Patty Elaine Higgins, a 32-year-old woman, was found dead in her Arcadia home on June 28, 1985. Her throat had been slit, marking a brutal and tragic end to her life. Her murder was part of a series of violent crimes committed by Richard Ramirez, infamously known as the 'Night Stalker.' Ramirez terrorized California with a spree of home invasions, assaults, and murders during the mid-1980s.
The night before Higgins' body was discovered, Ramirez had attacked a six-year-old girl in
Arcadia, further demonstrating his escalating violence. Just days after Higgins' murder, another victim, 75-year-old Mary Louise Cannon, was found dead in her home, also with her throat slit. The pattern of brutality and home invasions left the community in fear, as Ramirez continued his rampage across Los Angeles and surrounding areas.
Ramirez was eventually arrested on August 31, 1985, after a group of citizens in East Los Angeles recognized him and subdued him until police arrived. His trial, which lasted several years, resulted in a conviction for 13 counts of murder, along with numerous other charges of attempted murder, sexual assault, and burglary. He was sentenced to death in 1989 and remained on death row until his death in 2013. His crimes, including the murder of Patty Elaine Higgins, remain among the most infamous in American criminal history.
