Presumed Innocent – Season 1 Episode 3 Recap & Review

Discovery

Episode 3 of Presumed Innocent begins with Rusty seeing the text from someone who knows “Rusty was there that night”. Barbara notices something is wrong and Rusty shows her the text. He admits he was at Carolyn’s house the night of her murder. This is a massive shock to Barbara who walks away to be on her own. Elsewhere, Raymond wakes up from a dream about Rusty killing Carolyn. Lorraine, his wife, worries the case is too much for Raymond.

In the morning, Rusty gets another text: “Damen Silos. Three o’clock.” Rusty shows the texts to Raymond, who is annoyed that Rusty didn’t tell him he was at Carolyn’s house that night. He advises against meeting the texter but Rusty wants to know who it is.

Barbara, who works at an art gallery, is told to take a step back from work because of all the press attention. She goes to a bar and unloads her worries on a bartender. Later, she tells Lorraine that he was handsome. Lorraine encourages Barbara to seek out her own desires.

Back at the prosecutor’s office, Detective Rigo is told by Tommy and Nico to not work on Rusty’s case. This is because she keeps telling them to look into Liam Reynolds due to the Bunny Davis connection but they remain focused on Rusty. While she’s leaving, she calls someone and asks them to get the files on the Bunny Davis case.

Rusty gives in to his impulses and goes to the address, Damen Silos. The person waiting for him is none other than Michael, Carolyn’s son. He claims to have photographs and videos of Rusty at Carolyn’s house that night. He’s already given them to the DA though. He says he just called Rusty here to see his face, which Rusty finds odd.

The prosecutors, lawyers, Rusty and the judge meet to discuss the available evidence. Raymond sees that he himself has been listed as a witness for the prosecution, which causes a bit of a ruckus. Raymond then brings up the photos taken by Michael and the judge tells Tommy and Nico to hand the evidence t over immediately.

Later that night, Jaden asks Rusty what evidence the prosecution has against him. Rusty explains about the evidence but says it’s circumstantial. Kyle then asks Rusty if he’s considering a plea since that would give him less time in prison as compared to losing the case. Rusty spirals a bit on hearing this, assuming his son thinks he killed Carolyn. Barbara assures him Kyle just doesn’t want to lose him. Kyle then apologises as well and they make up.

At a bar, Nico and Tommy discuss focusing on the murder charges and letting go of the obstruction of investigation charges. Tommy is determined to see Rusty go down and Nico worries that he’s too overzealous.

Meanwhile, Raymond has hired another defence lawyer named Mya to help with the case. While going over the casework, Mya asks Rusty if he loved Carolyn or if it was just lust. He says it was both. When she asks when he first felt emotionally towards her, Rusty mentions a case of sexual assault that they worked on together. He saw Carolyn deal with the victim, a small girl, with care and kindness that he hadn’t quite seen in her before. That was when he first had feelings for her.

Meanwhile, at Kyle’s baseball match, Barbara notices everyone looking at her. Later, Rusty visits Carolyn’s house with Raymond. He keeps seeing moments from his past with Carolyn as he walks through the house. Raymond then tells Rusty to let go of the idea of investigating the Bunny Davis connection to find another suspect.

When Rusty is back home, he receives Michael’s photos and videos. They’re mostly clips of him and Carolyn together. Except for a few photos that show a hooded figure outside the house — Kyle, Rusty’s son at the end of Presumed Innocent Episode 3.

The Episode Review

Presumed Innocent Episode 3 continues at the show’s slightly leisurely pace but then offers a solid twist with the addition of Michael’s photos and the reveal of Kyle being near Carolyn’s place. The investigation into Carolyn’s murder is intriguing but definitely requires some patience from its viewers. Raymond is listed as a witness and the way that plot point was just brushed past was a bit odd — how can a defence lawyer be a witness for the prosecution?

In the end, the primary focus of this episode seems to be more on the relationships between characters. We see Barbara holding her family together but also yearning for her own, independent desires. There is Raymond, who is struggling to deal with his best friend being held for murder.

Michael clearly had some issues with his mother as well, otherwise why would he be staking her house? Despite these well-written characters though, the episode lacks the pull of mystery and intrigue that a legal thriller needs.