Receptacle not working
"hot/ground reversed" is troubling. If there is no GFCI protecting that outlet it would mean that any grounded appliance plugged into it becomes hot and will shock you if you brushed against it.

I would gander you need to trace the wires and make sure some joker didn't cross connect the hot and ground wires. On every outlet on the branch double check each wire coming in and going out whether it is hot neutral or ground. Then if that doesn't reveal the evil-doer then do continuity checks on the wires to make sure the wire that's black stays black while it travels through the wall.