Richard Benjamin Speck (December 6, 1941 – December 5, 1991) was an American mass murderer who systematically tortured, raped, and murdered eight student nurses from South Chicago Community Hospital on July 13, 1966.

He was sentenced to death, but the sentence was later overturned due to issues with jury selection at his trial. Speck died of a heart attack after 25 years in prison. In 1996, video tapes featuring Speck were shown before the Illinois State Legislature to highlight some of the illegal activity that took place in prisons.