Florida killer clown case closes after 33 years with surprise plea deal
One morning in May 1990, a clown came to Marlene Warren’s door, handed her carnations and balloons, then shot her dead in front of her son.
In West Palm Beach on Tuesday, in a secretive lunch-break deal, her husband’s alleged mistress and future wife finally pleaded guilty to being the killer, even though she still insists she is innocent. The surprise move closed a case strange even by Florida standards.
In a deal that will probably see her released from prison within a year, Sheila Keen-Warren, 59, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder.
Long suspected of being the shooter, she has been jailed awaiting trial for first-degree murder since 2017, when Palm Beach county sheriff’s investigators said improvements in DNA technology proved a hair found in the clown’s getaway car came from her.
Trial was set to start next month. If convicted, Keen-Warren would have received a life sentence. Prosecutors sought a death sentence but dropped it.
No public notice was given for the plea hearing in West Palm Beach on Tuesday, which would have drawn reporters and spectators. Instead, it was handled quietly during the judge’s lunch break from another murder trial.
The Palm Beach county state attorney, Dave Aronberg, said the plea deal “obtained a measure of justice” for Marlene Warren and her son.
“Sheila Keen-Warren has finally been forced to admit that she was the one who dressed as a clown and took the life of an innocent victim. She will be a convicted murderer for the rest of her days,” Aronberg said.
Keen-Warren’s lawyer, Greg Rosenfeld, said: “The state of Florida originally wanted to execute her, but now she is going home in 10 months. While it was difficult to plead guilty to a crime she did not commit, it was kind of a nobrainer when there is a guarantee that you will be home with your family.”
Rosenfeld described “an incredible win for Ms Keen-Warren”. The deal calls for a 12-year sentence but Keen-Warren has served six awaiting trial. Also, in 1990 Florida law allowed significant time off for good behavior, so Rosenfeld said he expected release early next year.
Aronberg’s office said Keen-Warren would be in prison at least two more years.
Marlene Warren’s son, Joseph Ahrens, watched the Tuesday proceeding online. Only 21 when he saw his