A new episode of Investigation Discovery’s true crime series, The Curious Case Of…, is set to air on Monday, January 20. This episode will dive into one of the most perplexing missing person cases in recent memory.
Titled “The Curious Case Of… The Girl Who Died Twice,” the episode will premiere at 10 p.m. ET. It revolves around the long search for Mary Louise Day, who vanished from her home in Seaside, California, in 1981 when she was just 13 years old. Many believed she was murdered, but the mystery deepened when a woman with her driver’s license appeared in Phoenix years later.
The show’s trailer poses a haunting question: “Is this Mary Day or an imposter?” It features interviews with Mary’s sister, Sherrie Calgaro, and investigators who have pondered this issue for years.
Sherrie was only 10 years old when Mary disappeared. In a 2021 interview, she expressed her doubts about whether the woman identified as Mary Louise Day by Phoenix police in 2003 was truly her sister.
Mary, Sherrie, and their sister Kathy grew up facing challenges, moving from one foster home to another before eventually returning to their biological mother, Charlotte. During Mary’s disappearance, the family was living with William Houle, a military man stationed at Fort Ord.
Reports suggest that on the night Mary went missing, William may have reacted violently after suspecting Mary of harming his dog. Following her disappearance, the couple’s behavior raised eyebrows among authorities.
Sherrie recalled a chilling moment when Kathy told her, "We’re not allowed to talk about Mary," whenever she sought answers. Investigators even searched the Houle’s backyard and uncovered a little girl’s shoe, but no body was found.
Detectives later traveled to Kansas, where the Houles had moved, to question them about Mary’s case. Their responses reportedly raised red flags for the investigators. To everyone’s shock, seven months later, Mary reemerged in Phoenix.
“This case just keeps getting stranger,” said former Seaside Police Chief Steve Cercone.
As detectives tried to uncover the truth behind the woman known as “Phoenix Mary,” they conducted interrogations and DNA tests. What they discovered left both the family and investigators grappling with the confusing reality of Mary Louise Day’s story.
New episodes of The Curious Case Of… air every Monday night at 10 p.m. ET on Investigation Discovery.
