William George Bonin

Case overview

William George Bonin was executed by lethal injection in California on February 23, 1996. He was known as the “Freeway Killer.” He kidnapped, robbed, raped and murdered a total of 14 teenaged boys between 1979 and 1980. He was sentenced to death in 1982 for 10 murders throughout Los Angeles County. About one year later, he was convicted in Orange County of the other four murders, for which he received a second death sentence.

Bonin was also suspected of murdering other males, whose bodies were found around the same period of time in Kern, Riverside, San Diego and San Bernardino Counties. The defendant was not prosecuted for those crimes.

Timeline

• August 5, 1979 — Bonin and co-defendant Butts accosted Marcus Grabs (17) in Newport Beach sometime between 6 and 10 p.m.; Marcus was sodomized, beaten and stabbed 77 times; his nude body was found the next day beside a road in Malibu.
• August 27, 1979 — Bonin and co-defendant Butts picked up Donald Hyden (15) near the Gay Community Services Center in Los Angeles at 1 a.m.; his nude body was found at 11 a.m. near Liberty Canyon and the off ramp of the Ventura Freeway.
• September 9, 1979 — David Murillo (17) was abducted by Bonin and co-defendant Butts in the early morning; Murillo’s nude body was found three days later on a Ventura Highway offramp.
• December 2, 1979 — The body of Dennis Frank Fox (17) was found along Ortego Highway about five miles east of the San Diego Freeway.
• February 3, 1980 — Bonin, driving a van with co-defendant Miley, picked up Charles Miranda (15) in West Hollywood in the early morning; Miranda was sodomized and later killed; his body was found next to a dumpster in the City of Walnut on Feb. 6.
• February 6, 1980 — James McCabe (12) was found dead near a dumpster in the City of Walnut.
• March 14, 1980 — Ronald Gatlin (19) was picked up by Bonin in Van Nuys at about 8:30 p.m.; his nude body was found the next day in Duarte near the juncture of the 210 and 605 freeways.
• March 22, 1980 — The bodies of Russell Rugh (15) and Glenn Barker (14) were found a few miles farther east along Ortego Highway.
• April 10, 1980 — Steven Wood (16) was picked up by Bonin at about 12:15 p.m. in Los Angeles; his nude body was found the next morning in an alley behind an industrial complex near the Pacific Coast Highway and Long Beach Freeway.
• May 18, 1980 — The body of Lawrence Sharp (17) was found in a trash bin behind a service station in Westminster.
• June 2, 1980 — Bonin and co-defendant Munro picked up Steven Jay Wells (18) at about 5:40 p.m. in Downey; Wells was later found dead June 3 at the rear of a closed gas station in Huntington Beach.
• June 3, 1980 — Steven Jay Wells’ nude body was found at the rear of a closed gas station in Huntington Beach.
• June 11, 1980 — Bonin was apprehended in the act of raping and sodomizing Harold T.; the police found a length of white nylon cord and three knives in the van.
• February 23, 1996 — Bonin was executed by lethal injection at San Quentin State Prison.

Defendant

William George Bonin (Sex: M; Race: White; Alias: None). He had a CDC# C44600. The date of receipt was 03/22/1982. His DOB was 01/08/1947. The County of Residence was listed as Unknown. The County of Offense was Los Angeles, Orange.

Co-defendants and other individuals

• Gregory Matthew Miley (CDC# C42801) — First degree murder; sentenced to 25 yrs to life.
• James Michael Munro (CDC# C44535) — Second degree murder; sentenced to 15 yrs to life.
• Vernon Robert Butts — committed suicide while at LA Co. Jail.
• William Ray Pugh (CDC# C53164) — Voluntary manslaughter; sentenced to 6 yrs.
• Harold T. — listed as Bonin's last victim; was not killed.

The offences

Los Angeles County murders

Bonin, with the help of four co-defendants, kidnapped, robbed, raped and murdered 10 teenaged boys in Los Angeles County between 1979 and 1980.

