The Couple Who Adopted a Serial Killer — The Strange Story of Aileen Wuornos and Her “Parents”
It’s one of those stories that sounds almost impossible to believe — a Florida couple adopting a convicted serial killer in her mid-thirties. But that’s exactly what Arlene and Robert Pralle did when they decided to adopt Aileen Wuornos, one of America’s most infamous female murderers. The decision sparked disbelief and outrage, yet for Arlene, it was something she said came straight from divine intervention.
Arlene and Robert had struggled for years to have a child of their own. When it became clear that conceiving wasn’t possible, they turned to the idea of adoption. But never in their wildest dreams did they imagine they’d become “parents” to a woman already behind bars for multiple murders. As Arlene recalled, she first saw Aileen’s photo in a local Ocala newspaper, alongside a story about the so-called “Damsel of Death.” Strangely, that image gave her “butterflies.” She claimed she felt a pull — something beyond reason.
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Arlene, a devout born-again Christian, later said she was mowing her lawn when she heard a message from Jesus telling her to reach out to the woman in the photograph. “Jesus asked me to contact her,” she said in Netflix’s recent documentary, describing that moment as clear and undeniable. She wrote Aileen a letter, sharing her faith and offering kindness when the world had condemned her. That simple act began an unlikely relationship — one that ended in adoption.
For Arlene, adopting Aileen wasn’t about fame or shock value. She said she believed God wanted her to “help” Aileen’s soul, to give her the love and understanding she never had. “It was awesome. I mean, just unbelievable,” she later reflected.
By that point, Aileen Wuornos had already confessed to killing seven men between 1989 and 1990, most of whom she encountered while working as a sex worker along Florida’s highways. She claimed that the first murder, of a man named Richard Mallory, was done in self-defense after he allegedly assaulted her. But police soon tied her to several other killings — all sharing similar circumstances. Evidence, including forensic details and a taped confession from her girlfriend Tyria Moore, led to her arrest and conviction.
During questioning, Aileen didn’t plead for mercy. “I know what I did,” she said. “Go ahead and put the electric chair to me.” Her words shocked even seasoned officers. Yet before her execution, she insisted that she wasn’t born evil — only lost and broken.
In the end, Arlene’s adoption of Wuornos became one of the most baffling footnotes in true crime history — a blend of faith, tragedy, and a desperate attempt at redemption. Whether one views it as compassion or madness, it remains a chilling reminder of how love and belief can take the most unexpected forms.
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