. Even more gruesome photos - up-close pictures of Worthington's facial injuries, for example - were not allowed into evidence because they could have prejudiced the jury against the defendant and because their content was illustrated with other images, according to several sources.

Hilary Russ can be reached at [email protected].

(Published: February 28, 2007)