Victims in Los Angeles County

• Marcus Grabs (17)
• Donald Hyden (15)
• David Murillo (17)
• Charles Miranda (15)
• James McCabe (12)
• Ronald Gatlin (19)
• Harry Todd Turner (14)
• Steven Wood (16)
• Darin Lee Kendrick (19)
• Steven Jay Wells (18)
• Harold T. (15 - Bonin's last victim; was not killed)

Individual incidents and methods described

On August 5, 1979, Bonin and co-defendant Butts accosted Marcus Grabs, 17, in Newport Beach sometime between 6 and 10 p.m. Marcus was sodomized, beaten and stabbed 77 times. His nude body was found the next day beside a road in Malibu, with an orange nylon cord loosely wrapped behind his head and a piece of ignition wire around one of his ankles.

On August 27, 1979, at 1 a.m., Bonin and co-defendant Butts picked up Donald Hyden, 15, near the Gay Community Services Center in Los Angeles. His nude body was found at 11 a.m. Donald had been strangled by ligature and stabbed. He had been sodomized and it appeared that attempts had been made to cut off his testicles and slash his throat.

On September 9, 1979, in the early morning, David Murillo, 17, was bicycling to the movies in La Mirada when Bonin and co-defendant Butts abducted him. David’s nude body was found three days later on a Ventura Highway offramp. His head had been bashed in with a tire iron, and he had been sodomized and strangled with a ligature.

On February 3, 1980, in the early morning, Bonin, driving a van with co-defendant Miley, picked up Charles Miranda, 15, in West Hollywood. The defendant sodomized Charles. The co-defendant tried to sodomize him, but was unable to sustain an erection. After the co-defendant took six dollars from Charles, the two men tied his feet and hands together. Bonin wrapped Charles’ shirt around his neck and twisted the shirt like a corkscrew using a jack handle until Charles was dead. The autopsy revealed a blunt object had been inserted into Charles’ anus. The defendants dumped Charles’ nude body in downtown Los Angeles in an alley and then drove on to Huntington Beach seeking other victims.

A little while later they began talking to James McCabe, 12, who said he was on his way to Disneyland. They invited James into the van. Bonin had sex with him while Miley drove. The two men held the victim down, beat him, strangled him with his shirt, and crushed his neck with a jack handle. After taking money out of James’ wallet, the defendants left James’ body next to a dumpster in the City of Walnut, where it was found Feb. 6.

On March 14, 1980, Ronald Gatlin, 19, was picked up by Bonin in Van Nuys at about 8:30 p.m. Ronald’s nude body was found the next day in Duarte near the juncture of the 210 and 605 freeways. He had been sodomized and strangled with a ligature. There were wounds to the neck and right ear that apparently had been made by an ice pick and the body showed signs of beating.

Sometime on or after March 20, 1980, Bonin and co-defendant William Pugh picked up Harry Todd Turner, 14, in Hollywood. Harry’s nude body was found the morning of March 25 in an alley behind a Los Angeles business. He had been beaten, sodomized, and strangled by ligature.

On April 10, 1980, Steven Wood, 16, was picked up by Bonin at about 12:15 p.m. in Los Angeles. Steven’s nude body was found the next morning in an alley behind an industrial complex near the Pacific Coast Highway and Long Beach Freeway.

On April 29, 1980, at 9:15 p.m., Bonin and co-defendant Butts accosted Darin Lee Kendrick, 19, in the parking lot of a supermarket in Stanton. Darin had been collecting shopping carts and was lured into the van on a pretext of being sold some drugs. His nude body was found the next morning in an industrial park in Carson near the Artesia Freeway. Darin was sodomized and strangled by ligature. He was apparently forced to ingest chloral hydrate, leaving caustic chemical burns on his mouth, chin, chest and stomach. Darin also had an ice pick through his right ear that caused a fatal wound to the upper cervical spinal cord.

