Final Project: Executive Summary Kecia R. Norrell Southern New Hampshire University PSY 310 Criminal Psychology Dr. Tim Franklin April 21, 2024
SUMMARY Summary of case: Aileen Wuornos was born Aileen Carol Pittman on February 29, 1956, in Rochester, Michigan. She was born to teenage parents, Diane Wuornos, and Leo Pittman, and they also had a son, Keith. Her mother is of Finnish descent and her father was of English descent. Aileen never knew her father; however, he was a psychopath imprisoned for kidnapping and raping a 7- year-old girl. He was schizophrenic and committed suicide by hanging. Diane Wuornos did not raise Aileen, abandoning her at 4-years-old with her maternal grandparents, Lauri, and Britta Wuornos. Aileen did not have an easy childhood, her grandfathers' sexual proclivities with her started at a young age. He was an alcoholic who sexually assaulted and beat her. Aileen engaged in sexual relations with her brother, Keith, and started exchanging sexual favors for cigarettes. She was raped by a family friend and gave birth to a baby boy, who was put up for adoption at a home for unwed mothers. Aileen dropped out of school and was thrown out of her grandparent's home when her grandmother died. She turned to prostitution to support herself, later escalating to robbing and killing men. "In June 1986, Wuornos, now calling herself "Lee," met 24-year-old Tyria Moore at a gay bar in Daytona, Florida. The two started an intense 4.5-year relationship and began living
together. While Moore held jobs as a housekeeper or maid, Wuornos engaged in sex work along Florida highways. A possessive Wuornos didn't like it when her partner went to work or interacted with others" (Aileen Wuornos: Biography, n.d.). During this relationship with Moore is when she (Wuornos) turned to murder and later Moore turned against her to collaborate with the authorities. Initial hypothesis: There are several reasons for Aileen's motivation to murder seven men by shooting them several times. Her motivation could have been shaped by her traumatic past, desperation, and harsh realities she faced as a sex worker. Aileen's dysfunctional upbringing could have played a vital part in committing these crimes, such as inheriting her psychotic ways from her father, or the abandonment, abuse, and violence she experienced in adolescence. As a sex worker, Aileen faced immense hardships and vulnerability. Aileen even claimed self-defense during her trial, that the men she killed had initially solicited her for sexual services, but the interactions took a dark turn. She stated the men either threatened to kill her, raped her, or attempted to rape her. CRIME ASSESSMENT Compare data: I chose to compare Aileen Wuornos crimes to Juana Barraza. Both women were born in the mid 1950's, came from troubling upbringings, and were sexually assaulted. Aileen and Juana both were abandoned at an early age by their mothers' and bore children from rape. The two women targeted a specific type of victim; Aileen's were random men along a highway and Juana targeted elderly women. The women are