Gary Ridgway: The Green River Killer

The crimes, methods, and bizarre thought behaviors of serial killers never cease to amaze us. Sadly, the most interesting cases are typically the ones that baffle authorities, allowing the killer to execute his insidious plans, upping the body count as the days tick on. The name of this case comes from the Green River, a river that meanders its way through Washington State. The river runs through King County, an area that once was a bustling business area but slowly transformed into a dingy club, sleazy motels, and prostitute filled area. During the early 1980’s, this ghost town of abandon businesses, houses, and shops, became the scene of one of the most perplexing and iconic serial killings the county has ever witnessed. The notorious Green River Killer is Gary Ridgway, born on February 18th, 1949. HE is the middle son of Mary Rita Steinman and Thomas Newton. From a young age, Ridgway displayed that he was sexually attracted to his mother. Ridgway moved to King County, the area which all the murders took place in, when he was 11. He went to

After several days of intense questioning, he admitted to experimenting several times with necrophilia. The encounters with the dead and decomposing bodies to make sure no one had discovered them soon turned to having sex with them. Ridgway explained that his motives for having sex with the dead bodies, some at the point where maggots began to appear on the bodies, was simple: “Just wanted sex, and it was free. I did not have to pay for it. I killed her.” He implied that having sex with the dead women was not his preference, but a matter of economics and convenience. Ridgway’s compulsion for sexual intercourse was so strong that he would take any risk necessary to satisfy his craving. An example of this would be he left his sleeping son in his truck while he went to have sex with a decomposing body, 30 feet away from each