Ronald Adrin Gray was born on August 14, 1965, in Cochran, Georgia. He spent his early years in Liberty City, a public housing project in Miami, Florida. Information about his childhood indicates that Gray faced many difficulties. He experienced poverty and instability in his home life. He lived in conditions where basic services, like electricity, were sometimes disconnected because bills were not paid.

Gray had multiple male figures in his home throughout his childhood. His family situation was complicated by the presence of a stepfather who was reported to be very abusive. Reports from a military forensic psychiatrist noted that Gray suffered physical abuse from his stepfather, which left bruises and injuries. This abuse extended to his mother as well. Gray's mother, Lizzie Hurd, and his sister provided testimony about this abuse during a court-martial later in his life.

When he turned 18, in 1984, Gray enlisted in the United States Army. He was assigned to the Target Acquisition Battery, which is a part of the Field Artillery Battalion. By the time of his arrest, he was stationed at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. He held the rank of Specialist Four (E-4) and worked as a cook in the 3rd Battalion, 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division.

On April 27, 1986, Ronald Gray murdered Linda Jean Coats, a 23-year-old student at Campbell University. On December 11, 1986, Gray abducted, raped, and murdered Tammy Cofer Wilson, who was 18 years old at the time.

Just a few days later, on December 15, 1986, Gray abducted, raped, sodomized, and murdered Private Laura Lee Vickery-Clay, another 18-year-old woman who had disappeared from Fort Bragg. Witnesses saw her with Gray at a local K-Mart before she went missing. The following morning, Vickery-Clay's car was found nearby, and Gray's fingerprints were found on it.

On January 3, 1987, Gray entered the barracks of Private Maryann Lang Nameth, pretending to notify her about a party. He attacked her while holding a knife to her throat and demanded her military gear. Despite being tied up and stabbed, Nameth managed to survive and later identified Gray as her attacker.

On January 6, 1987, Gray was responsible for the murder of Kimberly Ann Ruggles, a 23-year-old cab driver. She was sent to pick up a passenger at Gray's address. Later, military police found her cab abandoned near the woods, and Ruggles’ body was discovered shortly after. She had been raped and stabbed multiple times.

In total, Gray was linked to the murders of four women and the attempted murder of one.