Authors: Aileen Wuornos
Lee paused. Tears were now streaming down her face.
| Wuornos: | I mean I… I realise I don’t have a family so I don’t understand. But when I… after I’m… seeing Ty’s family and everything… I have never met the family but noticing how Ty was on the phone and stuff, I realise now how badly I used to hurt some families. And the re– now … I… these… these men were older men… another thing after they were dead that didn’t bother me because I thought, Well, they’re older. They probably don’t have anybody hardly anyway so it didn’t worry me too much. But I didn’t kill them for that reason. I killed them because they tried to do something to me. But I think that, Well, they’re old, their father and mother’s probably deceased and so why worry about it and stuff, I don’t know. Creaky spots in my head, I guess. [More sobs] I wish to God… I wish I hadn’t done it. Not that I’m feeling sorry for myself for what I’m going to play, I’m saying I wish I never had the gun, I wish I never, ever hooked and I wish I never would have met those guys. Because I wouldn’t have had to do what I did if I hadn’t been hooking, see. It’s because of hustling, and the guy’s going to physically harm me, that I have to harm him back. You see what I’m saying? Yeah. Beause if I wasn’t hustling, if I wasn’t hooking around, I would have never had a physical problem and I wouldn’t have never had to hurt anybody. And I do have to say one thing, their families must realise that no matter how much they loved the people that died, no matter how much they love them, they were bad people because they were going to hurt me. So they have to realise the fact, that this person, no matter how much they loved them or how good they felt they were, this person was either going to physically beat me up, rape me or kill me. And I don’t know which one. And I just turned around and did my fair play before I would get hurt, see? So, I would love to say to the families. I mean, that guy’s going to… You stupid bitch. You killed my husband or whatever, you know. Or my brother or something. And I’d just have to say to them, ‘Listen, what are they going to do to me…’ I would be probably turning around if I survived it, and say, ‘You stupid bastards. You almost killed me, you almost raped me, you almost beat the shit out of me.’ So, you know, that’s how I have to look at it. I have to look at it like that, too. So I can’t really say that they were sweet… You know, I know that these guys… one guy had a weapon with him. He had a .45 and I… it was dark and he didn’t know where he put it… this is the weapon that I sold. And, uh, I don’t know where he put it. But I didn’t know he had a weapon, see, I had no idea he had a weapon, but when he started shitting on me that’s when I grabbed my gun and I started shooting. And when I was done shooting him, and I went through the car, and there was the .45 sitting on top of the hood. I think he was going to take the gun and blow my brains out. So that’s… another case. And that’s… I honestly have to say, if you’re hooking don’t do it. I mean, I could help people out so bad because I think I had… I have six chan– I had six times I almost got killed. And I killed the person, see. And I’m being very honest. Now, to recollect all this stuff is going to be hard. Because a lot of times I was drunk… and after I’d done it, you know, I’d go and get drunk so, wow, to remember everything is going be a little bit difficult. I don’t even know their names. I can’t even remember their names. |
After a break for coffee and cigarettes, Lee was introduced to Michael O’Neill, the attorney from the Volusia County Public Defender’s Office. Now the police could continue in earnest. On numerous occasions O’Neill advised her to stop talking, finally asking in exasperation, ‘Do you realise these guys are cops?’ Lee answered, ‘I know. And they want to hang me. And that’s cool, because maybe, man, I deserve it. I just want to get this over with.’
| Horzepa: | How many men have you actually shot and murdered? Shot and killed? |
| Wuornos: | Six. All I can remember. |
| Horzepa: | Six… six men that you remember? |
| Munster: | You forgot about the one [inaudible]. That makes seven. |
| Wuornos: | No, because I only did six. |
| Horzepa: | OK. |
| Munster: | Well, we’ll go over those six first. |
| Wuornos: | Right. I think there’s only six. |
| Horzepa: | OK. |
| Wuornos: | I know… I think it’s six. |
| Horzepa: | OK, well… we’ll go ahead now. |
| Wuornos: | OK, yeah, because… because if you showed me all the pictures of the guys, I can tell you, and if you show me a picture of a guy that… you know, if there’s a seventh guy, I can tell you if I did or not because… I’m being very honest with you, as much as possible. I mean I am telling you the absolute, honest to God, so help me Lord, strike me with lightning in my heart right now, if I’m not telling you the truth. |
Lee then went on to ramble for two minutes about how innocent Tyria was and what a sweet young innocent she had been while Lee had been out killing men. Then she was stopped short and asked when she aimed her shots.
