close
close

Killer clown who murdered the wife of the man she later married released after 7 years behind bars: ‘It’s unfair,’ says son

Killer clown who murdered the wife of the man she later married released after 7 years behind bars: ‘It’s unfair,’ says son

Sheila Keen-Warren, 61, pleaded guilty to the 1990 murder of Marlene Warren, a woman who was married to a man with whom she was having an affair

Lannis Waters/The Palm Beach Post via ZUMA Wire Sheila Keen-WarrenLannis Waters/The Palm Beach Post via ZUMA Wire Sheila Keen-Warren

Lannis Waters/The Palm Beach Post via ZUMA Wire

Sheila Keen-Warren

A Florida woman convicted of wearing a clown costume and fatally shooting the wife of the man she was supposed to marry was released from prison on Saturday, November 2, according to the Florida Department of Corrections.

Sheila Keen-Warren, 61, was convicted in April 2023 of second-degree murder in connection with the 1990 shooting death of Marlene Warren, 40, of Wellington.

Detained in 2017, she initially pleaded not guilty to murder charges. However, in April 2023, she reached a deal with prosecutors, agreeing to plead guilty to second-degree murder.

Sentenced to 12 years in prison, she was released from prison 18 months after entering prison in May 2023, according to online records from the Office of Criminal Justice. Florida Department of Corrections.

She was released early because she had been in custody for seven years after her 2017 arrest and a 1990 Florida law gave significant credit for good behavior, according to Related press.

Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office Marlene Warren; Painting a Clown by Marlene WarrenPalm Beach County Sheriff's Office Marlene Warren; Painting a Clown by Marlene Warren

Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office

Marlena Warren; Painting a Clown by Marlene Warren

Initially, it was expected that he would be released about two years after serving his sentence, AP reports.

Warren’s son, Joseph Ahrens, who was present when Keen-Warren shot his mother, is upset that she is out of prison.

“There is no justice there,” he tells PEOPLE. “It’s not fair. It wasn’t a complete shutdown.”

Ahrens tells his story in the next episode People Magazine is investigating. Titled “Sex. Clowns. Murder” – the episode will be broadcast on Monday, November 4 at 9:8 on the ID/Investigation Discovery program and will be broadcast on the Max platform.

This story was also featured in the November 11 issue of People Magazine, on newsstands now.

Related: Florida mom Marlene Warren loved clowns. But the One who knocked on her door was a killer

On the morning of May 26, 1990, Marlene opened the door of her Wellington home to what appeared to be a delivery man dressed as a clown with balloons and a basket of flowers. A moment later, the attacker shot Marlena in the mouth, calmly approached the LeBaron parked in the driveway and drove away.

Authorities for years suspected Keen-Warren, then 26, of having an affair with Marlene’s husband, Michael Warren, but said they did not have enough evidence to convict her at the time.

They married in Las Vegas in 2002, after Michael spent three years in prison for theft, racketeering and tampering with the odometer of cars he sold at a used car dealership. They moved to a five-bedroom lake house in Abingdon, Virginia, where Keen-Warren went by the stage name Debbie.

Michael Warren and Sheila Keen WarrenMichael Warren and Sheila Keen Warren

Michael Warren and Sheila Keen Warren

In 2014, dogged Palm Beach County investigators reopened the case after receiving a federal grant to solve cold cases using new DNA technology.

Related: How a suspected ‘killer clown’ was caught 27 years later

Authorities said advances in DNA technology allowed them to prove that the brown hair found in LeBaron belonged to Keen-Warren.

Courtesy of Palm Beach County Sheriff via ZUMA Wire; Photos of Michael Warren and Sheila Keen-Warren from the Southwest Virginia Regional JailCourtesy of Palm Beach County Sheriff via ZUMA Wire; Photos of Michael Warren and Sheila Keen-Warren from the Southwest Virginia Regional Jail

Courtesy of Palm Beach County Sheriff via ZUMA Wire; Southwest Virginia Regional Jail

Photos by Michael Warren and Sheila Keen-Warren

Want to stay up to date with the latest crime news? Register PEOPLEfree True Crime newsletter for breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases.

Palm Beach County State’s Attorney Dave Aronberg had harsh words for Keen-Warren’s release from prison.

“Sheila Keen-Warren will always be a convicted murderer and will carry that stain every day for the rest of her life,” Aronberg said in a statement Saturday.

Her lawyer, Greg Rosenfeld, told the AP that he and his client are excited about her release.

Related: A Florida mom opened the door to a clown who shot her at point-blank range. Who killed Marlena Warren?

“We are absolutely thrilled that Ms. Keen-Warren has been released from prison and is returning to her family,” Rosenfeld told the AP. “As we have stated from the beginning, she did not commit this crime.”

Ke-Warren faced life in prison if convicted at trial. Rosenfeld told the AP she agreed to a 2023 plea deal because she will be released in less than two years.

This bizarre story will be the subject of the next episode People magazine investigates: sex. Clowns. Murder broadcast on Monday, November 4 at 9:8 on the ID/Investigation Discovery program and broadcasts on the Max platform.