The Night Stalker

Between 1984 and 1985, Ricardo Leyva Muñoz Ramirez (also known as Richard Ramirez) managed to rape and torture over twenty five victims and killed at least thirteen. He ravaged communities in California and left the people there fearing for their lives.

The Psychological Profile

Ramirez was the son of Mexican immigrants and grew up in El Paso, Texas. As a child, he did not have very many good role models. He had an older cousin, Mike, who moved in with him when he was twelve. Mike was a Vietnam War veteran, and allegedly raped, tortured, and killed many Vietnamese women and showed pictures to young Ramirez, which had to have had a huge impact on him since he was at such an impressionable age. Later, Ramirez witnessed Mike shoot and kill his wife, which of course had to be very traumatizing.

The Crimes

At first, Ramirez committed petty crimes such as doing drugs, breaking and entering, and other petty thefts. His cousin Mike had a lot to do with his criminal tendencies, and he also introduced Ramirez to Satanism, and consequently Ricardo lost his relationship with his parents. Over time, he was put into the juvenile system and also got involved with the law at the age of 22 due to marijuana possession. He has a long history of run-ins with the law, which would be a problem for him later on in the future.

At the age of 24, Ramirez committed his first murder of a 79 year old widow. He waited approximately eight months before he killed again, and most of his killings were a result of break-ins. Satanic symbols were left at nearly every crime scene, so it was clear that he had motivations from his “religion” to influence his random killings. Some of his victims survived, however, but they reported sexual assault and intense beatings from Ramirez.

 

The Conclusion

Eventually, Ramirez made a fatal mistake and left a fingerprint at one of the crime scenes, and due to his previous conviction, police were able to locate and identify him in the database. His name and photo quickly disseminated in the media, and he was finally spotted by a man in Los Angeles who called the police after recognizing him from the news. As a result, a chase broke out, and Ramirez attempted to steal a car, but the bystanders were not about to let that happen. A crowd began to beat him and keep him down until police arrived and were able to apprehend him.

At his trial, he made numerous mentions of Satan and drew a pentagon on his hand during the trial. Ultimately, he was found guilty on 13 murder charges, 5 attempted murder charges, 11 sexual assaults, and 14 burglaries. At his sentencing hearing, the judge placed Ramirez on death row at the age of 29 since he showed no signs of remorse and showed extreme cruelty and lack of care of human well-being. He died in prison before he was able to be put to death.