However, as profiled on IDs Deadly Women: Green-Eyed Monsters, Joanns husbands ex-girlfriend, Patricia Rorrer, was eventually identified as their perpetrator. Andrew's involvement in the latter theory was dismissed when his alibi checked out. In North Carolina, she reportedly enjoyed some success as a horse trader, riding instructor, and rodeo competitor. The victims vanished on December 15. Patricia Rorrer: Under the Microscope: Patty Rorrer is convicted of the kidnapping and murder of her ex-boyfriend's wife and infant son, but "Wrong Man" investigators discover that the case is not so clear cut. Rorrer claims the DNA . It's not often there's a laundry list of clear signals, but it's fun to iterate them when there are so many. MEMORANDUM BY BOWES, J.: FILED OCTOBER 26, 2017 Patricia Lynne Rorrer appeals the PCRA court's dismissal of her . Police couldnt determine whether the baby died of exposure or suffocation. On Instagram, I found a post for a two-part Win at All Costs podcast featuring journalism professor Bill Mousheys interviews with Patricia Rorrer from prison in December 2019. Murder victim. Patricia had won a prize at an out-of-state horse-riding competition less than two weeks before the murders, and she allowed herself to be photographed. Select "match all" to require all fields. Artificial intelligence and machine learning education and literacy: teacher training for primary and secondary education teachers; Chapter 2. No activity on her bank account or credit cards took place after the day she went missing, so investigators dismissed the theory that she took her child and bolted. Darla Carrington, Brian Charles, Robert Pezzeca, Patricia Rorrer . Patricia Rorrer has been in prison since 1998, convicted of the horrific murder of a young mother, Joann Katrinak, and her 16-week old son, in Catasauqua, Pennsylvania. Learn more about our upcoming events, fundraisers, and more! At first, a broad-daylight abduction of a mother and her infant seemed unlikely. Murder victim. Clair is black, and no forensic evidence ties him to the crime scene.. Her advocates say she wasn't even in the same state at the time of the crime. An ex-boyfriend of Patricia knew she owned a distinct .22 caliber pistol and knew of its tendency to jam, but Rorrer could only deny owning such a weapon. An early childhood introd Also she worked as a realtor so it's not that unreasonable for her to know which line to cut. However, her name was not on the sign-in list. She got 12 months of probation for shoplifting at a Walmart in Lexington, North Carolina. After the premiere episode, Wrong Man will air on Sundays at 9:00 p.m. They noted houses near the murder scene would have heard a gunshot in December, when no farm equipment is making noise, and question why the murderer didnt just kill Joann inside her house instead of risking being seen in public in her car. Andrew told investigators that the unpleasant phone call between Joann and Patricia happened just three days before his wifes disappearance. Smith claims that she is innocent and that she loved the victim like a daughter., The second is Patricia Rorrer, who has been in prison since 1998 after being convicted of the horrific murder of a young mother, Joann Katrinak, and her 15-week old son in Catasauqua, Pennsylvania. The 26-year-old was recently married, and this would be four-month-old Alex's first Christmas. Died along with his mother, Joann, as a victim of his father's jealous ex-girlfriend, Patricia Rorrer. This was part of Rorrer's defense strategy it seemed like an unrealistic motive to commit murder. Police converged on the scene and soon realized it was not only the remains of Joann Katrinak, but sadly of Alex too. Around April 1995, the cold and badly decomposed remains of 26-year-old Joann Katrinak and her 3.5-month-old toddler Alex Katrinak were recovered from the woods in Heidelberg Township, Pennsylvania. Um why is that? Prosecutors at the time used this angry phone call as motive for Patricia to travel 500 miles to the Katrinak house, cut a phone line, break into the basement door, put them into Joann's car and march Joann and Alex to their eventual death - killing them in a field. After one bullet didnt kill Joann, the gun locked up, so Patricia had to beat her to death, according to the prosecution. After watching the latest Starz episode of Wrong Man (a great investigative show), I started thinking about the Patricia Rorrer case again.. Rorrer was convicted of kidnapping and murdering Joann Katrinak and her 3-4 month old son Alex in 1994 by forcing them our of their home and driving them to a wooded area where they were shot and killed. I was so excited that I called everyone, and Joanne picked up the phone and she said Andy is married, and I said I know, then she said we have a baby, and I said yea I know, then she said dont ever call here again. ", "I can remember till this day, seeing that infant being lifted off the abdomen of his mother. Patricias defenders also say Andrew Katrinak staged the scene at his house by prying the door and cutting the phone line. Mostly cloudy and drier, but a few scattered rain showers linger early, and perhaps a few snow showers at any point in the Poconos. Joann grabbed her purse, the diaper bag, and their coats against the December chill in Pennsylvania. Select "match any" to find at least one field. Very true - I can't remember if the show went through that. