The Silver Linings Handbook

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 silverliningshandbookpod@gmail.com Check out the Silver Linings Handbook website at: https://sil...

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 silverliningshandbookpod@gmail.com Check out the Silver Linings Handbook website at: https://silverliningshandbook.com/ Check out our Patreon...

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 a...

In this episode, Bill Thomas, the brother of Colonial Parkways murder victim Cathy Thomas, and I examine the series of homicides that occurred in Virginia between 1986 and 1989. The case began in 1986, when Bill’s sister, Cathy, and her girlfriend were found dead in Cathy’s Honda Civic just off the Colonial Parkway. For more than three decades, the murders remained unsolved. That shifted in 2024,...

Ellie Taylor was a young mother when she was diagnosed with terminal cancer. Ellie, the host of the  Version of Events  podcast, joins me to discuss the physical and emotional toll of treatment and the meaning and the mechanics of suffering. Ellie and I shared a profound friendship with the late Jessica Olive Cash, and we discuss how pain strips us down to our truest selves and how it op...

For most people, “SVU” is a television franchise. For Roger Canaff, it was real life. The former Special Victims prosecutor for the Bronx County District Attorney’s Office, the Alexandria, Virginia Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office, the New York Attorney General and the military takes us inside the world of handling cases involving sexual assault, child abuse, and other crimes against the most vuln...

In the second half of our conversation, Stacia Schnoor walks us through the courtroom battle that followed Sabrina’s death — the evidence, the testimony and the moments that forced her to relive the worst day of her life. She speaks candidly about the weight of the trial, the community’s response, and the complicated mix of relief and heartbreak that comes with a verdict. This episode captures the...

The day of Monday, May 29, 2023, seemed to be filled with apprehension and anticipation for Sabrina Schnoor. After talking to friends who warned her against it, she decided to meet with her ex-boyfriend one last time before he headed off to prison. A day later, she was found dead on railroad tracks underneath a highway bridge in Owatonna, Minnesota. Sabrina's mother, Stacia, who joins us on this e...

What happens when the person you trust most is the one quietly rewriting your reality? Toronto real estate broker Heather Rovet joins me to expose the romance scam that shattered her world—an emotional maze of manipulation, false promises and meticulously crafted lies. By the time the truth surfaced, Heather learned she wasn’t his only target. This man had deceived successful women across Canada....

Adriene Caldwell returns to continue to share the pivotal moments that shaped her path and the unexpected resilience that emerged when the odds were stacked against her. After facing homelessness, a broken family and abuse, she turned those pressures that broke her into strengths. In the second and final part of our conversation, we continue to discuss what helped her become unbroken. Contact me a...

Adriene Caldwell shares the pivotal moments that shaped her path and the unexpected resilience that emerged when the odds were stacked against her. After facing homelessness, a broken family and abuse, she turned those pressures that broke her into strengths. In the first part of our conversation, we discuss what helped her become unbroken. To preorder Adrienne's book: The Book | Unbroken: Life Ou...

Jessica Lloyd's husband called 911 to say she was having a "mental break" but did not know that six minutes later, a neighbor called to say they just heard a woman scream, "My husband is trying to kill me." By the time police arrived, Jessica was found dead, floating face-down in a canal near her Coral Springs, Florida home. Her sister, Brittany Lloyd, joins me to discuss her family's search for a...

In this special year‑end episode, I reflect on a year of stories that pushed us to confront grief, resilience, injustice and hope. Through conversations with families, survivors, advocates, scholars, and listeners, 2025 revealed how much we still have to learn about compassion, courage and the hidden struggles shaping people’s lives. This episode looks back at the moments that challenged us, chang...

In the second part of our Listeners Episode, we go deep with Joelle Brouner and Maria Holdridge, and, at some point, if you can believe it, I sit back and just listen to this powerful conversation. I appreciate all of you listeners and love to hear about your lives and your stories, and this was no exception. Contact me at silverliningshandbookpod@gmail.com Check out the Silver Linings Handbook we...

My listeners are an amazing bunch. As we head into the new year, this is part of a discussion I had recently with several listeners about the year, the future, the meaning of the holidays, family, friendship, and community. I am joined today by Marie Holdridge, Allison Dickson, Brian Santana, Lauren Ater and Cameron Santana. Contact me at silverliningshandbookpod@gmail.com Check out the Silver Lin...

Krissi Haas discovered the truth about her mother's murder in an unexpected way. Nearly three decades after 23-year-old Wilma June Nissen's body was found in rural Iowa, a cold case review led investigators to run her fingerprints through a national database. They matched an old arrest record from Long Beach, California and a friend sent Krissi an article in a local newspaper about the identificat...

In the second part of my conversation with retired FBI profiler Julia Cowley, we continue examining the 1996 murder of 20‑year‑old Swedish au pair Karina Holmer, whose body was discovered in a Boston dumpster. We explore what the killer’s choices reveal about motive, how geography points to where the crime likely occurred, and why media speculation unfairly cast suspicion on several people. Buildi...

Retired FBI profiler Julia Cowley joins me to revisit the haunting unsolved murder of Karina Holmer, a 20‑year‑old Swedish au pair whose upper body was found in a Boston dumpster in 1996. Julia and I talk about Karina’s life, the night she disappeared after leaving Zanzibar nightclub and why the comparisons to infamous Black Dahlia case don’t hold up. We explore what offender behavior can reveal a...

I sit down with advocate and researcher Raul Montero, best known for his work on the Long Island Serial Killer and for creating a groundbreaking map that tracks thousands of missing and unidentified persons. Raul talks with me about how his journey began with curiosity about a local case and evolved into a mission of compassion, focusing less on the perpetrators and more on honoring the victims an...

What happens when justice hits a jurisdictional wall? In this episode, I sit down with Jerome Lucero, former police chief and three-time governor of the Pueblo of Zia tribe to unpack the tangled web of tribal law enforcement, federal oversight and the devastating consequences of legal fragmentation on Indigenous lands. From the landmark Supreme Court decisions in United States v. Cooley and McGirt...

At just 27 years old, fighter pilot Kim Campbell was flying a combat mission over Baghdad when a barrage of anti-aircraft fire struck her A-10 Warthog. Her hydraulics failed instantly. Ground troops shifted from receiving air support to preparing a rescue. But instead of ejecting, Kim did the unthinkable—manually flying the crippled aircraft for 45 harrowing minutes before landing safely in southe...

Morgan Scafe joins me to recount her seven-year journey—beginning in high school—that started with abuse by her best friend's father and ended in his conviction for kidnapping and sexual abuse. Morgan was just eight years old when he assaulted her in the house on Carpenter Road in rural Michigan. After years of struggling with the trauma and its effects, a television program inspired her to speak...

Brett Talley and I continue our exploration of the monsters that societies breathe into existence—creatures shaped by cautionary tales, cultural trauma, and collective imagination. From Korean folklore and Greek myths of divine punishment through transformation into what the English called werewolves, to modern specters like Slenderman, we trace how these beings reflect universal truths across tim...

There are a lot of monsters in the world — and a lot of them we breathe into existence. Brett Talley, a horror writer and co-host of The Prosecutors podcast, joins me to discuss the monsters we create. We discuss how, in many ways, we create these monsters and the folklore around them because we need them. From the Wendigo and Slenderman to zombies and werewolves, we explore how monsters — some re...

Julia Cowley, a retired FBI profiler and the host of The Consult podcast, and I set out to discuss the University of Idaho murders and the killer of four college students, Bryan Kohberger. But something strange happened when we began discussing the survivors who were in the house. It was during a week when a beloved podcaster, friend, and researcher for this podcast died. In this emotionally...