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Who Is Kenneth Bianchi?
Kenneth Bianchi, along with his cousin Angelo Buono, was a notorious serial killer responsible for a series of heinous crimes in Los Angeles between October 1977 and February 1978. Together, they raped and murdered ten victims, initially targeting prostitutes before escalating to middle-class women and girls. The pair often posed as police officers to lure their victims and typically discarded the bodies in the hillsides of the Glendale Highland Park area, earning the grim moniker “The Hillside Strangler.” Bianchi later committed two additional murders in Washington State. After what was reported as one of the longest trials in U.S. history at the time, both men were ultimately sentenced to life in prison.
Early Life
Kenneth Alessio Bianchi was born on May 22, 1951, in Rochester, New York. His biological mother, an alcoholic and a prostitute, gave him up for adoption at birth. Bianchi experienced a tumultuous relationship with women from a young age, shaped by his upbringing. He harbored an interest in law enforcement but struggled to secure a job in that field, eventually taking a position as a security guard.
The Hillside Strangler
In 1975, Bianchi relocated to Los Angeles, where he began living with his older adoptive cousin, Angelo Buono. He later moved in with his girlfriend, Kelli Boyd, and fathered a child. Bianchi was known for his deceitful nature, falsely claiming to hold a degree in psychology and even fabricating a terminal illness to gain sympathy.
Soon after, he and Buono embarked on a chilling spree of kidnappings, rapes, and murders that resulted in ten victims, primarily in and around Los Angeles, between October 1977 and February 1978. Utilizing their ruse as law enforcement officers, the cousins targeted vulnerable women, culminating in the grisly disposal of their victims’ bodies in the Glendale-Highland Park hills. Throughout their four-month rampage, Bianchi and Buono inflicted unimaginable suffering, employing methods such as injecting their victims with lethal household chemicals.
Capture, Conviction, and Sentencing
In October 1979, law enforcement apprehended Kenneth Bianchi in Bellingham, Washington, where he had relocated to be with Kelli Boyd. During this period, he committed two additional murders. Following his capture, Bianchi quickly implicated his cousin, Angelo Buono, who was arrested shortly thereafter.
The trial that ensued was lengthy and convoluted. Bianchi attempted to present an insanity defense, claiming to suffer from multiple personality disorder. However, his claims were determined to be fraudulent. Ultimately, Bianchi pleaded guilty to the murders in Washington State and five additional murders in California, agreeing to testify against Buono in exchange for avoiding the death penalty.
As a result of his convictions, Bianchi received six life sentences, while Buono was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Buono passed away in prison in 2002.
In September 1989, Bianchi married a pen pal from Louisiana in a ceremony held in a prison chapel. His most recent request for parole was denied in 2010.