492: Dr. Gilmer and Mr. Hyde

A doctor named Benjamin Gilmer gets a job at a rural clinic in North Carolina. He’s replaced another doctor named Gilmer – Dr. Vince Gilmer – who went to prison after killing his own father. But the more Benjamin’s patients tell him about the other Dr. Gilmer, the more confused he becomes. Everyone loved Vince Gilmer. So Benjamin starts digging around, trying to understand how a good man can seemingly turn bad. Sarah Koenig reports.

• As Benjamin settles in at the clinic, and people got to know him, something interesting happens. Vince’s former patients – who are now Benjamin’s patients – start talking to him about Vince. What he finds out surprises him. (6 minutes)
• Act One: Benjamin starts to get very curious about the murder Dr Vince Gilmer committed, so he begins asking questions and poking around. Soon he develops his own theories to explain the murder, that never came up at Vince’s trial. (25 minutes)
• Act Two: Sarah Koenig’s story about the two Dr. Gilmers continues. This question lurked throughout Vince’s initial incarceration and court appearances: Was he crazy? Or was he crazy like a fox? Benjamin decides to visit Vince in prison. (23 minutes)

Transcripts are available at thisamericanlife.org

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