The Messed Up Truth About The Night Stalker

As recounted in The Night Stalker: The Life and Crimes of Richard Ramirez, young Richard Ramirez's obsession with Satan began at an early age. Growing up in a devoutly Catholic household, Ramirez understood God, Satan, Heaven, Hell, and sin as concrete realities.

As Ramirez entered adolescence, his sexual fantasies began to focus on violence, bondage, and death. Yet, his dark thoughts inspired guilt born of his religion. Soon, he came to feel that Satan would approve of his secret self, and perhaps, the devil might be a more fitting deity for him to follow.

According to author Clifford Linedecker, Ramirez's fascination with Satan ironically intensified after attending a Jehovah's Witnesses' Bible study class with his friends Eddie Milam and Tom Ramos. Ramirez scoured the public library for books on the occult, learning all he could about Satanism and black magic. At some point, he stumbled upon the writings of the Church of Satan's Anton LaVey and made a pilgrimage to San Francisco to meet LaVey. "When I met Richard Ramirez, he was one of the nicest, most polite young men you'd ever want to meet," LaVey told the press in the wake of the killings.

Yet, Ramirez's brand of Satanism was a far cry from LaVey's theatrical atheism. By the time of the Night Stalker murders, he regarded Satan as a malevolent force to whom he was a willing slave. The more sadistic, depraved, and violent his acts, the more his evil master would smile on him and protect him.