Who Is Aileen Wuornos' Adoptive Mom? Inside Arlene Pralle’s Unlikely Bond with the Late Serial Killer By Christopher Rudolph

Aileen Wuornos didn’t have a relationship with her mother and father, but at the age of 35, she was welcomed into Arlene and Robert Pralle’s family.

In December 1991, Arlene told the Los Angeles Times that adopting Aileen was “the most painful road I’ve ever taken,” but she believed God “brought” Aileen into her life.

The late female serial killer, who murdered seven men in Florida from 1989 to 1990, is the subject of the Netflix documentary, Aileen: Queen of the Serial Killers, which debuted on Oct. 30.

The film covers Aileen’s life, including her arrest and murder trial. Still, not every element of her story is explored in the documentary, including how she was adopted while in prison.

So, who is Aileen Wuornos’ adoptive mom? Here’s what to know about Arlene Pralle and where she is now.

Arlene adopted Aileen in 1991

Arlene and her husband, Robert, adopted Aileen in 1991, after she was arrested and incarcerated.

“The reason we did it is we want her to know what it feels like to have a family that really cares about her,” Arlene told the Tampa Bay Times in November 1991. “We are her legal mother and father.”

Arlene was 44 when she adopted Aileen, who was 35 at the time and called “Lee” by the Pralles.

“We’ve been called everything in the books over the last few months,” Arlene told the Los Angeles Times. “We just want Lee to have a family who cares about her and is not going to hurt her.”

She added, “[Aileen] has a heart of gold, and even after all she’s been through, she’s given so much to me.”

Arlene felt “God brought” her and Aileen together

After learning about Aileen’s arrest, Arlene “felt completely prompted by God to reach out to” the serial killer, according to the Tampa Bay Times.

“I told her, ‘You’re going to think I’m crazy, but Jesus himself told me to write to you,’ ” said Arlene.

In the 1992 documentary Aileen: The Selling of a Serial Killer, Arlene revealed that Aileen asked God to send “a Christian woman” to her.

“When she first got arrested, she went and said, ‘God, if you are real, send a Christian woman into my life to befriend me through this mess,’ ” Arlene recalled. “So she got my letter, and it was like instant explosion … here’s this person. So, that’s how it started.”

Arlene paid weekly visits to Aileen in jail and spoke on the phone with her every night, per the Los Angeles Times, which noted that Arlene had racked up “$4,000 in phone bills” talking to Aileen.

“We don’t talk about the case,” she told the Los Angeles Times. “But in my heart, I know that Lee is not a serial killer. … She cares about other people more than herself. God has brought us together.”

Ten years before adopting Aileen, Arlene became a born-again Christian in 1981 after she attempted suicide twice.

Arlene was adopted herself, and raised on Long Island

Arlene herself was adopted, and she grew up on Long Island, per the Los Angeles Times.

The Pralles had no children of their own when they decided to adopt Aileen, whom they believed was not guilty of the murders.

“It makes no difference to myself or my husband whether she’s guilty or innocent,” she told the Tampa Bay Times. “She is still a human being and deserves to have a friend.”

She is an animal lover

Arlene and Robert ran a horse farm, where they bred Tennessee walking horses, according to the Los Angeles Times.

The newspaper reported that the couple bought a 35-acre farm in 1990 for the cause. At the same time, Robert worked as an equipment engineer for Sony.

These days, Arlene’s love for animals is featured on her Instagram, where she posts pictures of her cats.

According to the 2003 documentary, Aileen: Life and Death of a Serial Killer, Arlene and Aileen had planned to “run a horse ranch and raise she-wolves.”

Shortly after Aileen was charged with first-degree murder in the deaths of six men on Jan. 27, 1992, she was sentenced to death. A decade later, she was executed by lethal injection on Oct. 9, 2002, per the Associated Press (via The New York Times).

She lives in Florida with her husband of over 50 years

Arlene and Robert live in Florida, but they previously resided in Alabama, per her Instagram.

The pair have been married for 51 years, according to an Instagram post from April 2025, in which Arlene wished a happy 80th birthday to Robert.

The year before, in April 2024, Arlene posted another Instagram photo about her husband, writing, “I cannot believe this wonderful man put up with me all these years.”

“And not only me but every furry or feathered friend I came home with,” she continued. “He is one in a million, and I am so blessed to call him my husband, my best friend. ♥️🎉.”

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Arlene has appeared in previous documentaries about Aileen

Aileen: Queen of the Serial Killers is the latest documentary about Aileen, but there have been others that have also featured Arlene, like 2003’s Aileen: Life and Death of a Serial Killer.

In addition, Aileen’s adoptive mother was seen in the 1992 documentary, Aileen: The Selling of a Serial Killer. The film opens with Arlene refusing to participate in an interview.