Aileen Carol Wuornos, known as Lee to her friends, was born on February 29, 1956, in Rochester, Michigan. As detailed in Lethal Intent by Sue Russell, Wuornos spent the first decade of her life believing that her grandparents, Lauri and Britta Wuornos, were her birth parents. In truth, Aileen and her brother Keith were the children of Lauri and Britta's daughter Diane. In 1953, Diane, then just 14, married 17-year-old Leo Pittman. Ten months later, their first child, a boy they named Keith, was born.
The marriage was marked with abuse and jealousy. Pittman, bent on controlling his young wife's life, forbade Diane from leaving home while he worked a variety of jobs, ranging from gardening to making chrome car bumpers. Pittman was also a petty thief who graduated to more serious crimes. Arrested for auto theft, Pittman was given the choice between jail time and enlisting in the Army. He left for basic training in 1955. With Pittman away, Diane, already pregnant with Aileen, filed for divorce.
When Aileen was two, Diane Wuornos abandoned her children, leaving them in the care of friends. Lauri and Britta Wuornos soon adopted Aileen and Keith and rarely spoke of Diane, considering her the family's shame. After several rebuffed attempts at rejoining her family, Diane Wuornos would remarry and have two more children.
Leo Pittman, who never had any contact with his daughter, returned to crime after his stint in the Army. A convicted sex offender, he committed suicide in prison.
