Identifying information
Aileen Wuornos is female born in the year 1956 on February 29. Further, she was born in Rochester in Michigan. Aileen was sexually abused while she was young and thrown out of her home when she was a teen. Importantly, Wuornos’ mother abandoned her together with her younger brother and left them with their grandparents. The grandfather used to beat her up often while the grandmother was an alcoholic. After, the death of her brother, she relocated to Florida where she worked as a sex worker. Moreover, she was in constant trouble with the law due to illegal possession of firearms, as well as, her work as a prostitute. Wuornos is known to be a serial killer in the United States of America after killing about six men in cold blood. While working as a sex worker, she was reported for having killed a man who had picked her up, in the year 1989. In addition to that, she went ahead to kill five other men and was later caught and convicted. However, in the year 2002, she was executed through a lethal injection.
Chief Complaint/Presenting Problem
Wuornos had tremor in her body language as she talked about her experiences and was concerned of the injustices committed against her that went unpunished. Aileen suffered from a mental trauma that was caused by her personal life experiences. At the age of eight, Aileen reported that an old friend of his father had assaulted him. Moreover, while at a hospital she also confessed her father’s physical and sexual abuse. Therefore, this may have led her to commit the series of murder conducted in the span of one year. Moreover, she admitted the killing of seven males while working as a prostitute in Florida. As a result, she was arrested and charged with murder. After her arrest and first trial, she claimed that she killed the men in fear that they would beat and rape her. As the trial proceeded, she changed her claims stating that she committed murder to rob the men of their money and indispensables. Furthermore, Wuornos committed the murder of the six men in a span of one year from December 1989 to November 1990. While in jail, she was regarded as a person suffering from mental trauma.
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Personal History
Wuornos could not attend school since her grandparents were not interested in her and her younger brother. At the age of eight, Wuornos father’s friend assaulted her. Moreover, her father could not believe the allegations. Therefore, Aileen was always bitter about the injustices were done to her that were left unpunished. In the year 1980, her only brother died due to cancer. By that time, Aileen was 11 years old. As a result, she began engaging in sexual favors for beer, cigarettes, and money (Weatherby, Blanche, & Jones, 2008). Thus, this shows that Aileen became a drug addict at a very tender age. Further, she got her only child at the age of 14 with a man who was supposedly an old friend of her grandfather. However, Wuornos gave up her child for adoption and began spending time away from her grandparent’s home. In most cases, she would spend her time living in the woods or roaming around the state. At the age of 14, her grandparents kicked her out of their home hence leaving her homeless. Thus, Wuornos fled to Florida where she made money through prostitution. Importantly, in the year 1986, Aileen was involved in a romantic relationship with Tyria Moore. The two lovebirds met at a bar in Florida. The relationship between Tyria and Aileen ended after the arrest of Wuornos. However, the relationship that Aileen had with Moore was a second love affair Wuornos had with a woman. Both Moore and Wuornos would steal items from the Florida stores. The police conducted investigations on Wuornos and found out that she possessed stolen items that belonged to Richard Mallory. Moreover, they spotted illegal receipts that had Wuornos’ thumbprint. Thus, this shows that Aileen was not only a murderer and a prostitute but also was involved in cases of forgery. However, Moore moved to her parent’s house in Pennsylvania after she was suspicious of the killing acts of Wuornos. However, the police tracked Moore down and they coerced her to testify against Aileen. Contrary to that, while working as a prostitute her main clients were white men, who were middle aged.
Family History
Aileen’s father was convicted due to child molestation and was later killed while in prison a few years back. Moreover, her mother abandoned her and the brother when they were a few years old. The mother left the two children with her parents and fled to an unknown place. Therefore, Wuornos’ grandparents and their children who were her uncles and aunts raised her and her brother as well. While growing up, her grandfather used to beat her up while her grandmother was an alcoholic ( The Case of Aileen Wuornos - The Facts | Capital Punishment in Context , 2003). In addition to that, in the year 1980, Aileen’s only brother succumbed to cancer and passed on leaving her alone with her grandparents, who showed less care. As a result, Wuornos moved to Florida where she worked as a prostitute. Importantly, while in Florida, she was always in trouble with the law enforcers for being a prostitute, as well as, for indulging in other crimes. Having being raised by drunkard grandparents who showed less care, Aileen opted to indulge in sexual affairs. Further, her father was involved in criminal activity that later led to his death while in jail. In addition to that, the mother fled while Aileen and her brother were young leaving them with the grandparents. Therefore, Aileen lacked a good parental upbringing. After being chased out of her grandparents home while she was 14, she had no option but engage in sexual activities that later led her to commit murder and stealing crimes.
Therapy History
According to Arrigo, & Griffin, (2004), trauma was observed when Wuornos would recall her encounters. Further, tremor was an observable sign in her body language as she spoke about her past. Importantly, individuals who have suffered a traumatic event in the life often suffer from trauma and tremor when narrating about their incidents. In addition to that, a fearful demeanor and her mistrust, as well as, her blame for others were noticeable symptoms in Aileen Wuornos. The therapy sought by Aileen while in jail depicted that she exhibited signs of emotional depression. Mainly, she was distressed by the fact that her mother abandoned her and her brother while she was young. Moreover, she was concerned with the issues of rejection, the loss of her brother, hostility and was anxious as well. Furthermore, she would demand justice constantly for all the wrongs that were committed against her. The symptoms exhibited by Wuornos may have resulted from her childhood trauma.
References
Arrigo, B. A., & Griffin, A. (2004). Serial murder and the case of Aileen Wuornos: attachment theory, psychopathy, and predatory aggression. Behavioral Sciences & the Law , 22 (3), 375-393. doi:10.1002/bsl.583
The Case of Aileen Wuornos - The Facts | Capital Punishment in Context . (2003). Capitalpunishmentincontext.org . Retrieved 21 November 2016, from http://www.capitalpunishmentincontext.org/cases/wuornos
Weatherby, G., Blanche, J., & Jones, R. (2008). The Value of Life: Female Killers & the Feminine Mystique. Journal of Criminology and Criminal Justice Research and Foundation , 2 (1).
