So Romero went into the garage. Also on hand for the ceremonies were the boys mother, Emily, 39, and his older sister, Lisa, 16. We were pretty freaked out, my whole family. It was about 1:30 a.m. on Sunday, Aug. 25, 1985 . We (sheriffs deputies) were not in the area of the shooting when the Night Stalker shot Carns three times in the head and raped his fiancee, Gates told The Times. allowed officers into his store to He also found something much more creepy on the ground, below the window, was a dead bird. When she said she didn't, he replied, "I'm the Night Stalker." As with any serial crime spree, media outlets attempt to name the perpetrator. Within the next few days, investigators took Romero on the patrol rides around the neighborhood in hopes that he might be able to recognize the prowlers car. And the teen confirmed it. Chinese Granite; Imported Granite; Chinese Marble; Imported Marble; China Slate & Sandstone; Quartz stone beside the parking space where Night Stalker Richard James Romero said Thursday that he was working on his motorbike, thinking of a way to make brakes for it, in the garage of his home at about 1 a.m. Anne Carns said her sons fiancee has been very supportive of him throughout his hospitalization. He was right in front of my window.. When the Night Stalker was caught by a vigilant group of East L.A. neighbors, six days after Mission Viejo, the illusion was restored and our fear of the outside world reinforced. Thank you very much in advance. He is an English professor at Villanova University in Pennsylvania. She said the woman has been visiting her fiance every day and helping him in therapy. receiving strange calls. Ramirez bolted out of the store and ran across the Santa Ana Freeway, where he attempted to carjack a woman but was chased away by bystanders, who pursued him. 26991 CROWN VALLEY PKWY. Expand. to a bank robber who gave the cashier his full name and address, 365 Days of Crime is the ULTIMATE true crime treat. I hadnt realized until that moment the privilege we possessed, the entitlement he stole from us the feeling of security. Arturo Benavidez of Art's Barber Shop called A $300-million (minimum) gondola to Dodger Stadium? First published on May 19, 2017 / 5:38 PM. Fearing that the killer might try to intimidate Romero, a deputy ran up next to him and put a hand on his gun. citymanager@cityofmissionviejo.org. The single-story house was on Via Zaragosa in Mission Viejo. Police eventually found Ramirez's car. Youngs fictional character, Kit, was designed as a bit of a parallel to Ramirezs story, Griffiths explains. But Gates called the motorcycle the greatest gift of all from myself and all the people in the department., Plaques commending the youth described his bravery and courage as typifying citizen-police cooperation and the spirit of America., Asked if he felt like a hero, the boy said simply: Yeah.. I hadnt realized until that moment the privilege we possessed, the entitlement he stole from us the feeling of security, of living in a place that was separate from the violence in the rest of the world. People can really be destroyed, and were all sort of culpable.. Fix them, Metro, Letters to the Editor: Will five more dead Texans change Gov. We cant answer those questions, Gates said. James Romero III, 13, smiles at his parents after receiving an award from Sheriff-Coroner Brad Gates for reporting the partial license plate number of the car used by the "Night Stalker" that led to the apprehension of Richard Ramirez. Then, distinct footsteps. Night Stalker: The attack that never happened, Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window), Garden Grove woman pleads guilty to role in management of illegal casinos, Canadian folk singer Gordon Lightfoot dies at 84, California fire chief: Prepare now for height of fire season delayed by record precipitation, Gov. Nothing ever changed.. stole Bill Gregory's Toyota station wagon, there was religious. They had named Richard Ramirez as the Night Stalker, and he was caught. Death always came with the territory. James Romero, the kid who had helped catch a killer, was treated like a hero. Thats a person.. If he was up to 1:30 in the morning working on that (motorbike), hell be up to 3 or 4 with this, said his father, James Romero, 46, a civilian employee at the El Toro Marine Corps Air Station. Thats when they realized the Night Stalker had come to Orange County. Bill Carns and Inez Erickon's lives were altered forever after Ramirez broke into the home they shared in Mission Viejo, California, on April 25, 1985. But the 13-year-old still wasnt sure why this prowler report attracted so much attention. He was working near a rectangular vent, covered by a small screen a couple of inches off the ground. When somebodys done something good, we like to do something about it, Gates said. Four years before the summer of the Night Stalker, Manuela Witthuhn had been raped and bludgeoned in her home on a quiet Irvine street with a greenbelt running through it, a stones throw from the Santa Ana Freeway. The idea is he sort of brings trauma forward in a whole different person. I saw the way everyone on our street ignored the Vietnam vet who beat his son. literature like this inside the car. Romero says the moment was a terrifying experience but he is glad he was able to help solve the case. He got checks from various city groups and box-seat tickets to LA Rams games. Ramirez took off but not before a fearless James ran outside. He ran through the side door. Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. Thats when they realized the Night Stalker had come to Orange County. Get Morning Report and other email newsletters, In this Oct. 24, 1985 photo, "Night Stalker" Richard Ramirez displays a pentagram symbol on his hand inside a Los Angeles courtroom. Police would find Ramirez's car. Romero watched the prowler get into an Orange Toyota station wagon with a chrome rack on top. Romero is describing his face-to-face encounter with Ramirez on a summer night back in 1985, the night Ramirez stalked his home in Mission Viejo. . Earlier, the patrol deputy had responded within four minutes to the Romero home where the youth had spotted a suspicious car about 1 a.m., Gates said. After the ceremony, investigators flew the teenager to Los Angeles to participate in a police lineup. I did what I could, he said. He also found something much more creepy on the ground, below the window, was a dead bird. Thats when he saw the Night Stalker. And by 2:30 a.m. that day, when the shooting of Bill Carns, 29, was reported less than a mile from the Romero home, the sheriffs deputy already had taken a normal report from the Romero boy and had returned to routine patrol, Gates said. Witnesses offer conflicting accounts, Mars Voltas lead singer broke with Scientology and reunited with the band. Also, June 11., 9 p.m. and June 13, 1 a.m. on Lifetime and June 17, 8 p.m. and June 18, midnight on LMN (formerly Lifetime Movie Network). The second home was about a . Photo by Paul Chinn. 76 Corolla station wagon was "You are not expected to. He is now on Death Row awaiting an execution date. Seeing the Night Stalker in person was a moment James says he will never forget. Hed been caught after driving a stolen Toyota from LA to Mission Viejo on Aug. 24, 1985, when he broke into the house on Via Zaragosa of Bill Carns and his fiance, Inez Erickson, who were sleeping. His conviction has been upheld by the California Supreme Court, and the case is working its way through the appeals process. The . As Romero led police into his backyard to explain where he first heard the footsteps, he noticed that his parents bedroom window was open. "All of a sudden, I hear footsteps in the gravel. A sheriffs spokesman said the family requested that reporters not ask them about details of the case. Richard Ramirez, the "Night Stalker" whose string of sexual assaults and murders up and down the California coastincluded a Mission Viejo couple, diedin prison of natural causes at 9:10 a.m. Friday,according to variousnews sources. [Kit] grew up in Southern California and was 15 at the time of the crimes. View Anthony Moiso's business profile as Chairman & Chief Executive Officer at Rancho Mission Viejo. 949-364-1400. "They kind of just coached me," he says, "hey, we can't stop and get out of the car. To keep creating He saw the prowler running away. Bill Carns sits on his bed at his home in Bismarck, N.D. On Aug. 25, 1985, Carns was asleep in his Mission Viejo, Calif. home when 'Night Stalker' Richard Ramirez . The Satan-worshipping Night Stalker usually entered homes in the middle of the night through open windows. His battles with the church arent over, How Palm Springs ran out Black and Latino families to build a fantasy for rich, white people, 17 SoCal hiking trails that are blooming with wildflowers (but probably not for long! Police introduced the 13-year-old to Inez Erickson, a woman who was attacked by Ramirez on the night of Romeros eerie encounter with the killer. "You maggots made me sick, hypocrites one and all. Chinatown near the Pasadena Freeway. I am beyond your experience. It was sweltering, hovering near triple digits in the afternoon and stagnating in the 80s at night. Free Tools ; Leads by Industry ; Top Profiles . William Carns Jr. is recovering with surprising speed from the Aug. 25 attack in Mission Viejo attributed to the Night Stalker, but it will be five years before he can return to work, his parents . Several months later, he was convicted on 13 counts of murder, five attempted murders, 11 sexual assaults, and 14 burglaries, putting him on death row. Through the vent, he heard something again. The teen was up late in the garage after a family road trip when he heard footsteps in the gravel. Crunch, crunch, crunch crunch. The digital fingerprint database came up with 100 possible matches. The Night Stalker was found guilty on all 13 counts of murder committed in 1985 and 30 other felonies. Gates said later, however, that the call from the Romero house was only one of two calls his department received before the shooting of Carns and the rape of Carns fiancee. Romero saw the license plate, but he could only remember most of it 482 T. He missed the other two letters. What helped us was the caring of the people here and the support, Anne Carns said. . In 1989, the "Night Stalker" was convicted of 13 counts of murder, five attempted murders, 11 sexual assaults and 14 burglaries. Not likely, Opinion: Its not just First Republic that failed. Santa Monica, at 1424 14th Street. colored car is parked in the photograph. Using state-of-the-art techniques, the Orange County Sheriffs Department found a partial print on the car that matched a print on file for Night Stalker suspect Richard Ramirez, 25. A week later he struck again in Mission Viejo, halfway between San Francisco and San Diego. Nicholas Goldberg: Is God on the side of blasphemy laws. He's covered sports, education, cities, investigations and general assignment stories. At ceremonies Thursday, Gates called the slightly built teen-ager the hero of Orange County and presented the Little Leaguer with an off-road, three-wheel motorcycle and $4,500 in cash from private donors, including Georgia Frontiere, owner of the Los Angeles Rams.