How 'Night Stalker' Richard Ramirez’s Teeth Led To His Conviction
Netflix's newest true crime docuseries, Night Stalker: The Hunt for A Serial Killer, centers on serial killer Richard Ramirez, who terrorized Los Angeles and San Francisco during a 16-month period from 1984 to 1985. His story was also fictionally shown during 2019's American Horror Story: 1984.
Ramirez murdered at least 14 people and nearly killed several others during that time, according to A&E. After his crimes, Ramirez would return to the notorious Cecil Hotel in downtown Los Angeles to clean up, pausing in the back alley to strip off his blood-soaked clothes before walking up the stairs in blood-stained underwear and bare feet. Nobody ever batted an eye, according to those interviewed in Netflix's new true crime documentary about Elisa Lam's tragic disappearance and death also at the Cecil Hotel.
Watch the trailer for Crime Scene: The Vanishing at the Cecil Hotel to learn more about Ramirez's association with the property:
Over the years, Ramirez became known as the "Night Stalker" and was eventually tracked down and convicted of of 13 murders, five attempted murders, 11 sexual assaults, and 14 burglaries, due to his teeth (or lack thereof).
But wait, how exactly did Ramirez's teeth lead to his conviction and imprisonment? Here's everything you need to know:
Ramirez reportedly had dental health issues from an early age.
He supposedly consumed a diet laden with soda and sugar and never brushed his teeth, per A&E. That, combined with a cocaine addiction, led to Ramirez losing several teeth. According to forensic dentists who took casts of Ramirez's teeth during his trial, nine teeth were decayed and several others were missing from both his lower and upper gums.
His teeth were the subject of many victims' testimonies.
Lillian Doi, a 56-year-old woman who was raped by Ramirez in May of 1985—and whose husband, Bill, was murdered during the home invasion—told police the suspect had bad teeth. Another survivor, Somkid Khovananth, who was also raped and beaten by Ramirez and whose husband, Chainarong, was murdered during the break-in noted the same thing, according to A&E.
Besides his bad teeth, Ramirez was described as "approximately 6-feet-tall, Hispanic, shaggy black hair, and a size 11.5 shoe."
But it was Ramirez's teeth that ultimately led to his conviction.
James Romero III, a 13-year-old boy, saw a suspicious guy that looked like Ramirez walking through his backyard and driving through his neighborhood, so he took the car's license plate info and called 911, according to the Orange County Register. Police arrived at the Romero home, and the teenager led police into his backyard to explain where he first heard the footsteps in the backyard. Then, Romero noticed that his parents' bedroom window was open, and they also found a footprint that may have belonged to Ramirez.
While police were investigating the scene at the Romero house and taking down a report, Ramirez was just more than a mile away on Chrisanta Drive. He broke into the house of Bill Carns and his fiancé. After the Night Stalker shot Carns in the head three times (he survived), Ramirez raped Carns' fiancé.
Sometime after 2:30 a.m. that same night, the police received a frantic call from the Carns home detailing their ordeal. Within a week, police found the car Romero had seen. They uncovered Ramirez’s fingerprints inside the vehicle, which led to Ramirez's name and mugshot being made public (since he had a previous criminal record). Two days later, Ramirez was detained during a citizen's arrest in East Los Angeles.
Ramirez's teeth played a key role in disproving his alibi in court. During the trial, Ramirez's father had claimed his son was with his family in El Paso in May 1985, not in Los Angeles, where he had allegedly raped and murdered three women. However, a dentist proved that Ramirez was in fact in Los Angeles at that time and had undergone dental work, according to A&E.
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