Aileen Wurounos Case

The sexual victimization that Aileen Wurounos experienced as a child was an enormous factor in what led to her criminal career. Not only did she suffer initial reactions from her sexual victimization, she also experienced long-term effects, resulting in her killing many men.

Early responses to child sexual abuse include "anxiety, depression, fear, anger, hostility and inappropriate sexual behaviors." According to our text, many victims become very sexual as a result of their own victimization. They have "learned that their most important asset is to service others sexually." Because of her victimization Aileen had a distorted concept of her self and her self-worth.

As a teen, Aileen would make a habit of showing neighborhood boys her breasts in exchange for money. "Adult survivors of child sexual abuse report depression, self-destruction, anxiety, isolation, stigma, negative feelings about men, fear and mistrust." Adult survivors often abuse drugs and alcohol as well as experience sexual dysfunction. Evidence proves that children who experience sexual victimization have a high rate of rape re-victimization. The book cites reasons for re-victimization as "low rates of self-esteem and high rates of chemical dependency." After meeting Selby, Aileen wanted to make something of herself, so she and Selby could be together. Aileen tried to find a job. She wanted to support herself and Selby and she knew that the only way that was going to happen was if she was able to find a job. When she was shown time and time again that she was not good enough to have a job, she was forced back into the only thing she had experience with, as well what she believed she was good at; sex.

A pivotal turning point in her life was the murder of her first john. She was aware that if she just lay there and become, yet again, another victim, she was going to die. She did what she felt like was her only option. I imagine she was holding on to a lot of buried feelings from her past and they arose during her altercation with him. She was determined not to ever allow what happened to her as a child ever happen again. Aileen's way of thinking was "get them before they get you" and that is exactly what she did. From that point on, she began killing men as sort of retribution of what took place in her childhood.