Overview of Gary Ridgway

Gary Ridgway is also known as the “Green River Killer.”

Gary Ridgway was born on February 18, 1949.

Gary Ridgway lived in a lower-class neighborhood and performed below average throughout school. He was enlisted in Vietnam at 20 years old. Ridgway was sexually assaulted by his mother. In his childhood and early teens he would wet the bed, in which is mother would clean up the bed and Ridgway. Ridgway started to fantasize about his mother in a sexual and homicidal way. He started to have a desire to stab his mother.

In the mid 60’s Ridgway stabbed a young boy.

Ridgway was married three times.

Ridgway’s Victims:

Ridgway would pick up prostitutes and runaways off of Route 99, where he would bring them to his house, strangle them, and dispose of their bodies in random areas.

• July 1982: A 16 year old girl who left her foster home went missing. Her body was found in the Green River about two weeks later

Since Ridgway’s victims were mostly prostitutes, their names have not been provided. Over a two year period since his first victim, he had raped and murdered at least 40 women.

• 1994: Ridgway’s last victim was raped and murdered

How Was Ridgway Caught?

In 2001, a detective was reassigned to one of Ridgway’s victims’ case from 1982. Since the murder, DNA tests were established and becoming more widely used. The DNA tests were a match to Ridgway’s DNA, in which he was charged with four counts of aggravated murder.

Ridgway’s Sentencing:

Gary Ridgway pleaded guilty to 49 counts of first-degree, aggravated murder. Ridgway claimed that prostitutes were more likely to not be reported missing, which was his intentions for targeting them. Ridgway agreed to tell officers the locations of where they could find his victims, as well as consenting to pleading guilty to any further discovery of victims.

In December, 2003, Ridgway was convicted of his charges, and sentenced to life in prison without parole. Ten years after his conviction, Ridgway confessed he had murdered about 80 women.

Ridgway is currently still serving his life sentence in prison.

References: https://www.biography.com/crime/gary-ridgway ; https://www.britannica.com/biography/Gary-Ridgway