PROFILE OF A SERIAL KILLER

A. DEMOGRAPHIC PROFILE
NAME: GARY LEON RIDGWAY
AGE: 73
SEX: MALE
CIVIL STATUS: MARRIED
NATIONALITY: AMERICAN
EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT: HIGHSCHOOL GRADUATE
MODUS OPERANDI/METHODS OF OPERATION: PICK UP GIRLS AT NIGHT, MOSTLY
PROSTITUTES, RAPED AND STRANGLED THEM TO DEATH MANUALLY OR USE
LIGATURE STRANGULATION, DUMP THE BODY IN WOODED AREA, INTERNATIONAL
AIRPORT IN SEATTLE – TACOMA, AND GREEN RIVER WITHIN SOUTH KING COUNTRY,
AND IS KNOWN TO PERFORM NECROPHILIC ACTS.
NUMBER OF VICTIMS: CONFESSED TO 75-80 MURDERS, CONVICTED OF 48 MURDERS

B. BACKGROUND
Gary Leon Ridgway was born on February 18, 1949, in Salt Lake, Utah. He is raised in a
deprived neighborhood near SeaTac close to Seattle’s pacific highway. His father was a truck
driver and his mother is a sales clerk. Growing up, Ridgway has claimed that his mother
engaged in inappropriate behaviour. Allegedly, after wetting the bed—that became a habit until
his early teens—his mother would wash his genitals and often did these ritualistic cleansings
while barely clothes herself. In particular, his mother mistreats him because of his bed-wetting
problem, she often belittles and embarrass the young Gary. At that time, he began fantasizing
about killing his mother—conflicting feelings of sexual attraction and anger.

Ridgway dealt with family dysfunction. He would frequently get spanked by his father
and shouted by his mother every time he gets in trouble at home. It is said that his mother would
often be abusive to his father in ways of physically and verbally during their arguments. He was
a poor student, repeating a year in highschool. Although he was not a troublemaker in school,
he was then involved in stabbing a 6 year old boy in the ribs when he was 16 years of age.
Luckily the kid survived and it is claimed that while Ridgway was stabbing him, Ridgway was
laughing and was talking about his fantasy on how it would feel like to kill someone.

After graduating highschool in 1969, he served in the U.S. Navy and was deployed to
Vietnam where he served on board a supply ship and saw combat for two-years. Later he
settled in Seattle and worked as a truck painter. He married three times and had a son in the
course of 30 years.
C. PATHWAY TO CRIMINAL CAREER
Gary Leon Ridgway’s pathway to a criminal career includes his childhood experiences
and history. The following are the history of Gary Leon Ridgway’s experiences as a child, his
disturbing behaviour as a child that results him to killing spree and so as his crimes.

His father introduced him to the idea of necrophilia, his father was once worked in a
mortuary when Ridgway was still young. His father then proceeds to tell stories about his co-
worker engaging in necrophilia. This story has become Ridgway’s subject of sexual fantasies.
He loved the idea of “having sex with someone who is dead because you wouldn’t caught. No
feelings. She wouldn’t feel it”.

Mary Ridgway, his mother, submitted her son to other horrific talks and events. She was
described as dressing seductive and provocative way while working in men’s section of a local
store. She then tells stories to Ridgways on how when she measures on men for their suit, they
will get aroused, she will then discuss details on how the smell of her costumer’s genital area.
Gary Ridgway’s grew in his adolescence, he began to fantasize on having a violent sex with his
own mother. Ridgway claimed that he wanted his mother to be scarred for life by slitting her
throat with a kitchen knife and to relieve his frustration for not being able to please her mother.
Ridgway has a poor academic performance earning an average of D. His mother often threats
him into putting him into an institution for mentally retarded, however she never fulfilled her
threats. Ridgway then graduated in highschool at the age of 20.