| Wuornos: | I think I probably… it was… I always shot somebody, if I could, you know, as fast as I could, it would always hit right around this area. [She indicated to the centre of her chest.] Up here, right over… I always aimed to the mid-section so I know I shot them… usually it would be we both got naked and I was going to do an honest deed but I had a big fight. They… they were either going to physically fight me… either try to rape me or something or they were going to try to… you know, so they wouldn’t have to pay their… I don’t know what they were going to do. They just… started getting radical on me and I had to… do what I had to do. |
Bruce Munster and Lawrence Horzepa had heard all of this soul-washing before from Lee. Now, with her lawyer present, they wanted to get down to business. The time for delicate niceties was over.
| Munster: | OK, the guy with the .45 that you told me about before [Charles Carskaddon]. Now is he before this or after this, do you remember? |
| Wuornos: | I think he was before. He was the second guy. |
| Munster: | Oh, the guy with the Cadillac was the second guy? |
| Wuornos: | No, the guy with the .45, I shot more than… over nine times. Because I was pissed when I found the .45 on top of the car. I reloaded the gun and I shot him some more. And we were way out in the boonies there and that’s where he started getting physical. He said, ‘You fucking bitch,’ and I said, ‘You fucking bastard, you were going to blow my brains out,’ and I kept shooting him in the back seat of the car. Then I drove over to 52 and dumped the body. |
| Munster: | Was he still naked? |
| Wuornos: | He was naked. I always stripped first. Mallory never stripped. He was just going to physically fight me and get whatever he wanted. I don’t know without his pants off, but it was his trip. |
Lee went on to explain how Mallory picked her up.
| Wuornos: | All right… he asked me if I wanted to smoke a joint and I said, ‘Well, I don’t really smoke pot.’ He said, ‘You don’t mind if I smoke some?’ I said, ‘I don’t care what you do. Do whatever you feel like doing… it doesn’t bother me.’ So, he’s smoking pot and we’re going down the road and he says, ‘Do you want a drink?’ and he has, I don’t know what it was, it was tonic and some jazz. I don’t know what kind of liquor it was. So I said, ‘Sure, that sounds good to me.’ So, we’re drinking and we’re getting past Orlando and we’re getting pretty drunk now. And we’re continually going down the road and I… we’re getting drunk royal. Then I asked him if he wanted to help me make some money because I need some money for rent and everything. He was interested at the time. So we go out and we stop at this place on US 1, but we spend the whole night drinking and… you know, having fun for a little while. |
| Horzepa: | What’s ‘having fun’? |
| Wuornos: | Like… just talking. He’s smoking pot and I’m drinking and we’re talking. Then he said, ‘OK, do you want to make your money now?’ Around probably five in the morning maybe. And I said, ‘OK.’ You know, so he’s pretty drunk and I’m pretty drunk. |
| Horzepa: | Now, describe this area where you’re at. |
| Wuornos: | We’re past I-95, maybe a half mile up the road. There was a little spot that went into the woods. |
| Horzepa: | And, you’re off… which road? |
| Wuornos: | US 1. |
| Horzepa: | US 1. OK. Describe to me the spot in the woods, if you can. Was it small, large? Do you remember anything about it? |
| Wuornos: | Well, it was dark. We couldn’t hardly see to get in. |
| Horzepa: | How d’you find it? |
| Wuornos: | We kind of drove looking for this road to go in and we drove back around and we saw a road go in. |
| Horzepa: | OK, so you were looking for a cut-off in the woods. |
| Wuornos: | Right. |
| Horzepa: | A spot in the woods that was… |
| Wuornos: | Right. |
| Horzepa: | Already a trail? |
| Wuornos: | Right. |
| Horzepa: | OK. |
| Wuornos: | So we go into the woods… so he gives me the money and I start to disrobe. Now the guy’s getting really… kind of starting… now he’s going to start getting, you know, kissing on me and stuff and… anyway, he hasn’t disrobed himself at all. |
| Horzepa: | Do you know what he was wearing? |
| Wuornos: | I think he was wearing jeans and some shirt. |
| Horzepa: | Do you remember if it was long or short sleeves? |
| Wuornos: | No, I don’t remember at all. |
| Horzepa: | OK. |
| Wuornos: | OK, so, anyway, we’re in the front seat. He’s hugging and kissing on me and all this shit so then he starts, you know, pushing me down. And I said, ‘Wait a minute,’ you know, get cool. ‘You don’t have to get rough, you know. This is… let’s have fun. This is for fun, you know.’ And he’s telling me, ‘Well, baby, you know I’ve been waiting for this all night long,’ and stuff like that. |
