Doreen Lioy, a journalist and editor for Tiger Beat magazine rose to fame after information about her friendship with the serial killer Richard Ramirez, (Night Stalker) went public. Her strange attraction to the murderous Satanist began after he was arrested in 1985. While he was in prison, she sent Ramirez letters for eleven years with the hopes of marrying him someday.
Well, your question is as good as mine. Why would a well-off woman give up everything to marry one of the most heinous serial killers on death row? Lioy firmly believed that Ramirez was innocent despite the glaring evidence that led to his arrest and conviction.
Nevertheless, given that Lioy and Ramirez supposedly did not see one another for a few years before his passing in 2013, her beliefs regarding her spouse might have been altered.
Doreen Became Drawn to Richard Ramirez After He was Arrested in 1985
Doreen Lioy, a California native, born in 1955, grew up in a prosperous home and started pursuing a thriving journalism career. She was a senior editor at the well-known publication Tiger Beat. Doreen was also regarded as esteemed up until her 1985 relationship with Ramirez.
As stated earlier, Ramirez was a Satanist and serial killer. In all of California, Ramirez killed at least 14 people before being apprehended in 1985. In addition, he committed multiple burglaries, assaults, and rapes. What’s even more unsettling is that he committed other crimes with a Satanic theme, such as engraving pentagrams on the bodies of his victims.
Luckily, Ramirez was apprehended on August 31, 1985, when he was recognized by several witnesses on the street. He was severely beaten until law enforcement officers could arrive.
Surprisingly, instead of joining thousands of Americans to condemn Ramirez’s ignoble acts, Doreen Lioy became attracted to him immediately after he was arrested. The fact that he had been found guilty of heinous crimes, such as gouging out someone’s eyes and severing a woman’s throat so badly that she almost lost her head, didn’t stop her. Additionally, Lioy didn’t mind that he displayed his Satanism during his trial.
In the public eye, Lioy is also his most fervent supporter, complimenting his character in interviews. She once told CNN that he is charming, funny, and kind. She also said that he is an amazing person, her pal and best friend.
Lioy did more than just support Ramirez; she visited him frequently and wrote him love letters while in prison. Even though she wasn’t the only woman who wrote love letters to Ramirez, she was the most assiduous. She sent him 75 letters in 11 years.
She Married The Serial Killer On October 3, 1996
Lioy was adamant about marrying Ramirez even though she was viewed with contempt by both her family and the general public. Ramirez proposed to her in 1988 and on October 3, 1996, following eight years of engagement, she and her serial killer fiancé got married. Lioy was joyful, but the world was stunned to learn about the wedding.
The wedding was held in a San Quentin State Prison visiting room. Richard Ramirez had previously informed Doreen Lioy that Satanists don’t wear gold, so on their wedding day, she got him a platinum band and herself a gold one. “Until death do you part” was struck from the official ceremonies by the clergyman. According to the minister, it would be bad to make such a statement for someone on death row.
After the wedding, Lioy became a staunch campaigner against her husband’s execution and even threatened to take her own life if he was executed. In support of her lover, Doreen became very vocal in the media, she granted interviews and participated in a documentary about serial killers and their love life. Though Lioy appealed for the removal of her husband’s death sentence, the appeal was rejected.
SEE ALSO: Christine Gacy: Story Of Daughter Of Serial Killer John Wayne Gacy
Doreen Remained Legally Married to Ramirez Until He Passed on July 7, 2013
On November 7, 1989, a year after he proposed to Lioy, Ramirez received a death sentence. Lioy was his most frequent visitor while he was incarcerated at San Quentin State Prison on death row.
She saw Ramirez four times a week on average, and she was always the first person in line. Lioy frequently claimed that he was innocent, and didn’t care if people thought she was being unreasonable. She had said on several occasions that she was not crazy. She just believed in her husband completely. She further said that there was a lot of evidence to convict O.J. Simpson, but the story did not end as people were expecting.
Apart from harming her reputation, Doreen’s association with Ramirez also cost her the support of her family. She also gave up on her desire to one day have children and a family of her own. Lioy had once remarked that she loves children. She also said she told her husband that she wanted five or six children. Unfortunately, that dream didn’t come true as she couldn’t make any babies with Ramirez.
Her husband was convicted and sentenced to death in 1989, but he died while awaiting execution in 2013. Ramirez died of complications secondary to B-cell lymphoma at Marin General Hospital in Greenbrae, California. He had also been affected by chronic substance abuse and chronic hepatitis C viral infection.
What Has Doreen Lioy Been Up To?
Even before the death of her husband, Lioy understood that she had to live with so much rejection. Her family rejected her, and reporters found it incomprehensible that she had completely changed her life to live with Ramirez. Lioy acknowledged that she understood why her marriage was strange to people.
Meanwhile, Lioy had become estranged from her husband before his death. Although the reasons behind the couple’s separation are unknown, others speculate that Lioy was overcome by the 2009 revelation that he had killed a 9-year-old in 1984. Some others say that the couple’s breakup was caused by Ramirez’s health issues. When her husband died no one agreed to claim his body including her. As a result, his body was cremated.
As to what she has been up to, Lioy has been out of the spotlight for a while. Her whereabouts are still unknown, and it’s uncertain if she ever made amends with her loved ones. It may not be out of place to imagine that she is in the shadows because she regrets ever defending and marrying someone like Ramirez. Whatever the case, her name will linger for long as one who willingly defended and married one of the most dangerous serial killers of all time.
