Barnegat Bay Drowning Victim's Mother Lashes Out at Trevor Murphy During Sentencing

In the end, the only person who knows what happened during that fatal canoe ride in the darkness of Barnegat Bay last June 10 is .

"The only facts we have from the incident come from the defendant," Municipal Court Judge John J. Sheehy said before he sentenced the 18-year-old Bayville man this morning. "I wonder how much of the information is really 100 percent accurate."

Murphy received a $500 fine and $30 in court costs for leaving the scene of a fatal boating accident that led to the death of , his friend of ten years. A second charge - reckless operation of a boating vessel - was dropped.

The two took a canoe out into Barnegat Bay at 3 a.m. on June 10, after a post-graduation party, said Trooper Robert Frake. He read from the police report, which referred to Worrall as "Operator #1" and Murphy as "Operator #2."

"For some unknown reason, the canoe overturned and capsized," Frake said. "Operator 2 stated he swam back to shore and retreived the canoe."

Ryan Worrall's body was found 14 hours later in Barnegat Bay by an off-duty New Jersey State Trooper. Murphy never reported the accident, he said.

"We couldn't obtain the information until the following day," he said. "Operator 2 had tampered with the contents of the canoe. This investigation is based solely on Operator 2's videotaped statements."

And why Murphy didn't call to inform anyone of the accident is a question that obviously haunts Lynn MacIntosh, Ryan Worrall's mother.

"I was in walking distance of where they landed the canoe," she said during the proceedings. "I was home. He could have knocked on my door. He lied. He lied to everyone. Ryan wasn't a kid who went in the bay on his own. He lied. He's gotten a fine. My son is not coming back. He's gone. He's forever 18 years old. Trevor is going to move on with his life."

She also questioned what happened on the canoe that night and made reference to "a struggle."

MacIntosh said she hoped to speak with Murphy about the accident at some time.

"I want to know what they were talking about that night," MacIntosh said. "I need to have some closure."

Sheehy also noted that Murphy "went home" after the accident, without notifying anyone what had happened.

"I'm sure he went home knowing he had lost a friend," the judge said. "Or maybe because of his alcoholic condition he realized he was in trouble. This nightmare will continue the rest of his life. He appears to be remorseful."

Sheehy also made a reference to the 1969 Chappaquiddick incident involving Massachusetts Senator Edward M. Kennedy. Kennedy drove a car off Dyke Bridge on the island off Martha's Vineyard. Mary Jo Kopechne, a passenger in his car, drowned. Kennedy did not inform police of the incident until hours later.

"It's the same situation," Sheehy said. "He waited."

Worrall, who grew up in the tidal marshes of Bayville, died of accidental drowning, according to an autopsy performed by the Ocean County Medical Examiner's Office the day after the June 10 accident.

The reviewed the June 10 accident and later remanded the matter to Berkelely Township Municipal Court.

"I'm aware of the publicity this case has received," Sheehy said. "There's  no question it's a tragedy for everyone involved here, especially the parents of the deceased."