True crime: A killer looking for women's hormones slays baby-sitter, mother of two
This story is part of a true crime series by The Palm Beach Post.
Victims: Karen Slattery, 14, and Georgianna Worden, 38
Killer: Duane Owen
Where: Slattery in Delray Beach, Worden in Boca Raton
Dates: March 24, 1984 (Slattery); May 29, 1984 (Worden)
Karen Slattery's and Georgianna Worden's killings in 1984 is part of a new True Crime series by The Palm Beach Post.
Karen Slattery, 14, loved being a babysitter and was much in demand. The Pope John Paul High freshman was also a diving star, scheduled to try out for the U.S. team.
She'd just had her braces off in March 1984 when her life ended in horrendous fashion.
More: Duane Owen execution: Did Karen Slattery's younger sister find a rainbow in killer's death?
.
Duane Owen cut through a bedroom screen at a home where the teen was watching a 7-year-old and 3-year-old and confronted her in the kitchen. She had called her mom at 10 p.m. but was dead by 12:30 when the children's parents found her. Owen had stabbed the girl 18 times then raped her. The children were unharmed.
About two months later, Georgianna Worden, 38, an executive secretary and mother of two children who was separated from her husband, was sleeping when she awoke to a hammer coming down on her head. Owen struck her four more times on the head and face. He also raped her after he got into the Boca Raton home in May 1984. Court documents say she may have been alive up to an hour after the first blow.
Her 13-year-old daughter found Worden, posed, the next morning before she went to school.
Both were not Owens' only victims. Two Boca Raton women were hit in their homes with blunt objects ‒ a plumber's wrench and a clothing iron – but they survived.
In Worden's murder, police found a fingerprint on a copy of Mistral's Daughter by Judith Krantz, which was lying on her bedside table.
Owen's court journey lasted decades after he was initially convicted and sentenced to death in 1985 for Slattery's killing. Representing him were famed defense attorneys Michael Salnick and Barry Krischer, who went on to become Palm Beach County state attorney for 16 years. Owen got the same sentence in 1986 for killing Worden.
More: 3 former South Florida journalists covered executions. What they saw, in their own words.
Then the appeals began. Owen said police officers improperly "Mirandized" him. He got a new trial in 1999 in Slattery's death where he claimed he was insane, looking for hormones that night so he could become a woman. The jury didn't buy it and sentenced him again to death.
Owen appealed the verdict in the 1999 trial, saying his lawyer failed to enter into evidence the tale of his childhood with an alcoholic mother who died when he was 11, a father who killed himself when Owen was 13 and his own drinking and drugging since he was 9.
Childhood friends described Owen's alcoholic parents.
"It was the only house I know to have beer delivered by a beer truck," said a neighborhood friend.
As recently as 2017, Owen appealed the Slattery verdict again after a Florida Supreme Court ruling frowning on death sentences that didn't arise from an unanimous jury recommendation.
Palm Beach County Circuit Judge Glenn Kelley in 2018 denied him a new trial. In 2020, the Florida Supreme Court agreed.
Owen was executed in 2023. Her refused to say anything before he died, but afterward one of his victim's families sure did.
Slattery's younger sister, who was 10 at the time of her murder, said the state of Florida took far too long to carry out Owen's sentence.
"Thirty-nine in this process is finally over," Debbi Johnson, now a deputy sheriff in Monroe County, read from a statement. "March 24, 1984, Owen attempted to write the final chapter in Karen's book or so he thought. Karen lives on in her community, her friends, her family and, most importantly, her legacy."
