I've always been a fan of true crime. I've read dozens of books on serial killers and I am an admitted addict of the ID Channel. Many people think this is a morbid fascination and maybe it is. I think it is more a curiosity as to what compels a person to commit heinous acts of violence against another with no regard for human life. Personally, I feel bad killing a bug; I would much rather capture it and throw outside my house. Not in my wildest imagination could I imagine harming or taking the life of another human. So as I read about murderers, whether they are serial killers or murderers who have committed "crimes of passion," I wonder what could drive a person to that point.

Few true crime cases have terrified me as much as the case of Richard Ramirez, also known as the Night Stalker. The convicted rapist and serial killer died on June 7, 2013 at 53 years old of cancer while on death row in San Quentin in California. He was convicted of killing 13 people on Sept. 20, 1989. He had been captured on Aug. 31, 1985, after being identified and severely beaten by an angry mob in East Los Angeles as he was trying to steal a car. Police had to break up the mob to prevent them from possibly killing Ramirez.

Richard Ramirez was the proverbial boogey man, invading bedrooms in the middle of the night and tearing innocent people from their dreams. He would rape and torture of his victims before murdering them and then rob and sell their belongings to feed his cocaine and herion habit. He was an admitted follower of Satan and made this known in many ways including famously carving a pentagram into the palm of his hand and showing it off to the courtroom and press during his trial.

Again, I ask, what would drive a person to commit such acts of evil? Is one born this way? Could past trauma cause such actions?