WALLA WALLA, Wash. — This story was initially published on MyNorthwest.com
One of the Hillside Stranglers is up for parole this week in Washington.
Currently held at the Washington State Penitentiary in Walla Walla, Anthony D’Amato—formerly Kenneth Bianchi—was convicted of killing two women in Bellingham in 1979 after strangling five people to death in southern California with his cousin, Angelo Buono.
D’Amato pleaded guilty to the killings in Washington state court to escape the death penalty.
Angelo Buono died from a heart attack in prison on Sept. 21, 2002 at the age of 67.
D’Amato, 74, changed his name from Kenneth Bianchi in 2023, according toThe Washington State Standard. Buono, his co-conspirator in the California murders, died in prison in 2002.
1979 Bellingham murders
D’Amato lured two Western Washington University students, Karen Mandic and Diane Wilder, into a home and strangled them to death while he was working as a security guard in Bellingham in January 1979. The young women’s bodies were found the next day in the backseat of a car in the Edgemoor neighborhood.
While police investigated their murders, detectives were eventually led to D’Amato, connecting him to approximately 10 similar cases in California.
With his release from prison set for 2065, when he would be 114 years old, D’Amato has repeatedly challenged his convictions on numerous grounds. According to The Washington State Standard, he claimed his confession came from hypnosis, maintaining his stance that he’s innocent.
The state parole board will review his case Wednesday. The hearing will be closed to the general public, and the results will not be posted until July 23.
He’s been denied parole several times previously. If released here, he’d still face life sentences in California. He is scheduled for a parole hearing in California next month for five murder charges he previously pleaded guilty to.
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