On June 2, 1980, at about 5:40 p.m., Bonin and co-defendant James Munro were driving a van in Downey when they picked up a hitchhiker, Steven Jay Wells, 18. Initially, Wells agreed to have sex with the defendant; later he allowed himself to be tied up expecting to be paid for having sex with a friend of the defendant’s. Bonin and co-defendant tied Steven up, took his money, beat him, then strangled him with his T-shirt. They placed Steven’s body in a cardboard box and carried it out to the van. At about 8 p.m., they drove to the residence of co-defendant Butts, who told them to “drop it off somewhere.” Co-defendant Munro and the defendant drove to Huntington Beach where they left Steven’s nude body at the rear of a closed gas station, where it was found June 3.

Bonin was apprehended after co-defendant Pugh, 17, was arrested on auto theft charges on May 29, 1980. Pugh told detectives that he had accepted a ride home from a party with the defendant, who had talked about killing young boys. Bonin was placed under surveillance beginning June 2, 1980. 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. Bonin parked with Harold still inside in a vacant lot on Santa Monica Boulevard. Despite Harold’s resistance, Bonin orally copulated him. Shortly thereafter, Bonin 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.

Orange County murders

During the same time period as the Los Angeles murders, Bonin and two co-defendants murdered four other young men in Orange County.

Victims in Orange County

• Dennis Frank Fox (17)
• Glenn Barker (14)
• Russell Rugh (15)
• Lawrence Sharp (17)

Incidents and methods described

On December 2, 1979, the body of Dennis Frank Fox, 17, was found along Ortego Highway about five miles east of the San Diego Freeway.

On March 22, 1980, the bodies of Russell Rugh, 15, and Glenn Barker, 14, were found a few miles farther east along the same road.

On May 18, 1980, the body of Lawrence Sharp, 17, was found in a trash bin behind a service station in Westminster.

The four victims were all hitchhikers whom Bonin had picked up in his van, and then killed by strangulation. The defendant was assisted in most or all of the crimes by co-defendants Miley and Munro. All of the victims’ bodies showed signs of physical beating and the cause of death of each victim was strangulation by ligature. Marks on the body of at least one of the victims indicated that a bar or other similar object had been placed between the ligature and the neck and then twisted, to effect greater compression. Other marks indicated that the hands and feet of all the victims had been bound, or handcuffed, and the victims had been sodomized.

Bonin was convicted of these four Orange County murders while already on Death Row for the 10 murders committed in Los Angeles County.

Prior convictions and prior offences mentioned

The record noted priors under CDC# B70175, with the following entries:

• Date: 11/17/1968 — P207-KIDNAP, P286(B1)-SODOMY W/CHILD, P286(B2)-SODOMY W/C, P288-L&L, P288A-L&L
• Date: 09/08/1975 — P288A - LEWD AND LASCIVIOUS CONDUCT

The summary further described that Bonin was convicted of sexually assaulting five young men in 1969, described as crimes committed against five young boys in 1969, and that he was committed to Atascadero State Hospital as a “mentally disordered sex offender.” He was released in May 1974 after recommendation of psychiatrists who found him “no longer dangerous.” He was later convicted of kidnapping and raping a 14-year-old boy and paroled in October 1978.

Investigation and arrest

Bonin was apprehended after co-defendant Pugh was arrested on auto theft charges on May 29, 1980, and provided information to detectives that he had accepted a ride home from a party with Bonin who had talked about killing young boys.

On June 11, 1980, Bonin was arrested after the police observed him talking to five young men before 15-year-old Harold T. entered his van. Bonin orally copulated Harold and was apprehended shortly thereafter in the act of raping and sodomizing Harold.

Bonin confessed after his arrest, with information compiled from the probation officer’s report and/or other court documents from his file.

Trial

Los Angeles County trial

Bonin’s trial on twelve counts of murder opened November 4, 1981, in Los Angeles. Gregory Miley and James Munro testified for the prosecution. They described how Bonin, following his arrest, urged them to “start going around grabbing anyone off the street and killing them,” as part of a bid to convince authorities that the “Freeway Killer” was still at large.

