some point, Cooper would be placed under the authority of FBI Chief Gordon Cole (David Lynch), which sometimes meant being handed the mysterious 'Blue Rose' cases. Some time after Cooper joined the Bureau, Earle's wife, Caroline, was a witness to a federal crime. Earle and Cooper were assigned to protect her, and it was around this time that Cooper began an affair with Caroline. However, one night, while in Pittsburgh, Cooper let his guard down, and Earle murdered Caroline in a jealous rage. Earle was subsequently sent to a mental institution. Cooper was devastated by the loss of the woman he would later refer to as the love of his life, and swore to never again get involved with someone who was a part of a case to which he was assigned. Three years before his arrival in Twin Peaks, Cooper has a dream involving the plight of the Tibetan people, which also reveals to him the deductive technique of the Tibetan method. Deeply moved by what he saw in this dream, this event forms the basis of his unconventional methods of investigation. Cooper reveals to his boss, Cole, of the portents of a strange dream. On February 24, 1989, Cooper comes to the town of Twin Peaks to investigate the murder of Laura Palmer (Sheryl Lee). Initially, the prime suspect is Laura's boyfriend Bobby Briggs (Dana Ashbrook), but Cooper quickly determines he is innocent. Cooper meets Phillip Gerard (Al Strobel), a shoe salesman who is possessed by an evil spirit called MIKE; MIKE tells him that another demon, BOB (Frank Silva), is the key to solving Laura's murder. Eventually, Cooper deduces that Laura's father, Leland (Ray Wise), murdered her while possessed by BOB. When BOB forces Leland to commit suicide, Cooper helps him transition into the afterlife by reciting a Buddhist prayer for the dead. Cooper helps the Twin Peaks Sheriff's Department in investigating other cases as well, even during a brief suspension from the FBI. While in Twin Peaks, he learns of the mysterious places called the Black Lodge and the White Lodge and the various spirits inhabiting them, including MIKE and The Man From Another Place (Michael J. Anderson). He also resolves to protect the town from Earle, who has become a serial killer. In the final episode of Twin Peaks, Cooper enters the Black Lodge to rescue his new girlfriend, Annie Blackburn (Heather Graham), from Earle.