As a 12-year-old he was strongly influenced by his older cousin, Miguel ("Mike") Ramirez,[8] a decorated U.S. Army Green Beret combat veteran who often boasted of his gruesome exploits during the Vietnam War. He shared Polaroid photos of his victims, including Vietnamese women he had raped.[9] In some of the photos Mike posed with the severed head of a woman he had abused.[10]
Ramirez, who had smoked marijuana since the age of 10, bonded with Mike over many joints and gory war stories.[11] Mike taught his young cousin some of his military skills, such as killing with stealth and surety.[12] Around this time, Ramirez began to seek escape from his father's violent temper by sleeping in a local cemetery.[12]
"Richie", as he was known to his family, was present on May 4, 1973, when Mike fatally shot his wife Jessie in the face with a .38 caliber revolver, during a domestic argument.[13] After the shooting Richie became sullen and withdrawn from his family and peers. Later that year, he moved in with his older sister Ruth and her husband Roberto, an obsessive "peeping Tom" who took Richie along on his nocturnal exploits.[14] Ramirez also began using LSD and cultivated an interest in Satanism.[15]
Mike Ramirez was found not guilty of Jessie's murder by reason of insanity (with his combat record as a mitigating factor) and was released in 1977, after four years of incarceration at the Texas State Mental Hospital. His influence over Richard continued.[16][17]
On April 10, 1984, 9-year-old Mei Leung was found murdered in a hotel basement where Ramirez was living in the Tenderloin district of San Francisco. The girl had been raped, beaten and stabbed to death, and her body was found hanging from a pipe.[25] This, his first known killing, was not initially identified as being connected to the crime spree. In 2009, Ramirez's DNA was matched to DNA obtained at the crime scene.[26] In 2016, officials disclosed evidence of a second suspect, identified through a DNA sample retrieved from the crime scene, who is believed to have been present at Leung's murder. Described as being a juvenile at the time, authorities have not publicly identified the suspect, and have not brought charges due to the lack of sufficient evidence.[27]
I remember the McDonald case to some extent. At the time of the release of the news which lasted for quite some time because of the heinous crime. It always seemed to me that the media was even then trying to railroad him. Although more likely, it was the army that wanted to pin this on him. Now at this time I really do believe he was innocent. Like many other crimes, we will never know how many we may have believed were guilty, may have been falsely accused. Possibly they were committing these horrible crimes and pinning them on family members or friends, which we know is usually the first person that is always looked at.
view the rest of the comments →
argosciv ago
POSSIBLE RELATION TO RICHARD ("The Night Stalker") RAMIREZ?!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Ramirez
@Wisconsin_is_corrupt @Commoner @millennial_vulcan @carmencita @bopper
carmencita ago
I remember the McDonald case to some extent. At the time of the release of the news which lasted for quite some time because of the heinous crime. It always seemed to me that the media was even then trying to railroad him. Although more likely, it was the army that wanted to pin this on him. Now at this time I really do believe he was innocent. Like many other crimes, we will never know how many we may have believed were guilty, may have been falsely accused. Possibly they were committing these horrible crimes and pinning them on family members or friends, which we know is usually the first person that is always looked at.