“Journalists wanted to give this unknown monster a name,” Laurel Erickson, a reporter at Los Angeles news station KNBC, told the producers of the new docuseries.įascinated By Serial Killers? Watch 'Mark Of A Killer' Now Who would he attack next - and how? As fear increased, the media clamored to find the proper name for the man stalking the region. Once detectives were able to pin all of the seemingly disparate crimes on one suspect, much of Los Angeles County went into a panic. They varied in gender and race and ranged in age from 6 years old to 82. Not only did he vary his weapon of choice - guns, knives, and blunt objects were used - but the victim profile was all over the place.

The so-called “Night Stalker” would beat, molest, rape, and sometimes murder his victims in a manner that seemingly had no through line. Netflix’s new docuseries “Night Stalker: The Hunt for a Serial Killer” dives into the creation of the alias given to Richard Ramirez, who began stalking Los Angeles County in 1984, breaking into homes and committing a wide array of vicious crimes. But, how are these ominous nicknames determined? And what does the widespread use of these monikers reflect about Western society? These nicknames - “The Golden State Killer,” “Jack the Ripper,” “Boston Strangler,” “Night Stalker” - often lead the public to envision these killers as monsters who stalk victims like a mysterious cloud of smoke - particularly if they have yet to be identified. The monikers ascribed to history’s most notorious serial killers can cast an ominous shadow over these men in the public’s mind.

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