Ep 3. Rorrer Hour 1: The Hang Up

In the third episode of season 2 of Wrong Man, titled "Rorrer Hour 1: The Hang Up," the show takes a deep dive into the case of the disappearance of a mother and daughter from Virginia in 2009, which led to the wrongful conviction of an innocent man.

The episode begins with the background of the case. Forty-year-old Kathryn and her 14-year-old daughter Samantha were last seen on July 1, 2009, when they left their home in Virginia to visit Kathryn's parents in Tennessee. When they never arrived, Kathryn's parents reported them missing. Soon after, their car was found abandoned in a parking lot in a small town in Virginia.

At the time, police had no leads and no suspects, until they received a crucial tip – it was a phone call made to Samantha's cell phone on the day of their disappearance, from a man named Wesley Earnest, who had previously dated Kathryn. The police believed that Wesley was involved in the disappearance of Kathryn and Samantha, and he was arrested and charged with their abduction.

Wesley, however, maintained his innocence throughout his trial. He claimed that he had nothing to do with the disappearance of Kathryn and Samantha, and that he had actually been on a camping trip with his family on the day of the disappearance. But the prosecution had a strong case against him – the cell phone records showed that Wesley had called Samantha's phone on the day of the abduction, his DNA was found on Kathryn's car, and he could not provide a solid alibi.

The episode focuses on the initial investigation and trial of Wesley Earnest, and how his defense team worked to clear his name. The defense team had uncovered several key pieces of evidence that had been overlooked by the police, and they argued that the evidence against Wesley was circumstantial and insufficient to prove his guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

One of the crucial pieces of evidence was the mysterious phone call made to Samantha's cell phone on the day of the abduction. The defense team investigated the call logs and discovered that the phone call had actually been made from a public payphone in a town several miles away from where Wesley was camping with his family. They argued that it was impossible for Wesley to have made the phone call, and that someone else must have been responsible.

But perhaps the most compelling piece of evidence was the testimony of another man, who came forward years later and claimed he had seen Kathryn and Samantha alive, months after their supposed disappearance. He even provided a detailed account of where he had seen them and what they were wearing. This testimony provided a glimmer of hope for Wesley, that he may one day be exonerated.

The episode ends with a cliffhanger, as the defense team prepares to present their case to the courts and fight for Wesley's innocence. It is a testimony to the criminal justice system's flaws, and how a wrongful conviction can happen based on insufficient or incomplete evidence.

Overall, "Rorrer Hour 1: The Hang Up" is a gripping episode that delves deep into the complexities of a wrongful conviction case, and the impact it has on the lives of those involved. It is a must-watch for anyone interested in true crime and justice.