The Silver Linings Handbook

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. Building on Part 1, this episode focuses on the behavioral insights that might one day help solve one of Boston’s most haunting cases.

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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 about motive and why the risks taken in dismemberment and disposal matter. This episode sets the stage for a deeper look at one of Boston’s most unforgettable cases.

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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:

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Join our Facebook Group at:

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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 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 and their families. His story is one of how a little bit of curiosity can make a world of difference.

To view Raul's map and other resources:

https://tr.ee/mMSjDScP8L

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Submit your question or express interest in joining the 2025 Listeners Episode here: https://forms.gle/yf9aRU7BokGUTAFj6

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.

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 v. Oklahoma to a haunting case of one of New Mexico's top fugitives being able to roam freely on tribal lands, Jerome shares firsthand insights into how sovereignty victories can both empower and complicate justice.

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Submit your question or express interest in joining the 2025 Listeners Episode here: https://forms.gle/yf9aRU7BokGUTAFj6

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:

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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.

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 southern Iraq.

That flight earned her the nickname “Killer Chick.” But Kim joins me to share the deeper story, including what trauma taught her about resilience, the preciousness of human life, and the power of teams—lessons that apply far beyond the battlefield, from leadership to family life.

Submit a question for or raise your hand join the Listeners Episode:

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Learn more about Kim’s journey and her book, Flying in the Face of Fear:

https://kim-kc-campbell.com

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:

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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.

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 out—slipping a note under the door of a high school teacher. By her twenties, he had been convicted of kidnapping and sexual abuse, and Morgan’s path toward healing had begun. We talk about grooming, silence, and the freedom that comes—not just from a trial, but from reclaiming your voice.

Submit a question for or raise your hand join the Listeners Episode:

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To buy Morgan's book:

Carpenter Road: Sentenced to Silence

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:

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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.

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 time and geography.

These monsters don’t just embody fear—they illuminate our hopes, boundaries, and moral compasses. We also examine their counterparts: figures like Sabe, honored in Ojibwe, Odawa, and Potawatomi traditions, who guide us toward honesty and light.

Whether feared or revered, these beings serve as signposts—reminding us of who we are and who we strive to become. Because no matter what you fear about monsters, we discuss, there’s always a lesson worth learning from them.

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To hear more from Brett and his co-host, Alice LaCour, check out The Prosecutors and The Prosecutors: Legal Briefs podcasts.

To read Brett's horror writing, check out That Which Should Not Be.

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:

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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.

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 real, some imagined, and in some cases, hard to determine — serve a real societal purpose as we use them as allegories, warning signs, moral tools and psychological buffers.

Submit a question for or raise your hand to join the Listeners Episode:

https://forms.gle/yf9aRU7BokGUTAFj6

To hear more from Brett and his co-host, Alice LaCour, check out The Prosecutors and The Prosecutors: Legal Briefs podcasts.

To read Brett's horror writing, check out That Which Should Not Be.

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.

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 charged bonus, we explore grief, trauma, and the importance of kindness within the true crime community and in life. Our conversation touches on how loss, children and age have changed the way we view true crime stories.

NOTE: In July 2025, those roommates, Dylan Mortensen and Bethany Funke, broke their silence at Kohberger's sentencing in the murders of 20-year-olds Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin, and 21-year-olds Kaylee Goncalves and Madison Mogen. Use the links above to hear from them in their own words.

Submit a question for or raise your hand to join the Listeners Episode:

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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 the early morning hours of November 13, 2022, someone entered a house just off the University of Idaho campus in a brazen home invasion that left four University of Idaho students — Ethan Chapin, Xana Kernodle, Madison Mogen and Kaylee Goncalves — dead. Julia Cowley, a retired FBI profiler and host of The Consult podcast, joins me to continue on conversation about what we can learn from the behavior of the real-life nightmare that is the suspect, Bryan Kohberger.

Submit a question for or raise your hand to join the Listeners Episode:

https://forms.gle/yf9aRU7BokGUTAFj6

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.