Where is Christopher McCowen now? Details explored ahead of 48 Hours on CBS

Christopher McCowen was sentenced for the murder of Christa Worthington (Image via Pexels)
Christopher McCowen was sentenced for the murder of Christa Worthington (Image via Pexels)

The upcoming re-airing of CBS' 48 Hours is all set unravel the case of Christa Worthington, who was murdered and assaulted in her own home, by a fellow local, Christopher McCowen, in 2002. In Cape Cod, there had not been a single homicide case for over 30 years, before the murder of Christa. This made the case all the more shocking. Moreover, Christa Worthington was a renowned fashion writer, which brought this case under the limelight and invited public attention.

The case was first shown on 48 Hours in an episode that had originally premiered in March 2007. It was the first episode of its 20th season. The synopsis for the same reads:

"Authorities search for the killer of an A-list fashion writer who left her fast-track career and moved to Cape Cod, where she became the town's first murder victim in 30 years."

This episode is set to re-air on July 6, 2024, Saturday, at 9.00 PM EST.

Despite the initial delay in solving the case, owing to a long list of suspects, the police finally singled out Christopher McCowen, who was a fellow resident and collected garbage from the area where Christa lived. His DNA was found on Christa's body, and he changed his testimony multiple times during his interrogation, which further made him the primary suspect.

He was eventually charged and convicted for the crime. McCowen was sentenced to life in prison with no possibility of parole and continues to serve his sentence, despite appeals to overturn it.


Who was Christopher McCowen and what did he do?

Christopher McCowen was born in 1972 in Oklahoma and had been a resident of Cape Cod since the early 1990s. He served as a garbage collector in the small community.

On January 6, 2002, Christa was found stabbed to death after being assaulted in her home. Her baby daughter was alive and unharmed. She was discovered, at least 36 hours after her death, by one of her ex-lovers who had allegedly come over to return her flashlight.

Her murder drew widespread attention as the police hurried to solve the case, which seemed to spiral out of control, with a long list of suspects. On further analysis, authorities discovered that the DNA found in Christa did not match any of the suspects. It would take three more years before the police found a match after testing almost every man in the small community. The DNA had matched with the garbage collector Christopher McCowen.

During the interrogation. McCowen initially claimed that he did not know Christa, but changed his statement several times, leading the investigators to doubt the authenticity of his words. When he described multiple different scenarios, with some involving him physically beating Christa but not killing her, the police understood that he was the perpetrator. McCowen also disclosed, in a few of his testimonies, that he and Christa allegedly got involved s*xually, before he attacked her.

The prosecutors claimed that McCowen tried to make s*xual advancements towards Christa, and when that did not work out, he assaulted and murdered her. The defense took different measures to get Christopher McCowen off the hook, but he was eventually found guilty of first-degree murder, aggravated rape, and aggravated armed burglary, in November 2006.

He was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. He continues to remain in the Massachusetts Prison Facility. There have been appeals since he was incarcerated, with his defense claiming that racial bias played a role in his conviction.Howevever, so far, the appeals have all been rejected.


Watch the upcoming episode of 48 Hours on CBS to uncover further details of this case.

Quick Links

Edited by Udisha
Sportskeeda logo
Close menu
WWE
WWE
NBA
NBA
NFL
NFL
MMA
MMA
Tennis
Tennis
NHL
NHL
Golf
Golf
MLB
MLB
Soccer
Soccer
F1
F1
WNBA
WNBA
More
More
bell-icon Manage notifications