Straight Killers

Lawrence Sigmund Bittaker became one of the most infamous serial killers in American history after murdering five teenage girls alongside accomplice Roy Lewis Norris during a five-month period in Southern California in 1979. Operating from a customized van that became known as the "Murder Mac," the pair targeted runaway and hitchhiking teenagers before killing them and disposing of their bodies in remote mountain areas. Bittaker was convicted of five murders and sentenced to death, remaining on California's death row until his death in prison in 2019.

Lawrence “Larry” Dilione was involved in the killing of 26-year-old Joseph “Joey” Comunale after an after-party at James Rackover’s Apartment 4C on East 59th Street in Manhattan on November 13, 2016. Comunale was repeatedly stabbed during a violent confrontation involving Dilione and Rackover. Afterward, the men attempted to conceal the killing by moving, burning and burying Comunale’s body in a shallow grave in Oceanport, New Jersey. Dilione was originally charged with murder but pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter in January 2019 and was sentenced to 23 years in prison.

Leonard Thomas Lake became one of the most infamous serial killers in American history after operating a secluded compound in Wilseyville, California, with accomplice Charles Ng during the early 1980s. Investigators believe the pair murdered at least 11 people, although the true number of victims may be significantly higher. Their crimes came to light in 1985 following Lake's arrest for shoplifting, leading police to uncover buried human remains, extensive video recordings, journals, and evidence documenting one of the most disturbing serial murder investigations in United States history.

Leslie Louise Van Houten was a member of Charles Manson's Family who participated in the murders of Leno and Rosemary LaBianca during the second night of the infamous Manson Family killings in August 1969. Under Manson's direction, she joined Charles "Tex" Watson and Patricia Krenwinkel in attacking the LaBiancas inside their Los Feliz home. Van Houten was convicted of two counts of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder after multiple trials and originally sentenced to death before California's death penalty was invalidated. She spent more than five decades in prison before being released on parole in 2023 after numerous successful parole recommendations and legal challenges.

Liam McAtasney was convicted of murdering 19-year-old Sarah Stern in Neptune City, New Jersey, in December 2016. McAtasney lured Stern to the Route 35 bridge, strangled her with a belt and stole approximately $20,000 she had inherited from her mother. He then dumped her body from the bridge into the Shark River and attempted to conceal the crime with the help of his friend Preston Taylor. McAtasney was convicted of murder and related charges in 2019 and sentenced to life in prison without parole.

Lori Norene Vallow Daybell became one of the most notorious criminal defendants in the United States after her two youngest children, Joshua "JJ" Vallow and Tylee Ryan, disappeared in Idaho in 2019. Their remains were discovered buried on the property of Vallow Daybell's fifth husband, Chad Daybell, in June 2020. Vallow Daybell was convicted in Idaho in 2023 of murdering both children and conspiring to murder Tammy Daybell, Chad's first wife, and was sentenced to three consecutive life terms without parole. She was subsequently extradited to Arizona, where she was convicted in 2025 of conspiring to murder her fourth husband, Charles Vallow, and her niece's former husband, Brandon Boudreaux. She received two additional consecutive life sentences with the possibility of parole after 25 years.

Lyle Menendez became one of the most infamous figures in American true crime history after he and his younger brother, Erik Menendez, were convicted of murdering their wealthy parents inside their Beverly Hills mansion in 1989. The shocking nature of the killings, combined with the family’s image of wealth and privilege, turned the case into a global media obsession throughout the 1990s. Lyle was portrayed by prosecutors as manipulative, arrogant and motivated by greed, while the defense argued he was a deeply traumatised son shaped by years of alleged emotional, physical and sexual abuse inside the Menendez household. Decades later, the Menendez brothers case remains one of the most debated family murder cases in American criminal history.

Lynlee Renick was convicted of second-degree murder and armed criminal action for the June 2017 shooting death of her husband, Benjamin “Ben” Renick, a prominent exotic snake breeder in New Florence, Missouri. Ben was found dead inside his reptile facility after being shot eight times. Prosecutors argued that Lynlee had attempted to poison him before arranging for her former boyfriend, Michael Humphrey, to help kill him. The prosecution ultimately argued that Lynlee was the person who pulled the trigger. She was sentenced to 16 years in prison in January 2022.