Onset of Criminality
A few years later, Wuornos’ grandmother passed away due to liver failure from alcohol abuse. After this time, her grandfather forced Wuornos and her brother out of the house. They were made wards of the court for a short time, until Wuornos started living in the woods close to her home. Wuornos needed to support herself, so at this time she began a life of hitchhiking, crime and prostitution. With these activities, she managed to feed and support herself for four years. However, in May 1974, she was arrested and jailed for disorderly conduct, drunk driving and firing a weapon from a vehicle. Two years on, in 1976, she was arrested for assault and disturbing the peace, after an attack on a bartender.
The same year, after hitchhiking to Florida, she met and fell in love with Lewis Fell, a 69 year old yacht club president. They were married for a brief time, until Wuornos was arrested for assault after brawling in a bar. Fell annulled the marriage after a few short months. From this point onwards, Wuornos lead a more destructive and violent life than ever. The same year that her marriage was annulled, her brother Keith passed away from cancer, and Wuornos was given a $10,000 cheque from his life insurance. She spent this money to buy a car, which she crashed and destroyed not long after she had bought it. For the next decade, until 1986, she continued committing crimes such as forgery, theft, armed robbery and assault while still working as a prostitute. In 1986, 30 year old Wuornos then met Tyria Moore at a gay bar in Daytona, at this time she was 24 years old. Moore’s relationship with Wuornos was destructive and she became her partner in crime, committing vandalism, violence and harassment. |