Green River killer Gary Ridgway heading back to Washington

The Green River killer is being returned to the Washington State Penitentiary.

The state Department of Corrections on Friday told the federal Bureau of Prisons it will bring Gary L. Ridgway back to the Walla Walla prison, fours months after his transfer to a Colorado prison.

The decision was made after Washington law enforcement officials expressed concern about having Ridgway easily accessible if investigators sought to interview him about open homicide cases, according to the Corrections Department.

Ridgway has pleaded guilty to 49 murders between 1982 and 1998, but has estimated the victim count is closer to 70.

After consulting with Gov. Jay Inslee, Corrections Secretary Bernie Warner said he informed the Bureau of Prisons that Washington would be flying Ridgway back from the federal penitentiary in Florence, Colo.

“What we weighed was, law enforcement said it would hamper their ability in discovering any additional crimes by Gary Ridgway” if he were out of state, Warner said in an interview. “We don’t want to be a barrier to that.”

Warner conceded his decision also was based on the anger voiced Monday by Mary Marrero, whose sister Ridgway killed in December 1982. During an emotional news conference, Marrero assailed the decision to transfer the serial killer as “dumb.”

Because of security concerns, the Corrections Department will not say when Ridgway will return, Warner added.

Inslee’s office had no comment Friday on the decision.

The about-face comes amid mounting criticism over the transfer of Ridgway from the Washington State Penitentiary to the federal prison in Florence, despite claims by the Corrections Department that he would enjoy no additional freedoms in his new home.

Since his arrival in May, he has been in a high-security facility for intake and assessment, according to the Corrections Department.

“Ridgway has been in a maximum custody cell by himself since his arrival at the federal prison,” the department said in a recent news release. “He does not have a job or access to the general population. There’s no prospect of that happening in the foreseeable future.”

However, Corrections Department officials conceded any change to Ridgway’s conditions behind bars would be determined by the Bureau of Prisons, which oversees the Florence facility.

Todd Chapman, the spokesman for the Federal Prison Complex in Florence, did not return email requests for comment.

Among those criticizing the transfer is U.S. Rep. Dave Reichert, who as a King County sheriff’s detective spent years investigating the Green River killings. Reichert and Marrero accused the Corrections Department of granting the nation’s most prolific serial killer special privileges.

Earlier, the Corrections Department said Ridgway was transferred for “reasons of security management.” The department said it requested he be placed in the so-called “supermax” prison, where high-security inmates include would-be millennium bomber Ahmed Ressam and Unabomber Ted Kaczynski.

The facility where Ridgway is housed is in the same campus and used by the Bureau of Prisons for intake and assessment.

In addition, on Friday, the Corrections Department said the transfer was deemed an opportunity to “get a fresh assessment” from the Bureau of Prisons on the best way to safely house Ridgway for the rest of his life.

Warner has said Ridgway’s transfer came down to economics.

“Gary Ridgway presents an ongoing risk in our system,” he said. (Ridgway) requires a lot of custody resources. He’s not necessarily a threat to others, but he could be targeted.”

Corrections Department records show Ridgway was a model inmate. He cooperated with staff members and never broke prison rules, according to documents obtained by The Seattle Times.

The same documents indicate that in recent years Ridgway has complained of unspecified mental problems and has been on medication. Warner declined to comment on Ridgway’s mental health and said that his medical issues had nothing to do with the transfer.

This story was originally published September 17, 2015 at 1:32 PM with the headline "Green River killer Gary Ridgway heading back to Washington."