Month: September 2026

Even though it was 44 years ago, because I grew up in the Chicago area, I still have very strong memories about the homicides that became known as the Chicago Tylenol Murders. 

During the fall of 1982, people throughout Chicagoland became panicked and horrified by a string of seven deaths that initially had no obvious connection. It was eventually determined all the victims had taken Extra-Strength Tylenol capsules from bottles of over-the-counter-medicine that had deliberately been tampered with. An unknown suspect had removed capsules from the packages, laced them with potassium cyanide, and returned the poisoned product to store shelves. 

The string of horrible deaths over a span of  3 days sadly began with 12-year-old Mary Kellerman of Elk Grove Village. The second victim was a postal worker named Adam Janus of Arlington Heights, who died that same day. In an awful twist of fate, Adam’s brother and sister-in-law also died by taking the same tainted medicine in Janus’ home- they came there to support family members who had gathered after Adam’s passing. Three more deaths linked to the poisoned medicines followed.

The Deadly Connection

The common denominator between all the mysterious deaths was identified as the use of Tylenol shortly before the victims died. So Chicago Mayor Jane Byrne, along with local law enforcement and health officials, had all Tylenol products immediately pulled from local groceries and pharmacies in Chicago. After finding 2 more contaminated Tylenol bottles, Johnson & Johnson’s chairman James Burke ordered a national product withdrawal. 31 million bottles of Tylenol were recalled by Johnson & Johnson nationwide. 

Some good did come out of tragedy. The Tylenol killings quickly led to the packaging and tamper-proof medicine containers familiar today (e.g. foil seals, interior cotton wads, plastic strips)- features all designed to reveal to a consumer if a product has been tampered with. Johnson & Johnson’s Tylenol became the first product in the drug industry to use new tamper-resistant packaging- a mere 6 months after the tragedies had occurred. A “Tylenol Bill” was passed by Congress in 1983, making it a felony to tamper with consumer products.  

One man, James W. Lewis, served more than 12 years in prison for sending an extortion note to Johnson & Johnson, demanding $1 million to “stop the killing.”  Lewis always denied playing any part in the actual Tylenol tampering and resulting deaths. He claimed his ransom demand was based on a desire to negatively implicate his wife’s ex-employer by having the ransom money sent to them. So Lewis was never charged with the murders- just for extortion. Despite the intense focus on the Chicago Tylenol Murders, the killer or killers have never been found.

Perhaps until now. 

A Break In a Cold Case

It seems that in September 2026, the Ada County Sheriff’s Office in Idaho at long last finally identified a man found dead of cyanide poisoning in a Boise church in 1982. Officials there had dubbed him “The Unknown Wanderer,” and 44 years of intense investigative work had not uncovered who the man was. 

Then came a breakthrough: Investigators revisited overlooked markings carved into a house key found on the man’s body. That overlooked clue’s unlikely trail led them to identify “The Unknown Wanderer” as Dr. Matthew Francis Betkouski, an organic chemist with a history of mental illness. Betkouski was known to have written and spoken about ways poison could be introduced into over-the-counter drugs. Betkouskis’s belongings had been preserved by his brother, and an old map of Chicago and bottle of homemade cyanide among them added circumstantial evidence to the case.  

And now, there’s a 3-part documentary true-crime series “Cold Case: The Tylenol Murders” on Netflix. Needless to say I will watch it.  Maybe the series will shed some light on the many lingering questions that remain, especially for the families of the seven victims who lost their lives. 

September 1982 became an awful time for many Chicagoans, when a sense of innocence was suddenly shattered. An action as ordinary as taking a painkiller was no longer safe. Death could be delivered from something sitting innocently on a store shelf- a product people had always trusted without a second thought. 

#TylenolMurders #ChicagoHistory #TrueCrime #ColdCase #RememberingTheVictims #Chicago #1982

Photo by Sole Gomez

An unforeseen emergency taught me a hard fact- in a crisis, you are pretty much on your own for a much longer time than you’d ever expect. So it matters greatly to have a few precautions ready in case the unexpected happens.  Being well-prepared could mean the difference between maintaining some level of comfort, or in a truly serious emergency, survival. This is especially true for the more vulnerable members in the population- the isolated, children, those with health or mobility issues, or sometimes older adults like me. 

I recently experienced a power outage in my neighborhood. At first, that doesn’t sound like an extreme emergency. But this complete power outage dragged on for 35 long miserable hours. It also unfortunately happened during a record-breaking heat wave, with humidity levels that are usually experienced in New Orleans, LA or Tampa, FL- not in mild Southern California. The first day was the worst- with temperatures that rose to 105 degrees with high humidity.  My house remained at 92 degrees all day, into a still breezeless evening, where the temperature then “dropped” to 91 degrees. 

