FULL NAME: Aileen Carol Wuornos
KNOWN ALIASES: “Lee”, Sandra Kretsch, Susan Lynn Blahovec, Lee Blahovec, Cammie Marsh Greene, Lori Kristine Grody
DOB: February 29, 1956 (Rochester, Michigan)
DOD: October 9, 2002 (Florida State Prison, Raiford, Florida)
PRIMARY RESIDENCE: Central and Northern Florida (predominantly along interstates and highways)
PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION: Female, white, approximately 5’6”, ~135 lbs, light brown/blonde hair, blue eyes, weathered complexion from years of exposure. Appeared older than her age at the time of arrest due to chronic alcohol and drug use. Known for her blunt demeanor and masculine posture, often described by witnesses as confrontational and emotionally volatile.
CRIMINAL TYPE: ORGANIZED POWER/CONTROL KILLER WITH MISSION-ORIENTED AND OPPORTUNISTIC ELEMENTS
ACTIVITY RANGE: November 30, 1989 – November 19, 1990 (confirmed murders)
CURRENT STATUS: Executed by lethal injection on October 9, 2002.
BACKGROUND
Aileen Carol Pittman was born in Rochester, Michigan to 14-year-old Diane Wuornos and 19-year-old Leo Dale Pittman, a convicted sex offender who was incarcerated at the time of her birth. Pittman later hanged himself in prison in 1969. Aileen’s mother abandoned both Aileen and her brother Keith when Aileen was four, leaving them in the care of their maternal grandparents, Lauri and Britta Wuornos (Britannica).
The home environment was reportedly abusive. Her grandfather was a violent alcoholic who beat Aileen and allegedly sexually assaulted her. By the age of 11, she was exchanging sexual acts for cigarettes, food, and shelter. At 14, she became pregnant after being raped by a family friend. The baby was placed for adoption in 1971. Shortly after, her grandmother died of liver failure and she was expelled from the house by her grandfather. She began living in the woods near her hometown, surviving through prostitution and petty theft (Wikipedia).
By her late teens, Wuornos had developed a pattern of transient behavior — hitchhiking, engaging in sex work, and committing minor crimes across multiple states. She accumulated a record for assault, disorderly conduct, check fraud, and grand theft. At age 20, she married 69-year-old yacht club president Lewis Gratz Fell, but the marriage was annulled within nine weeks due to her violent outbursts and assault charges. Throughout the 1980s, she continued drifting across Florida, often using aliases and living out of cheap motels or in the woods. Her relationship with Tyria Moore, a motel maid from Ohio, became her only long-term emotional attachment (Capital Punishment in Context).
INCIDENT(S)
Wuornos’s confirmed homicides occurred between late 1989 and late 1990. She targeted middle-aged male clients she met while engaging in prostitution along Florida highways. Most were traveling businessmen or truck drivers. She typically shot her victims multiple times with a .22 caliber revolver, took their vehicles or cash, and dumped their bodies in wooded or isolated areas. The killings followed a consistent pattern, suggesting premeditation rather than spontaneous rage.
TIMELINE OF EVENTS (INCLUDING ALL VICTIMS)
1956-02-29: Aileen Carol Wuornos born in Rochester, Michigan, to Diane Wuornos (age 14) and Leo Dale Pittman (age 19). Her father, a convicted sex offender, was incarcerated at the time of her birth and later died by suicide in prison.
1971: At age 14, Wuornos becomes pregnant after being raped by a family acquaintance. The child is placed for adoption. Shortly after, she is expelled from her grandparents’ home and begins living in the woods, surviving through prostitution and petty theft.
1974–1988: Wuornos drifts across multiple states, accumulating arrests for assault, theft, fraud, and prostitution. She develops a volatile, transient lifestyle, living mostly along interstates and truck stops.
1986: Wuornos meets Tyria Moore at a Daytona Beach gay bar. The two enter a relationship and begin living together in Florida motels. Wuornos supports them through sex work and theft.
1989-11-30: Victim 1 – Richard Charles Mallory (51)
Electronics store owner from Clearwater, FL. Last seen on November 30 1989. Body discovered December 13 1989 in Volusia County. Shot twice with a .22 caliber revolver. Wuornos claimed self-defense, alleging Mallory assaulted her. Autopsy evidence indicated shots fired from close range while he was seated in his car.
