This workaround's been floating around on aehancers/the Cow for a while -- http://forums.creativecow.net/thread/227/10710 -- haven't had to use it, so I can't guarantee it'll work in later versions but worth a try!
as of CS6, there's an openInViewer() method that you can use for a CompItem (to open in the Composition panel), AVLayer (to open in the Layer panel), or FootageItem (to open in the Footage panel).