Reflections of a Night Stalker! Serial Killer Richard Ramirez dead at 53!

It was a clear, cold crisp day at the San Francisco Bay, in the fall of 2006. Heading in to one of my many visits to one of the most notorious death rows in the country, was now part of a routine. I arrived for my appointment with an inmate at the East Block of the sprawling penitentiary, the largest in California. The inmate I was scheduled to see, was not in the visiting area yet, so I had to wait nearby until he appeared. While waiting I noticed many visitors also waiting, which lead me to believe there may have been a security issue, which was frequent at San Quentin. In a few short minutes we would all learn, what that security issue was. Appearing in the doorway of the visiting area, was a tall thin man, surrounded by several beefy looking correctional officers. All of them wearing riot gear, with visors in front of their faces, that came off of the headgear they were all wearing. This was a sight that I had never witnessed in the visiting area of death row. Their charge, a tall seemingly agitated man, was moving from side to side, and seemed extremely combative, definitely not moving about quietly or orderly.

I moved to my immediate right so I could get a better look at this inmate who was not in a visitors cage. He was standing maybe four feet away from me. I took a good look at him, and I recognized him as serial killer, Richard Ramirez. The deadly scary serial killer that evoked so much fear in Southern California, in the late 80's. Ramirez was now appearing in living color. Only he wasn't on a screen, that I was safely and comfortably watching, he was standing in front of me, in the flesh. I broke a cardinal rule at San Quentin's Death Row, I made eye contact with this notorious inmate. It was hard to believe this personification of evil was standing right in front of me. He caught my glance, and hurled every profane word I had ever heard of, and some that I didn't. He screamed the question 'What the blank are you looking at' in a menacing voice. I was shocked as correctional officers quickly moved to my side, and said" Don't answer him". I assured the guards I wouldn't say a word. It wasn't like I was going to ask him what he was looking at or even answer him, I was shocked to A. See this most notorious dangerous inmate, standing outside of a visitors cage, while visitors were also outside of cages. For obvious security issues, that was never allowed. It was also memorable to see someone so evil in the flesh, I've seen other very dangerous evil criminals in person before this time. However I would have to say, Richard Ramirez was the scariest, he had a look in his eyes, that was very freighting, if I had one word to use to describe that look, it would be 'rage'.

Extremely noticeable was Ramirez's height, he was 6'4, very tall and lanky. I can only imagine, how tremendously freighted his victims must have been two decades earlier. He had the markings of his devil worship, all over his face and hands. He looked so evil and deranged as he stood there struggling with the correctional officers that were trying to restrain him. He yelled at me to stop staring at him. Admittedly I was staring at him, and I doubt many others would have been able to look away from him. It was quite the rare sight, similar to a unicorn sighting, seeing him there. Just the mere mention of his name on the outside was enough to make many people think and reflect back on his rein of terror. He was eventually restrained by staff, and put into a visitors cage. I would have to walk past him on my way to another cage. He yelled and screamed through the wire that surrounded his cage. He said "that's right, blank and blank, don't look at me". I didn't look at him, I thought about how purely evil he really was.

Word came out yesterday that Ramirez died in a hospital in Marin County, very close to San Quentin. His death may offer, some peace to the family members of the thirteen people he savagely murdered in the late 80's in Southern California. It is believed by many that Ramirez probably murdered dozens more in Northern and Southern California, and perhaps even in Washington and Oregon. Interestingly Ramirez supposedly died of natural causes, not by his hand, or at the hand of another inmate. Many sources are reporting that Ramirez died of liver failure. Maybe some will rest a little easier tonight, at the thought of the' Night Stalker' departing the earth. Others are just left to wonder, about the wiring of such a person, that would compel that person to enter into such madness. In the case of the 'Night Stalker', issues of his evil and sociopathic tendencies, can never be gleamed from the man, that was one of the most evil on record in the 21 century. He never admitted to his crimes, and never discussed them at any length with anyone.