Holly Baltz is the investigations at The Palm Beach Post. You can reach her at hbaltz@pbpost.com. Support local investigative journalism. Subscribe today.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: True crime: Florida man seeks hormones, kills baby-sitter, mother of 2
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Yahoo
The ‘Highly Unusual' Case Of The Midwife Arrested For Violating Texas' Abortion Law
Maria Rojas, a Houston-area midwife, was arrested in March for allegedly violating Texas' near-total abortion ban. She was held for 10 days in the samejail where Sandra Bland died after a routine traffic stop in 2015. Rojas was able to post the exorbitant $1.4 million bail, but her phone was seized and her license was stripped — and with it her ability to make an income. She was court-ordered to wear a tracking device. 'In Texas, life is sacred. I will always do everything in my power to protect the unborn,' Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a leading anti-abortion advocate who recently announced his bid for a U.S. Senate seat, proudly boasted about the arrest. But three months later, Rojas has not been formally charged with a crime — putting her in an excruciating limbo where she's unable to make money, but forced to pay for a costly legal defense with little public evidence against her. It's standard practice for a criminal complaint to be filed shortly after someone is arrested. But in an unusual move, Rojas was held on an arrest warrant. Without a formal indictment or any criminal discovery from the state, Rojas can't begin preparing her defense. 'Mrs. Rojas remains unindicted for any crime. Meanwhile, she remains under exceedingly restrictive bond conditions, and she is prohibited from doing the lawful work as a midwife she was doing before these specious allegations against her were made,' Nicole Hochglaube, Rojas' defense attorney, told HuffPost. Reproductive rights are under attack. HuffPost is committed to reporting the truth, amplifying voices, and covering this fight with depth and care. Support our work by today. It's 'really unusual' to be arrested but not indicted, C. Melissa Owen, first vice president at the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, told HuffPost. 'It was highly unusual 10 days after she had been arrested, and it is exceptionally unusual now,' said Owen, who is also the co-chair of the NACDL's task force on policing and overcriminalization of pregnancy. The Texas Office of the Attorney General did not respond to HuffPost's request for comment. Attorneys representing Paxton's office also did not respond to a request for comment. This has not only been a difficult time for Rojas and her family, but also the primarily Spanish-speaking, low-income community Rojas once served, Hochglaube said. The midwife owned and operated several health clinics in the Houston area, all of which have been temporarily closed by a court order in a civil case brought by Paxton's office. 'We look forward to clearing her of these allegations but remain in a damaging holding pattern waiting for any specifics about these claims from the State of Texas,' Hochglaube said. Without an indictment, Rojas is left in a sort of no man's land where due process has been put on hold. 'There is no possibility of due process for her in this current state,' Owen said. 'Rights only become meaningful through due process. You can't do anything about an arrest unless you can challenge it.' The 30-page arrest affidavit filed by Paxton's office is currently the only evidence from the state outlining Rojas' alleged crimes. The investigation into Rojas' clinics began with an anonymous complaint to Texas Health and Human Services in January. The attorney general's office investigated and arrested Rojas and another worker on charges of practicing medicine without a license. Weeks later, they were arrested again on charges of performing an illegal abortion. State investigators surveilled the clinics for a little over a month earlier this year after the anonymous complaint alleged that two women received illegal abortions from Rojas in September 2023 and January 2025. One of the two women later confirmed to investigators that she received an abortion from Rojas, according to the arrest warrant. A third woman told investigators that Rojas presented herself as a gynecologist and may have provided a medication abortion to the woman after Rojas said she would not be able to carry the pregnancy to term. The arrest affidavit stated that investigators seized a bottle of misoprostol and $2,900 in cash from Rojas' car. The main investigator wrote that he knew, 'based on training and experience, that misoprostol is an abortifacient commonly used to induce medical abortions.' Last month, Rojas was able to tell her side of the story in an appeal brief in the civil suit. Her attorneys painted a very different picture, accusing Paxton's office of conjecture and a politically motivated investigation that proves nothing. 'The Attorney General boasts that he has caught a 'Houston-Area Abortionist' and has shut down 'Clinics Providing Illegal Abortions.' But there's a snag: it isn't true,' Rojas' attorneys wrote in the brief. 'In the Attorney General Office's rush to find and prosecute someone for violating the State's total abortion ban, it conducted a shoddy investigation and leapt to wild conclusions.' Witness statements in the arrest warrant 'do not show that an abortion was knowingly provided or attempted,' Rojas' attorneys wrote in the civil appeal. They argue that investigators' main witness — the third woman who alleges Rojas may have provided a medication abortion — was given one misoprostol tablet, which is one-fourth of the dose needed for a full medication abortion. Rojas likely believed the woman was experiencing a miscarriage and gave her misoprostol, the standard protocol for miscarriage care. The main investigator, who is a Medicaid fraud investigator, seized a small number of misoprostol pills from Rojas' car, but didn't note that misoprostol is commonly used for other medical issues, most notably during labor and delivery of a baby. The affidavit states several times that Rojas had $2,900 in cash and the clinics accepted cash payment. The investigator noted that he knows 'cash-based and digital peer-to-peer transactions are frequently used in unlicensed medical operations to avoid financial scrutiny and regulatory oversight,' but he did not note that people who are uninsured or have immigration concerns are more likely to use cash. Marc Hearron, the lead lawyer on Rojas' civil case and an attorney with the Center for Reproductive Rights, said he's stunned by what's happening to Rojas. 