Dark Stories: On This Day In True Crime History - Dark Stories True Crime Tours

1985: Night Stalker Richard Ramirez Captured by an Angry Mob in East Los Angeles

For months in 1985, Richard Ramirez, the Night Stalker, terrorised California, breaking into homes while families slept to assault, mutilate, and murder. His reign of terror ended not with a police operation but with a newspaper front page: once his mugshot was published across California media, his anonymity was gone.

On 31 August 1985, Ramirez attempted to carjack vehicles in the Boyle Heights neighbourhood of East Los Angeles. Residents recognised him, chased him down the sreet, and beat him to the ground before police arrived to take him into custody. Facing the mob, Ramirez reportedly confessed to officers, preferring arrest to the alternative.

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Boyle Heights California Capture East Los Angeles Los Angeles Murder Organised Crime Serial Killer Trial USA

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1997: Princess Diana Killed in Paris Tunnel Crash

In the early hours of 31 August 1997, Diana, Princess of Wales, died after a high-speed car crash in the Pont de l’Alma tunnel beside the River Seine in Paris. The Mercedes carrying her struck a concrete pillar while being pursued by press photographers. Diana was 36. Dodi Fayed and driver Henri Paul were also killed; bodyguard Trevor Rees-Jones was the sole survivor.

French investigators concluded that Paul had been driving at excessive speed while affected by alcohol and prescription drugs. The crash nevertheless became the subject of numerous conspiracy theories, including claims that Diana and Dodi were deliberately killed, that British intelligence or members of the Royal Family were involved, and that the collision had been engineered to prevent an alleged marriage or pregnancy.

These allegations were examined in detail by Britain’s Operation Paget investigation, which found no evidence of a conspiracy to murder Diana. A subsequent British inquest, concluded in 2008, returned a verdict of unlawful killing caused by the grossly negligent driving of Henri Paul and the pursuing paparazzi.

Princess Diana smile, circa 1997. vintage post stamp,. LIBERIA - CIRCA 1997: canceled stamp printed in Liberia dedicated to the memory of princess Diana, circa 1997. vintage post stamp isolated on black background. princess Diana with silver crown | ID 98306680 © Fmua | Dreamstime.com — ID 98306680 © Fmua | Dreamstime.com

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Accident Disaster Europe France Inquest Paris

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1870: James Cusack Hanged at Melbourne Gaol for Murder at Woods Point

James Cusack was tried before Justice Barry at the Victorian Criminal Sessions in August 1870 for the wilful murder of his wife, Ann Cusack, at Gooley’s Creek on the Upper Goulburn River.

A neighbour, Patrick Malone, testified to a history of brutal domestic abuse: over eighteen months he had repeatedly witnessed Cusack beating, kicking, and dragging Ann by the hair. On the night of 28 June 1870, Malone watched Cusack knock her down with his fist over a hidden bottle of gin. The violence that followed proved fatal.

Cusack was convicted and hanged at Melbourne Gaol on 30 August 1870, leaving behind four children, the eldest just six years old and the youngest twelve months.

Woods Point, Charles William Dale, State Library Victoria, H36372.

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Australia Domestic Violence Execution Goulburn River Melbourne Murder Trial VIC Woods Point

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1830: A Daring Escape and a Public Hanging in Colonial New South Wales

In February 1829, a man from the Shoalhaven region of New South Wales killed English sawyer John Rivett in the Kangaroo Valley, claiming self-defence after a dispute over a trade and a personal grievance. He and his accomplice evaded capture for months, using their knowledge of the densely forested hilly terrain to outrun colonial authorities.

Arrested in May 1829, the accused made a bold escape aboard a ship bound for Sydney, stealing the keys to his chains from a sleeping guard before jumping overboard with his companion. Recaptured and tried, he was found guilty of wilful murder and publicly executed by infamous hangman Alexander Green on 30 August 1830.

White bark gumtrees by Shoalhaven River under storm clouds

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Australia Colonial History Escape Execution Kangaroo Valley Murder NSW Shoalhaven Sydney

1985: Night Stalker Richard Ramirez Captured by an Angry Mob in East Los Angeles

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1997: Princess Diana Killed in Paris Tunnel Crash

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1870: James Cusack Hanged at Melbourne Gaol for Murder at Woods Point

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1830: A Daring Escape and a Public Hanging in Colonial New South Wales

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