The Stranger Beside Me
| Company type | Book |
|---|---|
| Industry | Publishing |
| Founded | 1980 |
| Founder | Ann Rule |
| Products | True crime book |
The Stranger Beside Me is a 1980 true crime work blending autobiography and biography, authored by Ann Rule. It chronicles the life of American serial killer Ted Bundy, whom Rule personally encountered both prior to and following his arrest. The book has undergone multiple revisions, with updated editions released in 1986, 1989, 2000, 2008, and 2021.
Plot summary
Ann Rule first met Bundy in 1971 while he was studying psychology at the University of Washington and exploring interests in law and politics. They collaborated at a crisis hotline center, assisting callers facing suicidal crises.[1] Despite the difference in their ages, a strong friendship developed between them, marked by shared meals and frequent conversations until Bundy departed from the center near the end of 1973.
In early 1974, a wave of violent murders targeting young women in Seattle drew significant public and law enforcement attention. By the summer of that year, Bundy became a person of interest after witnesses reported seeing a man named "Ted" with two women who subsequently vanished at Lake Sammamish State Park. A police sketch bearing resemblance to Bundy led Rule to notify authorities, notwithstanding her reservations. However, law enforcement initially discounted him due to his seemingly respectable demeanor.
Later in 1974, Bundy relocated to Salt Lake City to attend law school at the University of Utah. While the Seattle homicides ceased, analogous killings surfaced across Utah, Colorado, and Idaho. As investigations expanded across these states, suspicion increasingly centered on Bundy.
In September 1975, Bundy reached out to Rule for assistance concerning subpoenas related to his academic records. He had been detained in August on kidnapping charges in Utah and received a sentence ranging from one to fifteen years following a bench trial. After being extradited to Colorado to face murder accusations, Bundy escaped custody on two occasions. During this period, he sent letters to Rule asserting his innocence and requesting financial support to flee to Canada before ultimately making his way to Florida.
January 1978 saw Bundy assault women at a Chi Omega sorority house on the campus of Florida State University, resulting in multiple deaths. He also admitted guilt in the rape and murder of a twelve-year-old girl abducted subsequent to that attack. To maintain fidelity with the contemporary understanding at the time of writing, Rule refrains from explicitly naming Bundy during these incidents.
Following Bundy’s capture in February 1978 and subsequent trials in Florida—where he chose to represent himself—Rule came to accept his culpability after forensic dental analysis definitively matched bite marks on one victim to him. This revelation marked a profound turning point for her.[2]
Bundy received a death sentence for the murder of Kimberly Leach but continued proclaiming innocence until shortly before his execution when he confessed to committing over thirty murders, apparently attempting to postpone his death.
Later editions provide updates including details about Bundy's execution, testimonies from additional women who encountered him during the 1970s, investigator Robert Keppel’s transition into an academic role at the University of Washington, and speculation regarding Bundy's possible involvement in the unresolved disappearance of Ann Marie Burr in 1961.[3]
The 2008 revision includes further survivor accounts along with a "Ted Bundy FAQ" section that clarifies how DNA testing excluded Bundy as responsible for the 1973 murder of Kathy Merry Devine—a crime formerly attributed to him—and confirmed through DNA evidence that William Cosden was guilty of that offense.
Film adaptation
In 2003, a television movie version of The Stranger Beside Me was released, featuring Billy Campbell portraying Bundy and Barbara Hershey playing Rule.