1990-05-19: Victim 2 – David Andrew Spears (47)
Construction worker from Winter Garden, FL. Last seen May 19 1990. Found June 1 1990 in Citrus County, nude, shot six times with a .22 caliber weapon. His vehicle was found several days later in Marion County, stripped of its license plates.
1990-06-01: Victim 3 – Charles Edmund Carskaddon (40)
Part-time rodeo worker from Missouri. Last seen May 31 1990. Found June 6 1990 in Pasco County, shot nine times with a .22 caliber revolver. His body was partially wrapped in an electric blanket. His car was later located in Marion County.
1990-07-31: Victim 4 – Troy Eugene Burress (50)
Delivery driver from Ocala, FL. Reported missing July 31 1990 after failing to return from a sausage delivery route. Found August 4 1990 off State Road 19 in Marion County, shot twice. His truck was later found abandoned several miles away.
1990-09-11: Victim 5 – Charles Richard Humphreys (56)
Retired U.S. Air Force major and former child-abuse investigator for the Florida Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services. Last seen September 11 1990. Found September 12 1990 in Marion County, shot six times. His uniform and identification were missing.
1990-07-04 (approx.): Victim 6 – Peter Abraham Siems (65)
Retired merchant seaman traveling from Jupiter, FL to Arkansas. Disappeared in early July 1990. His body was never recovered, but his vehicle was found abandoned in Orange Springs, FL. Wuornos later confessed to the killing.
1990-11-19: Victim 7 – Walter Geno Antonio (62)
Truck driver and part-time reserve police officer. Last seen November 18 1990. Found November 19 1990 in Dixie County, nude and shot four times in the head and torso. His vehicle was discovered several days later in Brevard County.
1991-01-09: Wuornos arrested at “The Last Resort” biker bar in Volusia County, FL, after a multi-agency investigation connected her to stolen vehicles and ballistic evidence linked across all crime scenes.
1991-01-16: Under police supervision, Tyria Moore calls Wuornos and persuades her to confess. Wuornos admits to the killings but claims self-defense in each case.
1992-01-27: Convicted of first-degree murder in the Richard Mallory case; later receives six additional death sentences for the other victims.
2002-10-09: Executed by lethal injection at Florida State Prison in Raiford, FL. Final words: “I’d just like to say I’m sailing with the Rock, and I’ll be back.”
POSSIBLE SUSPECTS
Wuornos acted alone. No credible evidence links Tyria Moore to direct participation in the murders, though Moore benefited financially and testified against Wuornos during trial. Investigators ruled out additional accomplices (Florida Supreme Court Record).
CULTURAL IMPACT
Aileen Wuornos became a media fixation as one of the few documented female serial killers who targeted male strangers. Her case challenged criminological assumptions about gender, violence, and victim selection. The prosecution portrayed her as a cold-blooded predator; the defense emphasized her lifelong trauma, PTSD, and possible borderline personality disorder.
The 2003 film Monster, starring Charlize Theron, dramatized Wuornos’s descent and relationship with Moore, humanizing her in popular culture while maintaining focus on her violence. Documentaries such as Aileen: Life and Death of a Serial Killer by Nick Broomfield provided firsthand psychological insight during her final months (Biography.com).
KILLER THEORY
Wuornos represents a rare convergence of trauma-driven rage, opportunistic violence, and antisocial personality structure. Her crimes display hallmarks of **organized power/control offenders**: weapon consistency, crime scene concealment, post-crime theft, and victim patterning. However, her self-defense claims complicate classification — she rationalized homicide as retribution against perceived male exploitation.
Psychological assessments revealed borderline personality disorder, antisocial traits, and deep-seated paranoia. Her worldview evolved into a siege mentality: men as predators, herself as the avenger. This perceived moral mission aligns partially with a **mission-oriented** subtype, though primarily rooted in power assertion.
The sexual element was secondary. Each killing reasserted dominance, transforming years of victimization into brief control. Her case underscores the blurred line between survival instinct and pathological revenge.
Investigative profiling concluded Wuornos’s actions stemmed from cumulative trauma compounded by substance abuse, instability, and disillusionment with humanity — traits evident in her final interviews where she claimed, “I was raped and you’re executing a raped woman.”
Despite her volatility, Wuornos’s pattern, weapon discipline, and geographic consistency classify her definitively as an **organized, mission-driven power/control killer**.
