The Vampiric Terror: Richard Chase's Reign of Horror

Richard Chase, an American serial killer, rapist, necrophile, and cannibal, who became known as the "Vampire of Sacramento," left an indelible mark on criminal history.

BACKGROUND

Richard Chase grew up as an only child in a lower-middle-class family. He suffered greatly from his parents' constant arguments and struggled with interpersonal relationships.

When Chase was arrested in January 1978 for the murder of six individuals in his Sacramento home, it came as no surprise to those who had known him since childhood. He was notorious for killing animals, once even drinking a bird's blood. He spent most of his life in psychiatric institutions. His first admission occurred after injecting himself with rabbit blood, resulting in blood poisoning.

A year before his killing spree, in 1977, Chase was released as his psychiatrist believed he had his issues under control. However, his mother, convinced that the prescribed medication wouldn't help her son, decided to discontinue it. During the summer, the 28-year-old Chase was found naked and covered in cow's blood in a field. Police officers who discovered him in that state, with weapons in his car, were convinced that he had been hunting.

KILLING SPREE

In late 1977, Chase embarked on a month-long killing spree, taking the lives of six people. He randomly shot 51-year-old Ambrose Griffin. On January 23, 1978, he murdered Teresa Wallin, who was pregnant, and violated her corpse. A few days later, on January 27, 1978, Chase killed Evelyn Miroth, her neighbor Daniel Meredith, as well as Miroth's six-year-old son and 22-month-old nephew. Chase desecrated Evelyn Miroth's body, as he had done with Wallin's before. He took the lifeless body of the nephew with him on his escape home, drinking the blood of the toddler and consuming some body parts. It would be the final heinous act of his life.

During his arrest, the police discovered traces of human blood throughout Chase's house, including in the blender and the sink, indicating that he had been drinking it.

CONVICTION

In 1979, Chase stood trial. His defense attorney argued that Chase was insane. However, the jury determined that he was mentally sound and convicted him of six counts of first-degree murder, sentencing him to death. On December 26, 1980, Chase committed suicide in his San Quentin cell by overdosing on antidepressants.

Prior to his death, Chase claimed in some interviews that he lived in constant fear of UFOs sent by Nazis. Voices in his head commanded him when to kill. According to his statement, his motive was to avoid being poisoned by residues found in soap dishes.

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