Richard Ramirez Research Paper

Humans are creatures of emotion and these emotions are what fuel the decisions we make. We began as predators, killing for survival, and throughout time we have evolved, and we no longer need to hold on to such animalistic instinct. Some of us however, hold on to that instinct and let it grow into something more, some would call it a passion, others could say it was for pleasure. It is believed that some people kill because they like doing so. These people are labeled as serial killers in today’s society. One ruthless serial killer known as Richard Ramirez, or the “Night Stalker”. Ramirez grew to become Los Angeles’ worst nightmare.

In the year 1960 on February 29, Richard was just a normal little boy who grew up in with a messed up family in El Paso, Texas. Richard was the son of Julio and Mercedes Ramirez. Julio was a Mexican national and former Juarez Policeman. In later years he became a

Mike was a veteran in the Vietnam War. Mike often boasted to Richard about his gruesome actions while he was fighting in Vietnam. Polaroid pictures were exchanged between the two with the showing of Mike’s victims as well as women he had raped. The cousins bonded over war stories, cigarettes and marijuana. As the two grew closer, Mike taught Richard useful military tactics used for killing stealthily. When Richard was just thirteen, he witnessed Mike murder his own wife during a domestic dispute. She was killed with a gun wound to the head on May 4, 1973. His first job working as an attendant at a Holiday Inn, ended shortly after he attempted to rape a married women. The husband saw Ramirez and reported it to the manager. However, Ramirez was never charged because the couple left state borders before testifying against him in court. Also within his teenage years, Richard would perform his sexual fantasies on women without their consent. It was during this time in his life that he developed an interest in