Case 118
The Chicago Tylenol Murders
After seven residents of Chicago passed away suddenly and unexpectedly in 1982, authorities discovered they shared a common link. In the hours before their deaths, each of the individuals had taken Tylenol branded paracetamol.
It’s immediately clear that this was no coincidence. Testing reveals that the Tylenol packages had been tampered with, and some of the capsules replaced with cyanide. As panic ensues throughout the United States, investigators are left to discover what motivated the Chicago Tylenol Murders and find out who is to blame.
CREDITS
EPISODE:
Research – Milly Raso and Anonymous Host
Writing – Milly Raso
Narration – Anonymous Host
MUSIC:
‘Flatline intro’ and ‘Come play with me’ intro and outro – www.dl-sounds.com
Audio production – Mike Migas
Scoring – Mike Migas and Andrew Joslyn
OTHER:
Logo and website design – Paulina Szymanska
RESOURCES
BOOKS:
The Tylenol Mafia – Scott Bartz
COURT DOCUMENTS:
The People v. Arnold – Appellate Court of Illinois: 1985
United States of America v. James William Lewis – Court of Appeals decision: 1986
ARTICLES:
How firefighters discovered Tylenol link – UPI
Coincidence may have saved several lives in Tylenol case – Washington Post
Poisoning is traced to stores – The Washington Post
Tylenol slayings remain unsolved – The New York Times
Neighbour says Lewis had banking system know-how – UPI
Wanted on extortion charges – The Washington Post
Settlement reached in Tylenol suit – Chicago Tribune
Tylenol’s maker shows how to respond to crisis – The Washington Post
Feds convinced Lewis was Tylenol Killer – The Boston Channel
Fatal tampering case is renewed – Boston.com
Law enforcement to review Tylenol murders – CNN
Friend: Tylenol suspect submits DNA, fingerprints – Boston.com
2D tainted bottle of Tylenol found by investigators – The New York Times
Cyanide death called a homicide – Chicago Tribune
Victim’s family thinks about all the things she missed after leaving behind 2 young sons – The Chicago Tribune
How the Tylenol murders of 1982 changed the way we consume medication – PBS
A brief history of the Tylenol poisonings – TIME
Chicago Tylenol Murders: the first domestic terror incident – Chicago Magazine
A bitter pill – Chicago Reader
Murder by Tylenol – Vice
ARCHIVED ARTICLES:
Chicago Tribune
2 firemen tied drug to deaths – Oct 1 1982
Red-and-white pills deadly roulette game – Oct 1 1982
Antidote to sniffles results in a tragedy – Oct 1 1982
Living in the Tylenol killer’s shadow – Oct 26 1982
The Hunt – Oct 2 1983
The Times
Somewhere…we have a madman – Oct 10 1982
Arizona Republic
Camera records cyanide victim’s deadly purchase – Oct 20, 1982
The Dispatch
Revenge put ‘Tylenol Kid’ in prison – Oct 3 1996
Detroit Free Press
1 year later, Tylenol deaths a mystery – Sept 28 1983
PHOTOGRAPHS:
OTHER SOURCES:
5 Crisis Management Truths from the Tylenol Murders – MissionMode