The Region - News from March 11, 1986

Night Stalker suspect Richard Ramirez’ rights were not violated in a lineup at the Los Angeles County Central Jail following his arrest last August, Los Angeles Municipal Judge James F. Nelson ruled. Attorneys for Ramirez--currently undergoing a preliminary hearing on charges of 14 murders and 54 other felonies in Los Angeles County--had demanded that identifications made at the lineup be excluded from the case because they were allegedly obtained “under circumstances unduly suggestive.” Nelson, however, ruled that the lineup did not violate Ramirez’ “right to due process” after hearing testimony from about 10 witnesses during more than two days of closed hearings. The preliminary hearing will be reopened to the public today, with testimony expected from Maria Hernandez, 21, of Rosemead, whom Ramirez is charged with having shot in the hand during a March, 1985, attack that left her roommate, Dayle Okazaki, 34, dead.