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sDGl9dMgHwY&fbclid=IwAR1nlAYf6AcIu_i8kN0fD_MCD3CnxJ6DG_oUgVFdqN3b2EJ4fcLO2ci3wWc. Theyd been missing for four months, but their discovery only gave rise to more questions than answers, especially as the young mother had been shot once in the face before being struck on the head 19 times. Finally, four months after that dreadful day in December, a farmer plowing his fields found what at first seemed to be a pile of discarded clothing. Posted: June 22, 2022 Phil and Rell will be released on Monday, as well as Leroy Cotton and Jimmy Jackson. Thank you for reading, please use the links, and watch all the videos. Regarding the gun, she claims to have said that she didn't have a gun at that time, not that she never had one. Traupman died in 2016. But if Andrew wanted to find his wife and his son, why on Earth did he wait until 10:30pm before notifying authorities? But when did he find the evidence of the break-in? So now, lets find out everything there is to know about her, shall we? After six hours of deliberations, in March 1998, a jury found Patricia guilty of two counts of first-degree murder and two counts of kidnapping. Watch Wrong Man Season 2: Stream Full Episodes on STARZ In February 2008, Patricia Taylor Allanson, age 70, was arrested and charged with doctor shopping for thousands of pain pills over the past year. Patricia Rorrer Obituary (1935 - 2021) - Lynchburg, VA - The News & Advance At the trial, prosecutor Michael McIntyre alleged that Patricia remained obsessed with Andrew Katrinak long after their breakup despite testimony that shed had many boyfriends and live-in lovers to occupy her bandwidth. Friends and family began looking for Joann and Alex. I can't recall if the long distance calls were talked about in the show. Patricia Rorrer has been portrayed as a bully, petty thief, neglectful horse owner, and heartless killer or a sweet, caring friend railroaded by authorities desperate to solve a double-murder case that snagged worldwide interest. When she stood trial that same year, she maintained her innocence and alleged that she and Andrew Katrinak had continued to stay in touch as good friends, so she wouldnt do anything to hurt him. The same source indicates Patricia Rorrer has repeatedly appealed for a retrial and exoneration, but each request has been denied. As for the murder weapon, police didnt find a .22 caliber pistol on Patricias property, but an ex-boyfriend claimed that she owned one and it would always jam after one shot. Why would somebody tell you, theyre going to fry me, if they didnt do it? Jarrett told Wrong Man. Why was the jury never told that Patricia Rorrer was under surveillance in North Carolina at the time of the crime? As noted earlier, there was hair found in the victims hand, fingernail fragments found on her body, and also a cigarette butt. Where is Patricia Rorrer Now? - The Cinemaholic Back in March of 2017, Investigation Discovery ran Murder in Lehigh Valley: Keith Morrison Investigates which questioned the conviction of . Of course, Patricia denied this. 2023 Cinemaholic Inc. All rights reserved. PATRICIA LYNNE RORRER Appellant No. After relocating to Pennsylvania, Patricia met the 6-foot-2-inch Andrew in a restaurant. EPISODE 1. It seems likely these bodies were dumped here months after initially thought, not killed the day they were kidnapped. Wrong Man investigators interrogated a confidential informant, the main witness against Evaristo Salas, and he recanted his testimony. Please walk thru her website and see for yourself how easy it is to be convicted of something you had nothing to do with. This explosive case is back in the spotlight, reopening old wounds and creating new ones. Rorrer has filed a petition to get new evidence admissible that he said could set her free. Therefore, today, in her late 50s, Patricia is imprisoned at the maximum-security State Correctional Institution Muncy in Clinton Township, Pennsylvania. Despite the troubling evidence from Joann's car, detectives considered whether or not Joann had taken baby Alex and simply left. Another case is Patricia Rorrer, who has been in prison since 1998, convicted of the murder of a young mother and her 16-week old son in Pennsylvania. Read and download theDen