On January 5, 1982, after eight days of deliberation, jurors convicted Bonin on ten counts of murder and ten counts of robbery. He was acquitted in the deaths of Thomas Lundgren and Sean King.

Two weeks later, he was formally sentenced to death.

Orange County trial

During the same time period, Bonin and two co-defendants murdered four young men in Orange County. The trial resulted in convictions for the four Orange County murders and related noncapital crimes. Bonin was convicted of all four murder counts and of robbing each of the victims. The jury found a multiple-murder special circumstance and felony-murder-robbery special circumstance for each of the murders. At the penalty phase, after two days of deliberation, Bonin was sentenced to death for each of the four murders.

Appeals and legal proceedings

The record included the following court action information:

• Case #: A360975, C47500
• Court Date: 01/09/1989, 08/29/1988
• Court Action: Affirmed

The federal habeas proceedings included:

• July 16, 1993 — 9th Circuit panel order in consolidated cases.
• June 28, 1995 — 9th Circuit order in another set of appeals, affirming the district court’s denial of habeas corpus relief; motion denied regarding withdrawal of the Public Defender.

The record also noted:

• A U.S. Supreme Court denial of certiorari for both the Los Angeles case and the Orange County case.
• State habeas corpus petitions were denied by the California Supreme Court.

Execution

On February 23, 1996, Bonin was executed in the execution chamber at San Quentin State Prison. He was the first California inmate to be executed by lethal injection. Warden Arthur Calderon gave the order to begin the execution at 12:09 a.m. and Bonin was pronounced dead at 12:13 a.m.

Bonin spent his last day visiting with friends. At about 6 p.m., he was escorted into the death watch cell. For his last meal, Bonin requested two large pepperoni and sausage pizzas, three pints of coffee ice cream and three six-packs of regular Coca Cola. During the evening, Bonin was visited by the warden and the Catholic chaplain. At 11:30 p.m., Bonin gave the following last words to Warden Calderon:

"That I feel the death penalty is not an answer to the problems at hand. That I feel it sends the wrong message to the youth of the country. Young people act as they see other people acting instead of as people tell them to act. And I would suggest that when a person has a thought of doing anything serious against the law, that before they did, that they should go to a quiet place and think about it seriously."

Bonin was removed by prison officials and when none of his relatives claimed it, his body was cremated.

A legal dispute about access by reporters and execution procedures was also mentioned, along with the discovery that Bonin was receiving Social Security benefits while on death row.

Additional details

Family and personal background details included

Bonin’s alleged early life included multiple claims in the record about childhood treatment, sexual abuse, and detention experiences. The record also included statements that Bonin lived with his mother Alice Bonin and his two brothers at a time described as in the 1950’s, and that he later lived with his mother in Downey at the residence of 10282 Angel Street. The record also included multiple assertions that Bonin served in Vietnam with 700 hours and was decorated, and that he worked at dependable Drive-away Trucking company in Montebello, as described in narrative sections.

Imprisonment and last words narrative

The narrative material stated Bonin corresponded with survivors of his victims, published a book of short stories, and had an exhibition of his abstract paintings at a gallery in Seattle. It also described that he spent his last meal in the death watch cell and that he gave last words at 11:30 p.m. to Warden Calderon.

Statement and quotes attributed in narrative sections

A narrative section included statements from other individuals. One quoted statement by Bonin to police tapes included the following:

"Both me and Jim beat him up prior to killing him,"
"He said he wouldn't tell anyone, just to let him go. “When we finally got around to killing him, we put a shirt around his neck. I twisted it, and he was strangled."

A narrative section also included a quote attributed to Bonin:

"Thanks Steve, wherever you are."

Another quoted statement attributed to Bonin:

"I'm horny. Let's go get another one."

A quote attributed to Bonin through a report described:

"I couldn't stop killing,"
"It got easier each time."