Summary
Netflix’s new true-crime documentary,Cold Case: The Tylenol Murders, tells the story of an unsolved brutal killing spree in 1982, which resulted in seven people dying from cyanide poisoning after taking pain relief medication. The FBI’s prime suspect, James Lewis, features in an interview to tell his side of the story, while family members of the victims and others associated with the case also take part.
The three documentary series landed on Netflix on May 9, and has been well-received by critics and fans alike. The latest installment in theCold Caseseries was directed by Yotam Guendelman and Ari Pines, and produced by true crime guru, Joe Berlinger. It investigates several possibilities for how the crime happened, and leaves the audience to make their own minds up.
Directed by
Yotam Guendelman and Ari Pines
There’s nothing worse than aserial killer casethat goes cold, leaving victims of crime without the justice they deserve. It’s even worse when there’s a prime suspect who looks like they probably did it, but proving it is another matter. That seems to be the case withNetflix’s new true-crime series,Cold Case: The Tylenol Murders.Seven people died after ingesting cyanide-laced Tylenol capsules in Chicago in 1982.Many possibilities were considered, but the FBI’s main suspect was a man called James Lewis. Law enforcement were never able to pin the murders on Lewis, but he was convicted of extortion for a letter he sent to Johnson and Johnson, the company that made Tylenol. In this letter, he took credit for the crimes and demanded $1 million to bring an end to the spree. Lewis was sentenced to 10 years in prison for the crime.
This wasn’t the first time Lewis had been accused of a crime. In 1978, he was charged with the murder of an accountant named Raymond West. Unfortunately, bad police practice meant he was able to escape a conviction.A year after the tylenol murders began, Lewis was convicted of mail fraud, and he also faced an accusation of rape.Of course, none of this means he committed the tylenol murders, but he was certainly capable of it.
James Lewis Features In An Interview In Cold Case: The Tylenol Murders
In a major coup for the team behindtrue-crimeseries,Cold Case: The Tylenol Murders, James Lewis agreed to be interviewed.He makes his first appearance at the end of the first episode and features prominently thereafter. During the interview, Lewis is presented with a bottle of tylenol pills, which he picks up, opens and creepily handles, before stating that it had been a long time since he’d seen this particular product. He comes across as someone who clearly loves the attention, but he never outwardly admits to the brutal crime. The audience is left to decide whether he did it or not, and Netflix gives him the opportunity to put across his side of the story.
Everybody who tries to open these bottles swears my name.
The Netflix documentary reveals that James Lewis was abandoned as a baby by both of his parents, as he was shipped to multiple homes, and this clearly affected the rest of his troubled life. Lewis claims he wouldn’t hurt anybody, but all the evidence points towards him being the culprit, and it feels like he fuels this suggestion with his creepy disposition. The first victim of these crimes was a 12-year-old girl called Mary Kellerman. On the same day, three members of the same family also died after taking the over-the-counter medication. This led to a widespread investigation, and the targeting of Lewis as a possible suspect. Several members of the victims' families reveal their frustration with the case during interviews in the Netflix documentary, and they reveal how they dedicated the next 40 years trying to bring Lewis to justice. As the documentary comes to an end, with no firm answer as to who actually committed the murders,it is revealed James Lewis died shortly after being interviewed inCold Case: The Tylenol Murders.No justice and definitely no peace for the families of the seven people who were killed in such a callous way.
