Plea deal ends killer clown case in Florida.
In a case that has captivated both Floridians and the general public for over three decades, Sheila Keen-Warren, the wife of Marlene Warren’s husband, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder on Tuesday. The incident occurred in 1990 when Keen-Warren, dressed as a clown, came to Marlene Warren’s door, handed her carnations and balloons, and then shot her dead in front of her son. Palm Beach County sheriff’s investigators have long suspected Keen-Warren of being the shooter, and she has been jailed awaiting trial since 2017 when DNA evidence matched a hair found in the clown’s getaway car to her. Her plea deal will result in a 12-year sentence, but because of the time she has already served and the possibility of good behavior and early release, Keen-Warren is expected to be free in no more than two years.
Despite her guilty plea, Keen-Warren still maintains her innocence. Her attorney, Greg Rosenfeld, believes that the state’s case was falling apart and that his client had no choice but to accept the plea deal. Rosenfeld cited the fact that one DNA sample included both male and female genes, while the other could have come from Marlene Warren herself or one out of every 20 women. Additionally, Ahrens and another witness both claimed that the car found by deputies wasn’t the killer’s, contradicting investigators’ reports.
Initially, prosecutors had sought the death penalty for the crime, but eventually dropped this request. The sentencing of Keen-Warren to second-degree murder, rather than first-degree murder, could be attributed to holes in the case, which led to a plea deal. Palm Beach County State Attorney Dave Aronberg admits that the case had some unresolved issues. The case also had to withstand a variety of legal disputes, including difficulties presented by the COVID-19 pandemic and a challenge to crucial evidence.
Marlene Warren’s son, Joseph Ahrens, who was present when his mother was murdered, was watching the plea hearing online. He had only one message for the court and for Sheila Keen-Warren: may God be with her. This sentiment captured the result of a case that shocked the community and brought national attention to the concept of wrongful conviction. Michael Warren, Marlene Warren’s husband, was convicted of grand theft, racketeering, and odometer tampering unrelated to his wife’s murder in 1994. He is yet to be charged with any crime related to his wife’s death.
