Page 22 - Torrez Case News Today : Breaking News, Live Updates & Top Stories | Vimarsana

>> at the end of this case you are going to hold that man accountable for exactly what he did. >> reporter: the very first witness matt murphy put on the stand was cathy's mom, mary. it seemed a safe way to start. >> there is a cardinal rule that you don't ever do a hard cross-examination on a mother. >> reporter: but matt's mentor broke that rule. >> he really pressed her on some of the details. >> and scored some points. >> scored big points. i mean, scored big-time points. >> reporter: mary initially told the jury sam only responded to one of her pages, but under cross-examination mary reve...

Like the hatfields and the mccoys? what happened? >> there was no communication, no associations with them, you know. that -- that was basically it. that they became estranged. >> reporter: which made it difficult for tina, who was still married to sam's older brother, armando. police continued to work the case, but the fact was, they had no solid leads. they weren't even close to arresting anyone. but then two years after cathy torrez was murdered, an unexpected meeting put this investigation in the fast lane. an explorer scout with a familiar last name inspires a renewed search for a killer....

First, cathy was completely clothed. no sign of a sexual assault. and one more thing also seemed clear. >> most likely the attack started in the car. there were pieces of the gearshift that were broken, pieces of the center console that were broken, as if a struggle had occurred. and then there was blood within the interior of the car. >> reporter: orange county prosecutor matt murphy later reviewed the case. he noted blood on everything the killer must have touched -- the steering wheel, above the glove compartment, the driver's side armrest and, of course, the trunk release. but one notewort...

Into an arrest for murder. nearly four years after cathy's death, he was booked into the orange county jail. cathy's family was stunned when they heard the news. tina included. remember, she was still married to armando, who was sam's brother and javier's cousin. >> yes. that -- that was a shock. that was a shock. >> reporter: you didn't see that coming and police didn't tell you? >> right. that was part of their investigation, and we had no knowledge of that. >> reporter: but they were relieved. at last the case was moving forward. daron wyatt was confident he had enough evidence to prove jav...

With javier is any leverage you had to get him to name sam? >> yes, absolutely. >> reporter: and now you really are back to square one? >> yes. >> reporter: is that the end? >> to some people. >> reporter: but not to him. and not to mary. you put a lot of faith in daron. >> i put a lot of faith in god. daron was his tool. >> reporter: but for the time being, it seemed daron's hands were tied. after all, the case had been rejected by the d.a.'s office twice before. this case getting a lot of baggage over the years? >> yeah, it did. >> reporter: and so if you go ahead with it, you're not only go...