Case Study: The case of Aileen Wuornos

The case of Aileen Wuornos Name: Institution: Course Title: Course Code: Instructor’s Name: Date Due: Short Biography of Aileen Wuornos Aileen Pittman was a famous serial murderer in USA. She was born in February 29 1954 in Rochester, Michigan. She was a daughter to Mr. Leo Dale Pittman and Diane Wuornos. At the time of her birth, the mother was quite a teen as she was merely 15 years of age; hence, she was virtually incapable in taking full responsibilities regarding her upbringing. Having divorced with her husband who was equally irresponsible and asexual predator, she abandoned her and her brother called Keith to be cared by the grandparents Britta and Lauri Wuornos at the age of 4 years. Having found solace in their grandparent’s house, the children however, found themselves in another dilemma. This is because; the grandfather Lauri Wuornos was an abusive parent both sexually and physically. The grandmother in this case his wife, too was an alcoholic. The children discovered themselves and their identity when Wuornos was around 12, an incident that worsened the already soaring situation at this time (Howard, Martin, 2004). During the stay in her grandparent’s house, it is claimed that she had sexual contact with several people including her brother Keith, as well as her grandfather who had sexually assaulted her for years. During this course, she fell pregnant allegedly by her brother. She gave birth to a baby boy on March 23rd, and she was immediately sent to the home of unwed mothers. The child was immediately offered for adoption. Upon returning home, the grandparent rejected her together with his brother. This made her to resorting in criminal activities including prostitution, Hitchhiking, robbery, and other criminal activities including murder (Dolores, K, Nolin, R (1994). The Psychological Factor in Wuornos Criminal engagement Although many people would not want to hear about serial killers, spree killers, mass murders and the likes, hating or disliking them would never eliminate this kind of people in the society (Gray, 2008). The age-old argument is that, the aspect of serial killers is a natural phenomenon in our society. I will base my assumption on the Wuornos account, which is well documented. This woman was executed in Oct 9, 2002, after being guilty for killing seven people, all of them men. According to her, these men had raped her while she was working as a prostitute and therefore, she was acting solely for self-defense. It was more interesting when she admitted to the court that; “I hate all people and would kill again if an opportunity presents itself” (Reynolds, 2003). This elicited streetwise demonstrations of people baying for her blood if the court did not make a death sentence on her as soon as possible. The following tidbits give us glimpse on the background of her psychological woes; her father was a habitual child molester. Aileen's mother had divorced him when she was still very young. At the age of four, her mother again abandoned her together with her older brother. They were forced to take refuge in their grandparents care. This was another dilemma since Aileen's grandfather reportedly assaulted the girl, both physically and sexually. She claims to be having multiple sexual activities with several people including her own biological brother while at this home. The evidence of this allegation is that, she became pregnant and conceived at the mare age of 14. After this, she disappeared and started doing her own things. Wuornos was subsequently arrested throughout 1970s on several charges. After being tired and perhaps frustrated with men, she struck ...