of Geek Lost in Space Special Edition Magazineright here! FBI didn't follow up on Patricia's alibi for months (6 months?) Patricia demonstrated a consistent habit of long-distance calls from home, then had an obvious gap while claiming she. She was born on July 27, 1942, in Henry County, Va., to Edward Rorrer and Susie Morrison Rorrer. The only eyewitness to the murder a five-year-old child told police officers that a white man did it, reads the statement. They theorized might've simply started a new life with another man, but this seemed absurd to everyone who knew Joann. Get up-to-the-minute news sent straight to your device. Patricia is and has been fighting that she is innocent from the very beginning. "When I read that petition for the first time about 30 days ago, I couldn't believe it was written by a lawyer.". Patricia was living back in North Carolina when the double murders occurred, yet investigators questioned her nonetheless. She was the devoted wife of the late Alvin Haymon Rorrer. When Andrew was told of the location of his young family's remains, he offered investigators a lead. Phone calls played a significant role in the case overall. Tribute Archive More hairs there. When their bodies were found four months later, police sought the clues to find their killer. Prosecutor hiding something? Joann answered that night, told me that Andy was married and they had baby and not to call her house again .I honestly didn't think too much about it. The Innocence Project has declined to take her case. At 6 a.m. on June 24, 1997, police arrested Patricia at her modest house in Linwood, North Carolina, and took her back to Pennsylvania. The Morning Call Moreover, Patricia had been accused of breaking into barns, stealing horses, and underfeeding the ones she cared for charges that never stuck. Patricia was arrested on June 24, 1997. . Patricia Rorrer was convicted of both deaths in the mid-90's and is serving a life sentence. How to do some spring cleaning on your smartphone, What the Tech? The authorities charged her with two counts of murder. ), And in another bombshell, Joanns good friend Karen Devine said Joann planned to leave Andrew after the holidays. Police treated Joann's car as a potential crime scene, and their investigation turned up several blonde hairs on the head rest. I think you might have mistaken what's being mentioned in the Washington Post article; that is talking about microscopic hair analysis, which is when they compare two strands of hair for a match. They released a poster of Joann and Alex, noting that the baby had "almond-shaped blue eyes," weighed 18 . Or was it? Media galore. Detective Robert Werts stated Rorrer offered four or five alibis for the time of the incident. Wow this episode was featured on Forensic Files. Commonwealth v. Rorrer, J-A14029-17 | Casetext Search + Citator The two-hour special, called Murder in the Lehigh Valley: Keith Morrison Investigates, will premiere at 8 p.m. and air again at 11 p.m. Sunday night. The missing items included Joann's purse, car, both her and Alex's winter jackets, and the diaper bag. The case rocked Pennsylvania's Lehigh Valley and resulted in the conviction of Patricia Rorrer, now 53, the ex-girlfriend of Katrinak's husband. 1 talking about this. Get local Breaking News alerts sent directly to your inbox. You have permission to edit this article. In April 1995, the family buried Joann and Alex in a single bronze casket after a funeral mass at a Bethlehem church. Cancel Anytime. They had a son, Alex Martin, in August of 1994. Shes extremely, extremely happy with the baby. "Reasonable Doubt" The Ex Files (TV Episode 2022) - IMDb Highly charged case. More: https://www.investigationdiscovery.com/crimefeed/murder/convenient-suspect-a-wrongful-conviction-in-the-murder-in-lehigh-valley. SearchWorks catalog -, Press J to jump to the feed. Success! You couldnt fire a second shot. I really never thought of it again.. But her reputation wasnt exactly sleek and shiny. Rorrer was convicted of kidnapping and murdering Joann Katrinak and her 3-4 month old son Alex in 1994 by forcing them our of their home and driving them to a wooded area where they were shot and killed. The investigation that led to her identification and then turned up enough evidence to arrest and convict Patricia Rorrer was interesting. I knew when Andy got married and I was happy for him. Powered by WordPress.com VIP. After Joann Katrinak, the wife of Patricias former flame, turned up dead along with her infant son, prosecutors suspected Patricia. Documentary, Drama 2020-2020. The system is broken sending innocent people to prison! While the police are still investigating the murder of your wife and child? Someone had shot Joann in the face with a .22-caliber pistol, then beaten her about the head hitting her 19 times in all with a blunt object.