The Silver Linings Handbook

Emily Dufton joins me to talk about how the death of her high school friend after 15 years of escalating opioid use led her on a journey to uncover the origins of the American opioid crisis and our failure to treat patients. She traces those roots back to the well‑intentioned but misguided efforts of the Nixon Administration in the 1970s, the punitive turn of the Reagan‑era War on Drugs, and the policies that followed. Emily also connects these policy choices to the rise of pharmaceutical profiteering—from Purdue Pharma, the maker of OxyContin, to other drug manufacturers who have collectively paid more than $60 billion in fines and civil penalties for practices that, in many ways, helped start the fire and then attempted to sell the hose.
To read Emily’s book, Addiction, Inc.:
Addiction, Inc.: Medication-Assisted Treatment and America’s Forgotten War on Drugs, Dufton
Contact me at [email protected]
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The Silver Linings Handbook podcast is a part of the ART19 network. ART19 is a subsidiary of Wondery and Amazon Music.
See the Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and the California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Geographic Profiler Doug MacGregor returns to conclude our conversation about the art and science of geographic profiling — and the blend of criminology, behavioral science, mapping technology and temporal data he uses to help prioritize suspects in criminal investigations.
To find out more about Doug's work:
IRIS Investigative Strategies
Contact me at [email protected]
Check out the Silver Linings Handbook website at:
https://silverliningshandbook.com/
Check out our Patreon to support the show at:
https://www.patreon.com/thesilverliningshandbook
Join our Facebook Group at:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1361159947820623
Visit the Silver Linings Handbook store to support the podcast at:
https://www.bonfire.com/store/the-silver-linings-handbook-podcast-store
Visit The True Crime Times Substack at:
https://truecrimemessenger.substack.com
The Silver Linings Handbook podcast is a part of the ART19 network. ART19 is a subsidiary of Wondery and Amazon Music.
See the Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and the California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

I talk with Doug MacGregor about his background as a geographic profiler and the blend of criminology, behavioral science, mapping technology and temporal data he uses to help prioritize suspects in criminal investigations.
To find out more about Doug's work:
IRIS Investigative Strategies
Contact me at [email protected]
Check out the Silver Linings Handbook website at:
https://silverliningshandbook.com/
Check out our Patreon to support the show at:
https://www.patreon.com/thesilverliningshandbook
Join our Facebook Group at:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1361159947820623
Visit the Silver Linings Handbook store to support the podcast at:
https://www.bonfire.com/store/the-silver-linings-handbook-podcast-store
Visit The True Crime Times Substack at:
https://truecrimemessenger.substack.com
The Silver Linings Handbook podcast is a part of the ART19 network. ART19 is a subsidiary of Wondery and Amazon Music.
See the Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and the California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Bill Thomas and I conclude our conversation on the latest developments in the Colonial Parkways Murders. Bill walks us through the patterns, dead ends and new leads.
Listen to part 1 of this series here.
Listen to part 2 of this series here.
Contact me at [email protected]
Check out the Silver Linings Handbook website at:
https://silverliningshandbook.com/
Check out our Patreon to support the show at:
https://www.patreon.com/thesilverliningshandbook
Join our Facebook Group at:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1361159947820623
Visit the Silver Linings Handbook store to support the podcast at:
https://www.bonfire.com/store/the-silver-linings-handbook-podcast-store
Visit The True Crime Times Substack at:
https://truecrimemessenger.substack.com
The Silver Linings Handbook podcast is a part of the ART19 network. ART19 is a subsidiary of Wondery and Amazon Music.
See the Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and the California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this episode, Bill Thomas, the brother of Colonial Parkway murder victim Cathy Thomas, and I continue our discussion on the cases. We revisit how Alan Wade Wilmer Sr. became a major but mishandled suspect after the 1988 disappearance of Keith Call and Cassandra Hailey, whose abandoned car coincided with reports of a man in a distinctive, waterman‑rigged pickup confronting couples while posing as law enforcement. His work on the water gave him plausible access to remote roads, docks, and peninsulas without attracting attention.
Bill walks through the FBI’s early search of Wilmer Sr.’s home and truck—where agents found weapons and restraints—yet he was released after polygraphs. Only years after his death in 2017 did manual DNA comparisons revive the case, ultimately linking him to multiple murders, including Cathy and Becky Dowski.
We also introduce Liberty Security, a small local company with repeated proximity to several victims and their families, and its owner, Ron Little— one reason Wilmer Sr.’s identification does not close the cases. The episode reframes the pattern of violence as a broader set of “Peninsula Murders,” shaped by waterways, jurisdictional seams, and Wilmer Sr.’s ability to move fluidly between them.
Contact me at [email protected]
Check out the Silver Linings Handbook website at:
https://silverliningshandbook.com/
Check out our Patreon to support the show at:
https://www.patreon.com/thesilverliningshandbook
Join our Facebook Group at:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1361159947820623
Visit the Silver Linings Handbook store to support the podcast at:
https://www.bonfire.com/store/the-silver-linings-handbook-podcast-store
Visit The True Crime Times Substack at:
https://truecrimemessenger.substack.com
The Silver Linings Handbook podcast is a part of the ART19 network. ART19 is a subsidiary of Wondery and Amazon Music.
See the Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and the California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.