Surviving A Serial Killer (Season 2): Cindy Paulson
When TV producers call, we answer the bell. Such was the case when Finch Productions called on behalf of People Magazine Investigates. When I say “we,” I mean Cindy Paulson — she who escaped serial killer Robert Hansen at age seventeen — and me. The key words for us were: “Surviving A Serial Killer.” We were on it!
Currently the episode featuring Cindy Paulson is scheduled for Tuesday, June 2, 2026 / 9:00 pm ET on Investigation Discovery (ID), Discovery + and available to stream on HBO Max soon afterwards.
I have, of course, written about Cindy Paulson before, in my 1991 book, Butcher, Baker. We didn’t “meet” until 2023, however, so there was that little detail to be overcome. (Luckily, we became fast friends.) And, truth told, this whole TV production business is a long and often arduous process. Even before production could begin, there were questions to be answered. Original materials to be provided. In this case, “the usual.” Photos of Robert Hansen’s victims. A line-up photo with Robert Hansen featured as one of six possible suspects. Gravesite photos. Aerial photos of locations along the Knik River. And permissions to be granted. Contracts to be signed.
But… Who cares? If Cindy is not part of the broadcast? Forget about it. This is a series about survivors, right? And, let’s face it — Robert Hansen did not leave very many.
Of course, Cindy said, “Yes.” Yes! She is definitely a survivor. And more than that, a true original. After so many years of “silence,” her voice deserves to be heard.
For some context: the two of us were already working on a book AND a podcast. [More on that later.] So an easy decision. And yet, all of this was a long time coming. A very long time, during which Cindy went through a lot of healing. Healing that ultimately led to… An itching desire to finally tell her story in her own words. Words that no one could ever hope to duplicate. Words that she speaks in her own inimitable voice. From her own lived experience. And let me testify, from my conversations with this remarkable woman…
(courtesy Finch Productions and People Magazine Investigates)
What a story she has to tell! Her escape? Yes, of course. Her fears? Yes, naturally. Her grit and indomitable will to survive? Her drive to memorize every detail of her abduction? Her barefoot run across raw gravel to seal her escape? Yes, yes, yes. And then the police. Yeah, she has things to say about the police. The good, the bad, the ugly.
But it’s never that easy. Truth told, the actual production started taping in Summer 2025. One year ago. We had to wait. Wondering. And the story itself? Yeah, Cindy’s story started long before that…
A Personal Note
Some years ago a High School classmate commented that one criticism (valid) of the true-crime genre is that it focuses too much (almost exclusively) on the perpetrators and… Spends almost no time on the victims. There are reasons for that: in Robert Hansen’s case, for example, he managed to kill almost all of his victims. Many of the rest — the survivors — are too traumatized to speak publicly. And the other group — the families of victims — they too are often so traumatized as to be rendered almost mute. Indeed, in my own true-crime writing career I’ve come across this reality more times than I can count. It takes a lot to go before the cameras, much less reporters.
So, huge credit to People Magazine Investigates for taking this next — absolutely crucial — step. I, for one, am very proud to be a part of this production. And to join, in my own small way, these crucial — and long overdue — steps to correct past oversights.
Now A Word From Our Sponsor
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As proof, their latest offering gives you a spectacular discount in a format (Kindle) everybody loves:
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So with that little sales pitch out of the way… Make sure to tune in to People Magazine Investigates on June 2nd for Season Two of Surviving A Serial Killer. And get the book, so you can dive deeper! Head on over to one of the fine sites below and grab your book. You will never regret it.
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You can also order “What Happened In Craig,” HERE and HERE. True crime on Epicenter Press about Alaska’s Worst Unsolved Mass Murder.
NOW available: Kill Brother, Kill Sister, part three of my Alaska Trilogy. Don’t miss this one! Three millionaires face off and only one of them survives!