Other warning signs of problems were seen in Ridgway’s psyche in his teenage year. He
began killing animals, setting fires, and obsessing over true crime stories. As Gary Ridgway
grew up, he began stalking women around their neighborhood who previously rejected him.
After he married his first wife, Claudia Kraig, he entered the U.S. Navy. During his time in Navy,
his obsession to prostitution have began. His return from the Navy, he divorced her. Then, soon
after, he married his second wife, Marcia Winslow, who became his first choking victim. Like his
first wife, he divorced Marcia, who then ordered him to pay for child support which led to
Ridgway contemplating killing her because she often labelled him as “loser”.

After the divorce, he continued to solicit prostitutes more often. He then developed
growing hatred to prostitutes. The rage that he felt causes him to manifest in murder with the
prostitutes regarded him with disgust and distain. He wanted to kill as many prostitutes as
possible because how he hated them. Ridgway stopped having sexual intercourse to living
person so, he would rape his victim’s corpse while it is still warm. Whenever he felt arousal, he
then went back to the victim’s corpse, brushed off the maggots and have intercourse with them
again. Later in his killings, he would dispose of the bodies far away from his home to prevent
himself in necrophilia. Later on, he became disgusted by his actions and fantasies. He then
married his third wife, Judith Lynch and would commit his murders during the marriage.

• Recorded Crimes

July 15, 1982, the first body of Ridgway’s victim was discovered by children. The
strangled body of Wendy Caufield, 16 floating in Seattle’s Green River. In the following weeks,
four more female bodies have been found along the river banks, all strangled. On August 15,
three more bodies were found: Marci Chapman, 31 was found in shallow water alongside the
naked body of Cynthia Hinds, 17 and near the undergrowth lay Opal Mills, 16, with blue trousers
knotted around her neck, exposed breast, bruises visible on arms and legs.
 August 16, 1982, Green River Task Force was set up to investigate the killings, as more
bodies have been found along the river and area around the Seattle-Tacoma International
Airport. Over the span of two years, the Green River Killer have been raped and murdered more
than 40 women.

D. THEORIES AND CAUSES

 Social Learning Theory - based on Gary Ridgway’s experiences during his childhood, he
was told stories by his Father and Mother about inappropriate events and actions such
as the necrophilia and sexual actions committed by his mother.
 Behavioural Theory - Ridgway experienced physical abuse such as spanking and
excessive shouting and hurtful comments and so as witnessed physical and verbal
abuse in their household.
 Strain Theory - He was frustrated due to his longing fantasy of killing, the suppressed
anger towards his mother and his hatred towards prostitutes was caused him in killing
and raping women prostitutes.

E. ANALYSIS/INSIGHT

Gary Leon Ridgway also known as the Green River killer is a well known case that took
20 years to be solved. It is gruesome and undoubtedly brought terror and fear to women in his
town. His case was one of the most counts of murders. Ridgway’s upbringing and experiences
significantly affected his future; that was his motivation for killing. His case is an evidence on
how childhood experiences, social environment, fantasies and emotional suppression can highly
influence behaviour and attitude of a person.

References:

Tikanen, A. (2022, February 14). Gary Ridgway. Retrieved on March 30, 2022 from
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Gary-Ridgway

Tanos, G. (2021, May 11). The green river killer: What Gary Ridgway’s childhood really like.
Retrieved on March 30, 2022 from https://www.grunge.com/407116/the-green-river-killer-what-
gary-ridgways-childhood-was-really-like/

Minzi, M. & Shield, M. (2007, January 10). Serial Sexual Murderers and Prostitutes as Their
Victims: Difficulty Profiling Perpetrators and Victim Vulnerability as Illustrated by the Green
River Case. Retrieved on March 30, 2022 from http://triggered.edina.clockss.org/ServeContent?
rft_id=info:doi/10.1093/brief-treatment/mhl021
Pool, J. T. (2021, August 31). Green River Killer: A Timeline of His Murders, Arrest and
Conviction. Retrieved on March 30, 2022 from https://www.biography.com/news/gary-ridgway-
green-river-killer-timeline