Richard Ramirez
A serial murderer whose 1980s California rampage of random, brutal night-time attacks created a climate of pervasive fear and media spectacle.
1960–2013 (age 53)·American serial killer and sex offender·Birthday: February 29·Baby Boomers
Biography
Richard Ramirez's brief, violent spree in mid-1980s California was marked by a chilling randomness and a signature brutality that paralyzed communities from Los Angeles to San Francisco. Dubbed the 'Night Stalker' by the press, he broke into homes after dark, committing murders, sexual assaults, and robberies with a seeming indifference to victim profile, which made everyone feel vulnerable. His capture came not from police work alone, but when he was recognized and violently subdued by angry citizens in East Los Angeles. His trial became a grotesque media circus, with Ramirez flashing pentagram doodles and boasting of Satanic devotion, crafting an image of pure, theatrical evil. He spent over two decades on death row, a symbol of the era's fears, before dying of natural causes, his crimes leaving a permanent scar on the state's psyche.
Baby Boomers
1946–1964
The largest generation in history at the time. Shaped by postwar prosperity, the Vietnam War, the sexual revolution, and Watergate. They questioned every institution their parents built — then ran them.
Richard was born in 1960, placing them squarely in the Baby Boomers. The events that shaped this generation — postwar prosperity, civil rights, Vietnam, and the counterculture — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Richard Was Born
The biggest hits of 1960
#1 Movie
Swiss Family Robinson
Best Picture
The Apartment
#1 TV Show
Gunsmoke
Richard's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1960Born
Kennedy-Nixon debates become first televised presidential debates
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $11,900Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Theme from A Summer Place" — Percy FaithBest Picture: The Apartment
1965Started school
US sends combat troops to Vietnam
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $13,600Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" — The Rolling StonesBest Picture: The Sound of Music
1973Became a teenager
US withdraws from Vietnam; Roe v. Wade decided
Gas: $0.39/galHome: $22,100Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree" — Tony Orlando & DawnBest Picture: The Sting
1976Could drive
Apple Computer founded; US bicentennial
Gas: $0.59/galHome: $29,300Min wage: $2.30/hrPresident: Gerald Ford"Silly Love Songs" — WingsBest Picture: Rocky
1978Could vote
First test-tube baby born
Gas: $0.63/galHome: $35,300Min wage: $2.65/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Shadow Dancing" — Andy GibbBest Picture: The Deer Hunter
1981Turned 21
MTV launches; first Space Shuttle flight; AIDS identified
Gas: $1.31/galHome: $52,300Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Bette Davis Eyes" — Kim CarnesBest Picture: Chariots of Fire
1990Turned 30
Hubble Space Telescope launched; Germany reunifies
Gas: $1.15/galHome: $79,100Min wage: $3.80/hrPresident: George H.W. Bush"Hold On" — Wilson PhillipsBest Picture: Dances with Wolves
2000Turned 40
Y2K passes without incident; contested Bush-Gore election
Gas: $1.51/galHome: $119,600Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Breathe" — Faith HillBest Picture: Gladiator
2010Turned 50
Deepwater Horizon oil spill; iPad launched
Gas: $2.79/galHome: $147,800Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Tik Tok" — KeshaBest Picture: The King's Speech
2013Died at 53
Edward Snowden reveals NSA surveillance programs
Gas: $3.53/galHome: $152,800Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Thrift Shop" — Macklemore & Ryan LewisBest Picture: 12 Years a Slave
Key Achievements
- Convicted in 1989 for 13 murders and numerous other felonies during a 14-month crime spree across California.
- His case led to increased public and media focus on serial crime and forensic investigation techniques in the 1980s.
- Was sentenced to death and remained on California's death row for over 23 years until his death.
Did You Know?
He was a devoted fan of the heavy metal band AC/DC, and their album 'Highway to Hell' was frequently mentioned in connection with his crimes.
Ramirez married a female magazine editor in 1996 while he was on death row at San Quentin.
His dental impressions, which matched bite marks on victims, were a key piece of forensic evidence at his trial.
“I am beyond good and evil. I shall do as I please.”
