Who Killed Christa Worthington?

Michael O'Keefe (R), the District Attorney for the Cape and Islands, hears footsteps these days. You might think that they're the haunted footsteps of Christa Worthington, murdered daughter of the Cape. But they're the footsteps of political opponents yet to declare, who will be stalking him, no doubt, soon enough.

The DA is running for re-election. The race is already on. So secure is he in his position, in this County, that there would otherwise be no serious opposition, Democrat or otherwise. Except for this pesky little matter of an unresolved murder case in the most unlikely of places, with the most unlikely of victims, that craves the national spotlight.

So concerned is he that the case remains unresolved going into the election of '06, that O'Keefe is risking his legal reputation, to save his political skin.

For those of you who have not yet heard, the DA, with the assistance of the local and state police is taking DNA samples from every able-bodied male in Truro, albeit voluntarily. Ostensibly to find the guy who made the last deposit into the victim; not necessarily the killer.

Remember, O'Keefe was first a cop before he became a lawyer, and then a prosecutor. His instincts are sharp but shaped by his first impressionable years in law enforcement. Round up the usual suspects. When that doesn't work, round up the rest of them. It's legal, if you ask nice.

The New York Times, The Boston Globe, and a flurry of other news hawkers latched onto the O'Keefe angle this week, and thereby the Worthington story again. Maybe that was the point. Move this case to the edge of legality, tilt the moral compass of the community, get everyone to focus again on the who done it.

"Stir the pot", as the DA put it. Say what you will, he has put the case back on the front pages.

And now the other shoe, the ACLU has weighed in. The indignation that the ACLU expresses is justifiably righteous. As our legal and moral conscience, it has built a legacy on just such matters, but usually when it involves a minority class. Which reminds me, this is Truro we're taking about. We can surmise from this dragnet that the DA is looking for a white guy.

What makes this whole affair so disconcerting is that the killer is not only believed to be still among us, but also one of us. We may have truly become a color blind society. Now everyone, regardless of race is under suspicion.

Back to the point. Words, such as those of the ACLU and of the editorial boards are important. Sometimes they are a call to action. But it's only action that will change the mind.

As we approach Martin Luther King Day, we are reminded that it was his action, his passive resistance, his nonviolent protest, as well as his words, that awoke a nation from a century-old nightmare. To honor MLK this year, let's dispense with the traditional speeches for the day and take action instead.

If they are intent on swabbing the residents of Truro, let them swab on the nation's holiday as well. But let the ACLU put out the call for all fair and just minded souls to come to Truro. Let's all meetup in Truro on Monday to celebrate the justice that Martin Luther King fought for. Let's gather at the town dump and the post office, and let's all volunteer to be swabbed.

I'll bring the buttons. I gave DNA for MLK. Let the irony begin.

Who killed Christa Worthington? Those are not only the words of an incredulous and sorrowful community. Inevitably, they will also be the words of the District Attorney's political opponent two years from now.