When California serial killer Richard Ramirez died of cancer in 2013, many of his surviving victims spoke out about his demise.

When California serial killer Richard Ramirez died of cancer in 2013, many of his surviving victims spoke out about his demise.

Though they were all happy to hear that the infamous "Night Stalker" was gone forever, most wished he'd been executed per his original sentencing in 1989. Bill Carns, who was left partially paralyzed after Ramirez shot him three times and raped his girlfriend, said, "It's about time. He should have been put to death an awful long time ago." Sakina Abowath, who was assaulted by Ramirez and watched him kill her husband, said, "I've been waiting for this news for the longest time. I wish that they would have hanged him or they would have given him the electric chair so he could feel pain like he inflicted on us... I never forget." Meanwhile, Ramirez's family members also had mixed reactions, with the serial killer's niece saying that she felt "numb" but hoped "a lot of people are at rest now."⁠

Richard Ramirez (born February 29, 1960, El Paso, Texas, U.S.—died June 7, 2013, Greenbrae, California) was an American serial killer, rapist, and burglar who murdered at least 13 people in California in 1984–85. He was convicted and sentenced to death but died while in prison.

Ramirez grew up in El Paso, Texas, the youngest of five children born to Mexican immigrants. According to reports, when he was 12 years old, a cousin who was a Vietnam War veteran showed him pictures of Vietnamese women he had allegedly raped, tortured, and killed. The following year Ramirez was a witness to his cousin’s fatal shooting of his wife. Around this time, Ramirez began breaking into homes. After dropping out of high school, he moved to Los Angeles. He continued to commit crimes and was briefly imprisoned for stealing a car.

In June 1984 Ramirez committed his first known murder, raping and stabbing a 79-year-old widow. (In 2009 he was implicated in the April 1984 murder of a nine-year-old girl after his DNA was determined to be at the crime scene; however, Ramirez was not charged with the crime.) He then apparently waited some eight months before resuming his killings. Most of the deaths occurred in the Los Angeles area and took place during home invasions. Ramirez’s victims—some of whom survived—were often sexually assaulted and beaten, and Satanic symbols were found at many of the crime scenes. The “Night Stalker,” as the killer became known, created a panic that saw a surge in gun sales. Eventually a fingerprint was discovered that led to Ramirez’s identification. On August 30, 1985—six days after his last known murder—Ramirez’s name and photograph were released to the public, and the following day a man in East Los Angeles saw him and notified police. A chase ensued, and as Ramirez tried to steal a car, he was surrounded by a crowd and beaten until police arrived.

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