Offender Record · OFF-2026-031
Richard Chase (photo from the Radford University biography)
Richard Trenton Chase
Also known as Dracula Killer, The Vampire of Sacramento, The Vampire Killer
Sex
Male
Race
White
Height
5'11"
Born
1950
Custody
Deceased
States
CA, UT, NV
Distinguishing features5'11" tall (document); malnourished appearance per FBI profile
Custody
Deceased at San Quentin State Prison, Death Row
Custody record at the facility
Died by suicide on December 26, 1980 by overdose of antidepressant medication (Sinequan) while on death row.
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Summary of the record
Richard Trenton Chase was convicted of six counts of first-degree murder with special circumstances on May 8, 1979 in Sacramento, California. Between December 29, 1977 and January 27, 1978, Chase murdered six people including an adult male, a pregnant female, an adult female, two children (ages 6 and 22 months), and another adult male. Chase was sentenced to death and died by suicide on December 26, 1980 while incarcerated on death row at San Quentin State Prison in California.
Documented Arrests, Charges and Convictions
Dispositions are shown exactly as the cited records report them. Pending charges are updated when a court acts; a record with no remaining conviction or pending charge is removed from the site.
Offense date Dec 29, 1977, Sacramento, California
First degree murder with special circumstances
Sacramento Police Department · Superior Court, Sacramento County · Arrested Jan 28, 1978 · Convicted Convicted · Sentence: Death by gas chamber
Ambrose Griffin, 51, was shot in the chest during a drive-by shooting on December 29, 1977 while helping his wife carry groceries. This was Chase's first victim.
SourcesRadford University serial killer biography: Chase, Richard; The Vampire of Sacramento: The Unspeakable Crimes of Serial Killer Cannibal Richard Chase; Dracula Killer murders four people
Offense date Jan 23, 1978, Sacramento, California
First degree murder with special circumstances
Sacramento Police Department · Superior Court, Sacramento County · Arrested Jan 28, 1978 · Convicted Convicted · Sentence: Death by gas chamber
Teresa Wallin, age 22, three months pregnant, was shot three times and stabbed repeatedly with a butcher knife. Chase raped her corpse, removed organs, drank her blood, and mutilated her body. Body left at scene.
SourcesRadford University serial killer biography: Chase, Richard; The Vampire of Sacramento: The Unspeakable Crimes of Serial Killer Cannibal Richard Chase
Pattern and Background
Victim counts and the pattern of the offenses as stated by courts, agencies and the cited reporting. Suspected counts are what officials have said publicly, not a finding of this site.
6
Victims convicted
6
Victims confessed
0
Victims suspected
Active years
1977–1978
Stated motive
Sexual, Power or control
Range from home
local
Confessed
Yes
Education
high school
Marital history
Never married
Children
0
Died
1980-12-26 · suicide
Places Lived, Worked and Frequented
Each place and date range comes from a cited record. Dates marked approximate are as reported. Know a place that is missing? Use Edit record under the photo; a moderator reviews it before it appears.
CA
Santa Clara, California
May 1950 – 1953 · Birthplace
Sacramento, California
approx. 1953 – 1965 · Family residence, rented apartment initially then first house
Sacramento, California
approx. 1964 – 1968 · Mira Loma High School
Sacramento, California
approx. 1968 – 1971 · Lived with parents while attending American River College
Sacramento, California
approx. 1968 – 1971 · American River College
Sacramento, California
approx. 1969 – 1969 · Retailers Credit Association, administrative assistant
Sacramento, California
Feb 1971 – May 1971 · Apartment with roommates; boarded up closet and room doors
Sacramento, California
approx. May 1971 – 1972 · Returned to parents' house after roommates moved out
Sacramento, California
Apr 1973 – Apr 1973 · Arrested at party for fondling girl and carrying .22 caliber gun; father bailed him out
Los Angeles, California
May 1973 – Oct 1973 · Lived with grandmother; she sent him back to Sacramento
Sacramento, California
approx. Dec 1973 – 1974 · Admitted to American River Hospital psychiatric ward after claiming stolen pulmonary artery; mother took him out
Sacramento, California
Apr 1976 – May 1976 · American River Hospital, involuntarily committed after injecting rabbit's blood; escaped May 18, 1976
Sacramento, California
May 1976 – Sep 1976 · Beverly Manor extended-care mental hospital, transferred from American River Hospital
Sacramento, California
approx. Sep 1976 – Aug 1977 · Own apartment on Cannon Street; later on Watt Avenue; parents paid bills and groceries; unemployed, on welfare
Sacramento, California
approx. Aug 1977 – Jan 28, 1978 · Apartment on Watt Avenue; murders committed from this location
Sacramento, California
approx. Jan 1978 – Jan 1978 · Institutionalized at psychiatric facility after arrest; mentioned paranoid schizophrenia diagnosis
San Quentin, California
May 08, 1979 – Dec 26, 1980 · San Quentin State Prison, Death Row; transferred briefly to Vacaville State Hospital for medication difficulties, returned to death row
NV
Nevada
Aug 03, 1977 – Aug 03, 1977 · Bureau of Indian Affairs found Ford Ranchero near Pyramid Lake Reservation; arrested naked, covered in blood with bucket of cow's blood; released when U.S. Attorney declined to prosecute
UT
Utah
Nov 1972 – Nov 1972 · Arrested for traffic violation
Known Vehicles
Vehicles and approximate dates of ownership or use, as reported in the cited records. A photo next to a vehicle is the vehicle itself as published.
