Location
Seattle, WA
Incident
July 15, 1982
Resolved
November 5, 2003
Status
ConvictedType
serial killer
Victims
Wendy Lee Coffield, Wendy Lee Coffield
Gary Ridgway murdered at least 49 women in the Seattle-Tacoma area between 1982 and 1998, making him one of the most prolific serial killers in American history. He avoided detection for two decades before DNA evidence led to his arrest in 2001 and a plea deal in 2003.
Gary Leon Ridgway, known as the Green River Killer, is an American serial killer convicted of murdering 49 women — predominantly sex workers and runaways — along the Green River corridor south of Seattle, Washington, between 1982 and 2000. He is the most prolific serial killer in American history by confirmed victim count. CNN
Born on February 18, 1949, in Salt Lake City, Utah, Ridgway grew up in the Des Moines area of Washington state. He had an IQ of approximately 82, frequently had trouble in school, and wet the bed until age 13. He served in the Navy during the Vietnam era. He worked for over two decades at the Kenworth Truck Company in Renton, Washington, painting trucks, and was married three times.
Ridgway began killing in 1982, targeting women along the Pacific Highway South (also known as the Strip) near SeaTac airport, a corridor frequented by sex workers. His first confirmed murder was Wendy Lee Coffield, whose body was found in the Green River on July 15, 1982. Additional bodies soon surfaced, prompting the formation of a Green River Task Force. The Guardian
Ridgway was interviewed by police multiple times in the 1980s. He passed a polygraph test in 1984 and was released as a suspect. The task force pursued hundreds of leads over 20 years. Investigators preserved DNA evidence from victims — a decision that would prove decisive.
In 2001, new DNA testing technology allowed investigators to match a saliva sample Ridgway had provided in 1987 to semen found in three murder victims. He was arrested on November 30, 2001. Washington Post
After his arrest, Ridgway cooperated extensively with investigators, leading them to additional remains and providing detailed confessions. He later admitted he had killed so many women he lost count, estimating around 60 victims. BBC
Ridgway was charged in 2003 with 48 counts of aggravated first-degree murder after a plea deal was negotiated. Prosecutors agreed to take the death penalty off the table in exchange for his full cooperation — including information about the location of victims whose remains had not been found. AP News
On November 5, 2003, Ridgway pleaded guilty to all 48 counts in King County Superior Court. In exchange, he provided detailed information about his crimes, victims, and disposal sites, which allowed investigators to identify additional victims and recover remains.
On December 18, 2003, Judge Richard Jones sentenced Ridgway to life in prison without the possibility of parole — 48 consecutive life sentences. Victims' family members were allowed to address Ridgway in court. Several stated that keeping him alive was a poor trade, while others expressed relief that they could finally bury their loved ones. The Guardian
In 2011, Ridgway pleaded guilty to an additional murder — bringing his total confirmed victim count to 49 — making him the most prolific convicted serial killer in U.S. history. He continues to cooperate with investigators regarding additional potential victims. NPR
November 5, 2003
In a plea deal to avoid the death penalty, Gary Ridgway pleads guilty to 48 counts of aggravated first-degree murder, the most murder convictions for any serial killer in American history at that time. He is sentenced to life without parole.
Source →November 30, 2001
Advances in DNA technology allow investigators to match semen samples from three 1982-1983 victims to Gary Ridgway. He is arrested at the Kenworth truck factory where he worked and charged with four counts of murder.
Source →January 1, 1984
Gary Ridgway is interviewed after being seen with a victim and takes a polygraph test, which he passes. He is released and remains a peripheral suspect but is not pursued further for years.
Source →August 15, 1982
King County Sheriff's Office establishes the Green River Task Force after five bodies are found in or near the Green River. The task force will grow to become one of the largest serial killer investigations in U.S. history.
Source →July 15, 1982
The body of 16-year-old Wendy Coffield is found strangled in the Green River near Kent, Washington. Over the following weeks, more bodies are found in the same area, establishing a pattern.
Source →Relationship data not yet mapped — nodes positioned by force simulation.
Gary Ridgway
The Green River Killer, convicted of 49 murders of women in the Seattle-Tacoma area between 1982 and 1998. Accepted a plea deal in 2003 to avoid the death penalty.
Wendy Lee Coffield
A 16-year-old whose body was the first discovered in the Green River on July 15, 1982. Her murder triggered the investigation that would eventually become the Green River Task Force.
Gary Ridgway
The Green River Killer, convicted of 49 murders of women in the Seattle-Tacoma area between 1982 and 1998. Accepted a plea deal in 2003 to avoid the death penalty.
Wendy Lee Coffield
A 16-year-old whose body was the first discovered in the Green River on July 15, 1982. Her murder triggered the investigation that would eventually become the Green River Task Force.