7 Terrifying Facts You Need to Know Before Watching ‘The Hillside Strangler’
Warning: The following post contains discussions of sexual assault, murder, and acts of violence against women.
In the late ’70s, the City of Angels was gripped by fear as the Hillside Strangler stalked Los Angeles, targeting young women and turning the city’s hillsides into his hunting ground. During those harrowing months, residents lived under a constant cloud of paranoia, with every shadowed street and winding canyon road feeling like a potential crime scene.
The Hillside Strangler is a new four-part miniseries from MGM+ that revisits a harrowing period when Los Angeles was locked in panic by the Strangler. Featuring exclusive interviews, including unprecedented access to one of the killers, the series retraces the paths of the monsters who preyed on the vulnerable, the investigators who ultimately brought them to justice, and the victims whose stories were too often overshadowed by the brutality of the crimes themselves.
Before diving headfirst into MGM+’s new docuseries, though, there are several key facts about the case worth knowing, offering essential context to better understand the events and the lasting impact left in its wake.
The Hillside Stranger isn't one, but two killers
At the time, police were searching for a single individual. It wasn’t until the arrest of Kenneth Bianchi that he implicated his cousin, Angelo Buono Jr., in the murders, stating that they worked together. The two were close, with witnesses saying that Bianchi was as close to Buono as “brothers.”
There was a clear pattern to the victims
During the reign of terror carried out by the Hillside Strangler in northern Los Angeles, a chilling pattern emerged: The victims were consistently young and in vulnerable situations. The young women ranged in age from just 12 to 28, and while not all worked in the sex industry, many did. Others were targeted simply because they were alone. After they were murdered, the victims were discovered nude on remote hillsides, their bodies bearing clear signs of strangulation.
The timeframe of the killing spree was only four months
The killing spree occurred from October 1977 to February 1978 in and around Los Angeles. Compared to other serial killers, such as Ted Bundy or Richard Ramirez (“The Night Stalker”), the four-month spree was considered highly compressed and intensely violent. While shorter in duration, the rapid succession of murders created a level of terror and urgency comparable to far longer killing periods. To compare, the Hillside Strangler had 10 confirmed victims in four months, while Ramirez had 13 in about 17 months, while Bundy had over 30+ victims over four years, about seven or eight per year.
Additionally, Kenneth Bianchi committed two more murders as a sole perpetrator in Bellingham, Washington, in January 1979, before his arrest, bringing his total victim count to at least a dozen.
The duo lured their victims by pretending to be cops
To lure victims into their car, Kenneth Bianchi and Angelo Buono Jr. would often pose as off-duty plainclothes police officers to convince their victims to get into their car, often using fake badges or flashing lights, before abducting, assaulting, and murdering them.
It was the longest and most expensive criminal trial in history (at the time)
Buono’s trial became the longest criminal trial in U.S. history at the time, running for over two years. During the course of the trial, Bianchi was on the witness stand for six months, with four months dedicated to the cross-examination.
Buono was convicted of nine counts of murder and sentenced to life in prison without parole. He eventually died of a heart attack in prison in 2002.
Both Buono and Bianchi insisted they were innocent
During the trial, both Angelo Buono Jr. and Kenneth Bianchi maintained their innocence. Buono pointed to the lack of physical evidence directly tying him to the crimes, while Bianchi claimed he suffered from dissociative personality disorder and asserted that he had an alibi for portions of the killings. The prosecution, however, countered with hundreds of witnesses whose testimony challenged those claims.
In the docuseries, both perspectives are presented as the facts of the case are laid out, allowing viewers to see how the evidence, testimony, and competing narratives ultimately shaped the outcome of one of Los Angeles’ most notorious trials.
Kenneth Bianchi is still alive and in prison
One half of the Hillside Stranglers, Kenneth Bianchi, is still alive today. He was most recently denied parole in July 2025. He will be eligible for parole again in 10 years.
The docuseries features exclusive prison interviews with the notorious serial killer, marking the first time Bianchi has spoken in depth about the murders that terrorized Los Angeles.
The Hillside Strangler, January 18, MGM+
If you or someone you know is the victim of sexual assault, contact the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network‘s National Helpline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673). If you or a loved one is in immediate danger, call 911.
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what's "terrifying" about the longest trial in US history? I'd argue the police knew they were looking for two perps, only the public didn't know this. I'd also argue that forty percent of the victims were not in 'high risk' situations.
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