So Much for Plan A

It was so oppressively hot, keeping hydrated and cool became imperative. I heard my neighbors’ kids escape to the complex pool, but at several blocks away, the pool was not an appealing walk for me. At one point, at the peak of the day’s heat, I resorted to reading a book by flashlight in a cool bath instead.

No air conditioning. No fans, lights, computer, or TV. No refrigerator, since I wanted to keep it closed up. (An unopened full freezer will last 48 hours without power, an unopened fridge alas keeps perishables like eggs or milk only about 4 hours). My gas stovetop worked only if hand-lit, the gas oven not at all. I had a radio, sort of- a battery-operated one and a tedious hand-cranked one- but I kept rejecting both, anticipating that the power would be restored soon.

Even escaping in my car was complicated. The electric garage door opener was non-operative of course. And the manual override worked only to a point- since lifting up the heavy garage door was a struggle for me by myself. I discovered as well that the garage door inconveniently had no handles inside or outside to help lift it easily. Plus the garage door wouldn’t stay up by itself- it had to be propped open to back the car out. Or else some kind neighbor had to be recruited to hold the door up so I could back the car out. 

My cell phone got very low, and I managed to recharge it using my car charger (to finally drive someplace cool for a break). But driving may not always be an option if you are truly isolated in earthquake or storm prone areas where roads might be damaged or flooded. That made me realize how important some form of backup power can be. A portable power bank, battery backup station or a generator can help keep your cell phone and other essential devices going when the power is down. 

My rarely-used land line—yes, some people still keep land lines as an emergency back up— was also a handy resource to keep from using up all the precious charge in my cell phone. Of course there is one funny flaw in keeping a landline for emergencies. Almost everyone has a cell phone, so if all the cell phones aren’t working, exactly who can I call with my landline? But in this instance, my dinosaur-of-a-landline worked for me.  

Nothing Says Prepared Like a Dead Flashlight

I also discovered that some of my flashlights set aside for emergencies had run-down or corroded batteries- though thankfully I had plenty of backup batteries on hand. My wall-charged flashlight turned out to be my best option of all. Some cheap Dollar Tree lanterns and round press on lights were also reliable light sources. I even repurposed solar lights from my garden to illuminate pathways inside my house in the dark, setting them about like nightlights. This helped me avoid tripping over the cat, who was nervously glued to my every step, poor thing. 

Kind neighbors were the bright spot during my emergency. They offered help and practical suggestions about how to deal with warming refrigerator and freezer items. In addition to the emotional support, they provided eye-rolling commiseration over the power company, whose restoration times became a frustrating, ever-moving target, pushing further back every few hours. 

My biggest takeaway from my power breakdown is this stark reality:  YOU MUST BE PREPARED TO BE ON YOUR OWN FOR AT LEAST THREE DAYS.  Emergency responders and other resources in any emergency are likely to be overwhelmed, and you cannot depend on immediate help. There can be a disruption of utilities, communications, and roads. Your particular crisis situation could leave you isolated, with no family or neighbors nearby to help. FEMA/ready.gov states that a person must be able to shelter in place with no outside assistance for the minimum time of three days. After experiencing 35 hours with no power, three days of it sounds like hell. My ordeal was an endless fever dream that I do not want to repeat any time soon.  And my situation was no where near as desperate as what people can experience during an earthquake, flood, or major storm, when serious destruction and injuries are added to any loss of power and basic services. 

The Bare-Bones Plan: Since “It’ll Be Fine” Isn’t a Plan

So my thinking about emergency preparedness has radically changed after my own eye-opening experience. As a result, here’s a brief list of the bare-bones emergency necessities you should have on hand to be prepared for the unexpected:

• WATER– You need 1 gallon per person per day, for drinking and some sanitation.
• FOOD– You want items that don’t need refrigeration or cooking (think crackers, snacks, peanut butter, protein bars, shelf stable milk + cereal, dried nuts and fruit, applesauce, and canned goods like tuna, salmon, or peaches.  Don’t forget a manual can opener!
• FLASHLIGHTS+ EXTRA BATTERIES– Make these easy to find in the dark.
• PHONE & CHARGING CAPABILITY
• MEDICATIONS, GLASSES, CONTACT SUPPLIES
• FIRST AID SUPPLIES
• BATTERY POWERED OR HAND-CRANK RADIO– You want ways to keep informed whenever normal communications are unavailable.
• BASIC SANITATION– Be ready with toilet paper, wet wipes, hand sanitizer, even garbage bags (useful for an improvised toilet).
• CASH– Keep some cash money ready, especially smaller bills, because ATMs and credit-card readers may not be working.
• PET SUPPLIES/ANY MEDS
• KEEP A FULL GAS TANK– You may want your car for transportation, cooling off, charging devices, or getting supplies. 

Thirty-five hours without power taught me that emergency preparedness isn’t necessarily preparing for some dramatic disaster- it can simply mean being prepared for when the lights go out- and don’t turn back on.