| Horzepa: | Now where are you when this is occurring? |
| Wuornos: | In the front seat of the car. |
| Horzepa: | All right, and you’re sitting where? |
| Wuornos: | On the passenger side. |
| Horzepa: | And, he is sitting… where? |
| Wuornos: | In the driver’s seat, going against me. |
| Horzepa: | OK. He’s behind the wheel of the car? |
| Wuornos: | But he’s coming toward me. |
| Horzepa: | OK. |
| Wuornos: | The doors are open. OK. So then he’s getting really heavy, you know, on me, you know, and stuff, and I’m going like, now he’s getting to where he just wants to just, you know. Unzipped his pants, not take his pants off or anything, just start having sex and stuff. And I said, ‘Well, why don’t you just disrobe or something,’ you know? ‘I mean, why do you have to have your clothes still on?’ Then he started getting violent with me. So we’re fighting a little bit and I had my purse right on the passenger floor. |
| Horzepa: | What kid of purse did you have? |
| Wuornos: | A… a brown purse. |
| Horzepa: | Is that the same purse that you… |
| Wuornos: | Oh, no, wait. I didn’t have my brown purse. No, it’s not the one I had. I had a blue bag and it had a zip on the side. OK, and it was unzipped because I… I wanted to make sure if anything happened I… I could use my gun. Things are starting to happen where he was going to… I was thinking he was going to roll me, take my money back, beat me up, or whatever the heck he was going to do. So I jumped out of the car with my bag and I grabbed the gun and I said, ‘Get out of the car.’ And he said, ‘What… what’s going on?’ and I said, ‘You son of a bitch, I knew you were going to rape me.’ And he said, ‘No I wasn’t, no I wasn’t.’ And I said, ‘Oh, yes you were. You know you were going to try to rape me, man.’ So, anyway, I told him to step away from the car. Oh, no, no, no, I didn’t. All this and another thing, OK, I know what happ– OK, I took… I got… I jumped out of the car, yeah, he was starting to physically do stuff to me… aw, this is a different story. God. See it’s so long ago. |
| Horzepa: | It’s all right. Take your time. |
| Wuornos: | Yeah. OK, I jumped out of the car. I pulled my gun out when he started to physically do shit with me. |
| Horzepa: | Now, what type of gun did you have? |
| Wuornos: | Nine… .22 nine-shot, you know. |
| Horzepa: | Twenty-two long rifle? |
| Wuornos: | No, it’s a gun, like about this big… |
| Horzepa: | OK. Why did you keep that gun with you? |
| Wuornos: | I was keeping it for protection. |
| Horzepa: | Where did you get the gun from? |
| Wuornos: | I stole it from a guy at a house. |
| Horzepa: | How long before? |
| Wuornos: | Oh, God, I don’t know. I think it was… |
| Horzepa: | Months? Years? |
| Wuornos: | I don’t know, man, it might have been about, a couple of months ago… I might have got the gun just then. I don’t… I can’t remember. Like… like two days before or something. |
| Horzepa: | OK. That’s no problem. |
| Wuornos: | Because, I can’t remember. It’s such a long time. I did a lot of stuff in the time, you know. |
| Horzepa: | OK, so you’re back there. You jump out of the car… |
| Wuornos: | I jumped out of the car because he was physically starting to abuse me. And I remember now. He didn’t even give me any money. This was another guy. This guy, he said, ‘Well, I’ll give…’ No, I said, ‘Well, I always take my money first,’ and he said he wanted to see how the merchandise fit. |
| Horzepa: | This is what Mr Mallory told you? |
| Wuornos: | Yes. |
| Horzepa: | OK. |
| Wuornos: | So I said, ‘Well, since I’ve been talking to you all night long, I think you seem like a pretty nice guy, you know, so OK, let’s… let’s go have fun. So I started to lay down and he was going to, you know, unzip his pants. And I said, ‘Why don’t you take your clothes off?’ My God, you know, I said, ‘Well, it hurt to do that.’ Then he got pissed, calling me… He said, ‘Fuck you, baby, I’m going to screw you right here and now…’ Something like that. |
| Horzepa: | Now where are you? |
| Wuornos: | I’m in the woods with this guy and the doors are open. |
| Horzepa: | OK. |
| Wuornos: | I remember that. And I said, ‘No, no, you’re not going to just fuck me. You got to pay me.’ And he said, ‘Oh, bullshit.’ And that’s when he got pissed. Now, I’m coming back to recollection. OK, so that’s when we started fighting and everything else and I jumped out. He grabbed my bag and I grabbed my bag and the arm busted and, when I got the bag again and I pulled it out of his hand, that’s when I grabbed the pistol out. And when I grabbed the pistol out, I just shot him in the front seat. |