During the early 1970s, many gay men were brutally killed, and their bodies were found along the highways of Southern California. While at first law enforcement officials believed there to be a single killer responsible, they were soon shocked to learn there were actually three different men responsible, and each was working alone. Patrick Kearney, William Bonin and Randy Kraft were dubbed the Freeway Killers.
Sundance’s new true crime series Butchers of L.A. takes a deep dive into the bloody waters of this very real story, revealing all of the info about the serial killers, their victims, and the unexpected twists that happened along the way. Each of the three episodes focuses on one of the killers.
Butchers of L.A. will premiere on Thursday, June 26 at 10:00 p.m. ET, and will air weekly on Sundance TV, Sundance Now and AMC+. Episodes will also be available to stream on demand.
Here is the episode breakdown for Butchers of L.A.:
Episode 1: Trash Bags – Premieres June 26
Law Enforcement begins to find the remains of young men in heavy duty trash bags along the highways. As the investigation goes on, an aerospace engineer named Patrick Kearney becomes a suspect. Kearney began cruising in the late 1960s, and regularly picked up male hitchhikers or men he found in gay bars. He would kill the men and then sexually assault their corpses.
Episode 2: On the Freeway – July 3
After Kearney is locked up, more bodies are discovered, which leads to the shocking discovery that at least one more murderer is out there, and this one has a “torture chamber on wheels.” William Bonin’s life of crime began when he was 20 years old, when he kidnapped and sexually assaulted a 14-year-old boy. After spending five years in prison, he was released in 1974, and barely a year later, he was at it again, and was again sent to prison. But his crimes did not end there.
Episode 3: Keeping Score – July 10
After William Bonin is arrested, more horrific murders take place, and detectives find themselves trying frantically to stop the killer before the body count grows. This time, Randy Kraft almost gets away with it before he is captured through a random police check. Kraft is believed to have murdered at least 16 young men between the years of 1972 and 1983. His arrest initially had nothing at all to do with police suspecting he was a killer, he was actually pulled over for drunk driving. But what the officer found in his car finally put a stop to Bonin’s vicious murder spree.