This episode ("The Case of the Stranger") was based on the case of Carl Otto Wanderer, who murdered his wife, Ruth, and a drifter (possibly named Al Watson), on June 21, 1920, in Chicago. Apparently, Wanderer received only 25 years for killing his wife (following a second trial, since the first ended in a hung jury); however, he received the death penalty for the murder of the "ragged stranger." He was executed by hanging on September 30, 1921.
City: Chicago, IL. Paper: Chicago Herald-American. Reporter: Harry Romanoff