Cape Cod Murder

Hypnotizing a potential witness - Worthington's daughter

The idea makes you cringe, doesn't it? Me too, until I thought about it. Then I went from cringing to wondering if it's an inherently bad idea.

There is a potential witness to the murder of Christa Worthington in January 2002 at her isolated Truro bungalow - Worthington's daughter, Ava, who was 2 years old when her mother died.

But how could Ava's memory of this horrific incident, assuming she has any, be unlocked? Speaking for myself, the earliest memories begin around age 4, vague ones at that. A few earlier ones may kick around upstairs, but I can't be sure if they are genuine, or fragments of dreams, or recollection of events I wish had occurred but actually didn't.

Supposedly, distant memories from toddlerhood and even infancy can resurface - through hypnosis. This is not something I've ever seen, nor have I been hypnotized. But I've read about it enough the years, of people recalling in exact detail the circumstances of  birthday parties when they were toddlers, what everyone was wearing, the gifts that were given, the weather. I've also noticed the persistent appearance of ads for quitting smoking or losing weight to believe there might be something there.

Consider also that some people refuse to be hypnotized, for fear of what will surface or be suggested while they are in a trance.

This is not something Ava, now of elementary school age, could decide for herself until she was at least a decade older. It would be for her guardians to consider, though I doubt they will.

But if I were in their shoes, I'd consider it at that point when the child in my guardian care was mature enough to understand the implications. And if the practitioner could assure me that my child would possess no conscious memory of being hypnotized.

Another question comes to mind - what good can come of this, especially considering the risk of revisiting such trauma? Would any of it, assuming any could be summoned through hypnosis and recorded, be admissable in court?

Probably not, though perhaps someone better acquainted with the law could correct me if I'm wrong.

But two reasons come to mind for the possibility that Ava may remember what happened the night her mother died, even if the memory is buried far below the surface.

As anyone familiar with this case can attest, Worthington is unlikely to have gone gently into that good night. No, she raged and fought, not only for herself, but to protect her child. There is hardly a woman alive who wouldn't do the same to protect her cub.

Clearly there was a desperate struggle outside, the door kicked in and Worthington stabbed to death on the kitchen floor by the stairs leading to the second floor, where Ava was presumably sleeping - at least until she heard the screaming. Those of us who've raised children know what little noise it takes to awaken a 2-year-old.

The second reason I believe Ava may remember what happened has to do with something she allegedly said at the wake for her mother in Hingham, according to a reporter from New York magazine who managed to get inside the funeral home.

"Parading around in a green velvet dress topped by a Peter Pan collar, Ava smiled a wide Worthington smile as she navigated the crowd," wrote Vanessa Grigoriadis in the Feb. 4, 2002 issue of New York. "Ava is now living with Cliff and Amyra Chase, the Cohasset couple designated as her guardians in Worthington's will, which bequeaths $700,000 to the child.

"' 'Yesterday,' clucked one of her babysitters, watching her, 'Ava went into the corner of the room and said six times, loud and clear, 'Get out of my house, I'm not afraid of you.' Six times she said it.' "

Yeah, I know, 2-year-olds say all sorts of things and back when my daughter and son were that age, I took most of it with a grain of salt. But considering when this was supposedly said, it's much tougher to dismiss with a shrug.