The Case of Charles Carskaddon

Charles Carskaddon, a 40-year-old rodeo worker, was murdered by Aileen Wuornos in Florida on 31 May 1990. His body was discovered several days later near State Road 52 in Pasco County with multiple gunshot wounds. Wuornos later confessed to the killing and received another death sentence after pleading no contest to his murder.

Charles Edmund Carskaddon was a 40-year-old rodeo worker from Florida who also performed various labouring jobs. On 31 May 1990, he encountered Aileen Wuornos while travelling through central Florida. Carskaddon became the third known man killed by Wuornos, his death occurring less than two weeks after the disappearance of construction worker David Spears. The precise circumstances surrounding their encounter remain uncertain. Wuornos was living a transient lifestyle and supporting herself through sex work along Florida's highways. She later admitted shooting Carskaddon but, as with her other victims, gave varying explanations for her actions. Wuornos initially maintained that the men she killed had assaulted, attempted to sexually assault or threatened her and that she acted to protect herself. Prosecutors rejected her broader claims of self-defence and alleged that robbery was a central motive behind the series of killings. After shooting Carskaddon, Wuornos took property belonging to him and left his body in an isolated location.

Carskaddon's body was discovered on 6 June 1990 near State Road 52 in Pasco County. He had been shot multiple times with a .22-calibre firearm. Investigators recovered ballistic evidence from the scene that later became important as authorities compared his murder with other killings occurring across Florida. The secluded location, firearm used and removal of the victim's possessions shared characteristics with the murders of Richard Mallory and David Spears. By this stage, three men had been killed within approximately six months under circumstances that would eventually be connected to the same offender.

Initially, investigators had no identified suspect in Carskaddon's murder. As additional male motorists disappeared or were found murdered during 1990, law enforcement agencies across several Florida counties began comparing their cases. Investigators recognised a developing pattern. Victims were encountered while travelling, their bodies were abandoned in secluded locations, several had been repeatedly shot with a .22-calibre firearm, and vehicles or personal property were taken following their deaths. Evidence from later cases eventually led authorities towards Aileen Wuornos and her girlfriend, Tyria Moore. Police traced property belonging to victims through pawn shops and other transactions. Wuornos had used identification and left fingerprints while disposing of stolen property, providing investigators with direct evidence connecting her to items belonging to the murdered men. Following Wuornos's arrest in January 1991, Moore cooperated with investigators and participated in recorded telephone conversations intended to obtain information about the killings. Wuornos subsequently confessed to killing seven men, including Charles Carskaddon.

After her January 1992 conviction for the murder of Richard Mallory, Wuornos began resolving several of the remaining cases through pleas rather than separate jury trials. In March 1992, she pleaded no contest to the murders of Charles Carskaddon, David Spears and Troy Burress. Wuornos received additional death sentences for the killings. She eventually received six death sentences for six of the seven deaths attributed to her. The seventh case did not result in a murder prosecution because the victim's body was never recovered. Wuornos remained incarcerated on Florida's death row until she was executed by lethal injection on 9 October 2002.