1966 Ford Ranchero – Wagon
approx. Jun 1977 – Aug 1977
Purchased June 1977 for $800 from Steamboat Springs, Colorado; found near Pyramid Lake Reservation, Nevada on August 3, 1977 with rifles, blood bucket and cow's liver inside
Photographs by Year
Richard Chase (photo from the Radford University biography)
Richard Chase (photo from the Radford University biography)
Timeline
May 23, 1950
Richard Trenton Chase born in Santa Clara County, California.
1960
Chase begins killing and torturing animals including cats.
1968
Chase counseled by psychiatrist for erectile dysfunction; psychiatrist notes suppressed anger and suspected mental illness.
Apr 1973
Chase arrested at apartment party for fondling a girl and carrying a .22 caliber gun.
Dec 01, 1973
Chase admitted to American River Hospital psychiatric ward claiming stolen pulmonary artery and stopped blood flow; mother removes him from hospital.
Apr 26, 1976
Chase involuntarily committed to American River Hospital after injecting rabbit's blood and becoming ill with blood poisoning.
May 18, 1976
Chase escapes from American River Hospital.
Sep 1976
Chase released from Beverly Manor extended-care mental hospital with diagnosis of paranoid schizophrenia.
Aug 03, 1977
Chase arrested by Bureau of Indian Affairs near Pyramid Lake Reservation in Nevada; found naked, covered in blood, with .22 and 30-30 rifles and bucket of cow blood in Ford Ranchero; released without prosecution.
Dec 02, 1977
Chase purchases .22 caliber semiautomatic pistol for $69.99 cash; cannot pick up until December 18 for credential verification.
Dec 29, 1977
Chase kills Ambrose Griffin, age 51, in drive-by shooting. Griffin shot in chest while helping wife carry groceries.
Jan 23, 1978
Chase kills Teresa Wallin, age 22 (three months pregnant), in her Sacramento home. She is shot three times and stabbed repeatedly.
Jan 27, 1978
Chase kills four people at Evelyn Miroth's residence: Evelyn Miroth (age 38), her son Jason (age 6), her nephew David Ferreira (22 months old), and neighbor Daniel Meredith (age 52). He takes David's body with him.
Jan 28, 1978
Chase arrested at his apartment after neighbors report suspicious activity. Police find him carrying bloodstained box with murder weapon.
Mar 24, 1978
Body of David Ferreira found in cardboard box in vacant lot between church and supermarket.
Jan 02, 1979
Trial opens; Chase pleads not guilty due to insanity.
May 08, 1979
Chase found guilty on all six counts of first-degree murder with special circumstances; sentenced to death.
Dec 26, 1980
Chase dies by suicide in San Quentin death row cell by overdose of Sinequan antidepressant medication.
Sources
Solve the Case is never the original source. Each item below is the public record a statement on this page rests on, with an archived copy where one exists.
Other · Find a Grave ·
Richard Trenton Chase (1950-1980) - Find a Grave Memorial“Richard Trenton Chase was a serial killer who murdered six people in Sacramento, California between December 29, 1977 and January 27, 1978.”
Other government record · California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation ·
Condemned Inmates Who Have Died Since 1978 - Capital Punishment“Richard Chase 12/26/1980 Suicide”
News report · History.com ·
Dracula Killer murders four people“On January 27, 1978, Richard Chase, who becomes known as the Dracula Killer, murders Evelyn Miroth and Daniel Meredith, as well as Miroth's 6-year-old son and another woman, in Sacramento, California.”
Other · Wikipedia ·
Richard Chase“Tried and convicted of six counts of first degree murder, Chase was sentenced to death on May 8, 1979, with the jury ruling he was legally sane at the time of the commission of the crimes.”
News report · Oxygen Media ·
The Vampire of Sacramento: The Unspeakable Crimes of Serial Killer Cannibal Richard Chase“On December 29, 1977, 51-year-old engineer Ambrose Griffin was shot in the chest during a drive-by while helping his wife carry groceries from their vehicle.”
Other · Radford University Department of Psychology ·
Radford University serial killer biography: Chase, Richard“Found guilty on all six murder counts, sentenced to death. Trial lasted for four months and the jury only deliberated for five hours. Sent to death row at San Quentin State Prison.”
Discussion
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