William Bonin, known as the "Freeway Killer", sexually abused and murdered over 20 young males in Southern California between 1979 to 1980. He would pick up victims, torture and rape them, then dump their bodies along freeways. Bonin was abused as a child which may have led to his crimes. He was caught in 1980 after being observed abducting a teenage boy. Bonin was convicted of 14 counts of murder and sentenced to death, becoming the first person executed by lethal injection in California in 1996.
2. William Bonin’s Childhood
• Bonin was born January 8, 1947 in Connecticut.
• He was neglected and abused by his parents, his
grandfather, and older boys in the juvenile
facility.
• At the age of 8, he served time in a juvenile hall
for stealing license plates. Bonin became the
sexual play things of others, sexual sadism,
punishments such as submersion in ice water, and
threats at the point of a knife.
3. Bonin’s Adulthood.
• William finished high school with a diploma.
• Went into the Air Force at the age of 18.
• He was discharged was honorable and logged
over 700 hours combat/patrol including killing the
enemy during his service.
• After his service was over he became a truck
driver.
• He is a homosexual, but was married with no
children.
• He later divorced from that marriage.
4. What were the motives for killing?
• He had his first sexual experience when he was 8.
• He was abused by his parents and grandfather that
could’ve caused him to kill other young boys.
• He was also touched by older kids in
the juvenile facility which made him
choose the age of the young adults
• His motives were not totally determined,
but he spent 5 year in the Atascadero
State Hospital and was diagnosed
with sociopath, and manic
depressive disorder.
5. What did the “Freeway Killer” do to
perform the killings?
• Bonin would strangle, stab, or beat the victims
with sharp weapons.
• He would use a piece of clothing, tire iron,
binding material, or a knife as a weapon.
• Bonin had three partners:
– Vernon Butts
– Gregory Miley
– James Munro
Vernon Butts Gregory Miley James Munro
6. Freeway Killer’s way of Killing cont.
• He would use a van to abduct the victims.
• He would rape and torture the victims.
• He would tie the victim’s hands behind their
backs and keep them bound.
• After killing the victims, the freeway killer
would mutilate the bodies.
• Also he would steal the wallets
of all the victims.
• He would leave the bodies on
the sides of dumpsters or
highways.
7. Freeway Killer’s Victims
• The Victims would be of these characteristics:
– Young Adults
– Males
– The Race would be Varied
– Hitchhikers
8. What factors led to Bonin to be
caught?
• The defendant was apprehended after co-
defendant Pugh, 17, was arrested on auto theft
charges on May 29, 1980. He told detectives
that he had accepted a ride home from a party
with the defendant, who had talked about
killing young boys. The defendant was placed
under surveillance beginning June 2, 1980.
9. How the killer was caught?
• On June 11, 1980, his van was followed to
Hollywood. He was observed talking to five
different young men standing on street corners
before 15-year-old Harold T. entered his van. The
defendant parked, with Harold still inside, in a
vacant lot on Santa Monica Boulevard. Despite
Harold's resistance, the defendant orally copulated
him. Shortly thereafter, the defendant was
apprehended in the act of raping and sodomizing
Harold. The police found a length of white nylon
cord and three knives in the van.
10. What Bonin was Charged and
Sentenced with?
• Bonin was arrested on June 11, 1980.
• He was charged with 14 counts of murder.
• The first trial Bonin was convicted of 10 murders
throughout the Los Angeles County, and was
sentenced to death.
• The second trial Bonin had been convicted of the
four other murders, and was sentenced to a second
death in Orange County.
• Bonin was executed on February 23, 1996.
• He was the first person in California with a lethal
injection.
11. Why are Serial Killers so difficult to
spot?
• Getting away with murder
– The murderers make themselves look like
everyone else, and they blend in with everyone
surrounding them.
– If you want to avoid a serial killer then you should
avoid the charming ones.
12. Why are Serial Killers so difficult to
spot? cont.
• Mask of Sanity
– Serial Killers don’t know how to feel sympathy for
others or keep relationships.
– To act normal they observe others.
– Serial Killers are like actors they can be anybody
they want to.
– The killers would blame other illnesses like
schizophrenia or multiple personality to take
responsibility.
13. Why are the Serial Killers so difficult
to spot? Cont.
• What make Serial Killers Tick?
– Traditional explanations include childhood abuse,
genetics, chemical imbalances, brain injuries,
exposure to traumatic events, and perceived
societal injustices.
– Some serial killers just don’t have any thrill or
happiness.
14. Organized Crime Scene
• An organized crime scene has:
– Planned offense
Transports body
Body hidden
Controlled conversation
Demands submissive victim
Missing weapon or evidence
Victim is a targeted stranger
Personalizes victim
Crime scene reflects control
Restraints used
Aggressive acts done before death
15. Disorganized Crime Scene
• A Disorganized Crime Scene has:
– Body left at death scene
Spontaneous offense
Evidence or weapon present at scene
Victim or location known
Body left in view
Depersonalizes victim
Sexual acts after death
Minimal conversation
Minimal use of restraints
Crime scene sloppy
Sudden violence towards the victim
16. Mixed Crime Scene
• A mixed crime scene have characteristics of
organized and disorganized crime scenes.
• Could indicate the presence of two offenders,
or that the offender planned the crime and was
interrupted during the act.
• The offender may have staged the scene.
17. Atypical Crime Scene
• Atypical Crime Scene is a crime scene that
cannot be classified with the data available.
• Decomposed remains fall under this type.
• The police or profilers may have to take other
things into consideration when faced with this
crime scene.
• They may look into crime databases to see if
anything at the scene matches other previous
crime scenes or the profiles.
18. What I have learned from doing this
webquest.
• I have learned that the world has some
abnormal people.
• It makes me wonder what happened to the
world to have so many serial killers.
• I couldn’t believe that my serial killer raped,
and beaten up to 30 young male adults.