'If the state can do this shoddy investigation, get an arrest warrant and throw you in jail, just by saying the word 'abortion,' without even actually having the evidence to back it up — any health care provider is at risk in the state of Texas,' he told HuffPost. Owen, from NACDL, speculated that there are likely two main reasons for the state's delay in indicting Rojas. The first is that the evidence Paxton's office has gathered wouldn't survive the test of probable cause. The second is that they do have probable cause but there is something suspect about the evidence they've gathered or how they obtained it. The lack of formal criminal charges isn't the only exceptional thing about this case. It's also unusual that Paxton's office is directly responsible for investigating Rojas. The attorney general's office in Texas doesn't have the power to prosecute someone on criminal charges; the office needs to be invited by a local district attorney. Rojas was arrested in Waller County, where Sean Whittmore, the local district attorney, is a former employee of Paxton's. Rafa Kidvai, an attorney with the Repro Legal Defense Fund, pointed to Paxton's involvement in the case, a general lack of evidence against Rojas and the bail amount as reasons that they believe this is a political prosecution. Abortion criminalization cases often do set higher bail amounts, said Kidvai, because abortion is a politically charged issue. For example, women who miscarry into a toilet and flush fetal remains have been charged with abuse of a corpse. But even within that context, Rojas' bail amount for allegedly performing an illegal abortion, a second-degree felony in Texas, was 'inordinately high,' Kidvai said. The average bail amount for a second-degree felony in Waller County is around $36,000, according to 2024 public records. Rojas' bail was set at $1.4 million. 'This sort of cruelty by procedure that happens is exactly what we need to be talking about,' Kidvai said. 'If you lose all your financial support or your income, how do you fight the case? Attorneys cost money, going to court costs money, childcare costs money, therapy costs money. Criminal cases are inordinately expensive for people to take on themselves.' Kidvai has worked on many pregnancy and abortion criminalization cases including several in Texas. When someone is accused of these types of crimes, often because of pregnancy loss, their community turns on them. They lose employment, they're at risk of losing custody of their children, and sometimes there are immigration consequences. Rojas spent 10 days in jail before she paid her $1.4 million bail. She was able to pay the bond with the help of bail funds, organizations that provide financial assistance so people can be released from jail before trial. The $1.4 million bail amount signals 'that they want to punish somebody and never actually give this person the opportunity to defend themselves,' Owen said. 'Absent that bail fund, she would be serving a sentence and having no chance to test whether or not there is even a crime here.'
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Yahoo
Elsmere city councilwoman resigns after alleged misconduct and missed meetings
Hours before her fate as a council member was set to be determined at a June 4 meeting, an Elsmere city councilwoman resigned from her position effective immediately, according to an email sent to The Enquirer and other city council members. Serena Owen, who was serving her second term on Elsmere's city council submitted her letter of resignation after months during which she was accused of misconduct and missed meetings. "I am writing to formally submit my resignation from my position as a Councilwoman for the City of Elsmere, effective immediately," Owen wrote. "This decision has not been made lightly but is necessitated by the escalating challenges that have profoundly impacted my ability to serve effectively and safely," Owen said her resignation comes as a result of her fear of being shot at a public meeting by a man she claims has harassed her online, and her "repeated and justified requests for a minimal inexpensive ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) hybrid video teleconference accommodation to attend council meetings virtually (free Zoom/Teams link)" being dismissed. In March, the six-member Elsmere City Council unanimously voted to begin proceedings to remove Owen from office. Since then, they've announced seven charges against her including willful negligence and misconduct. A public meeting was set to be held June 4 from 6-7 p.m. to discuss the removal of Owen from her position on the council. The Enquirer reached out to the City of Elsmere's city clerk Katie Hehman, who declined to confirm the resignation. This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Northern Kentucky councilwoman resigns from her position
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Yahoo
East Lothian man 'knew he was different growing up' and diagnosis made perfect sense
An East Lothian dad of two who was diagnosed with autism late in life found community at a "life-changing" men's group. Owen Siddalls, 48, always knew he was different from other kids growing up but it wasn't until decades later when another family member was diagnosed with autism that Owen realised he was neurodivergent. He received a formal diagnosis at age 44 and opened up to Edinburgh Live about his journey building a community. READ MORE: Edinburgh firefighters rush to scene of incident on residential street READ MORE: Film crew descends on Edinburgh city centre for 90s classic movie remake Owen said: "My late diagnosis came as a result of a diagnosis of someone close to me and at that point I then learned about it being hereditary. "The diagnosis itself was enlightening in many ways but didn't change who I was and how my mind was wired, it just allowed me to understand more." Owen, who lives in Pentcaitland, noticed his fitness and mental health were deteriorating after as he and his wife started a family and his role as a husband and new father began to change. However, things changed after Owen discovered a community group aimed at boosting men's mental health and fitness. Dads and Dudes was formed by Alan Nash in Longniddry in 2022 and has grown into a large community of men who meet regularly to improve their health and fitness. According to Mental Health UK, men are more likely than women to experience substance abuse, exhibit violence, and to die by suicide. Societal pressures often deter men from seeking help and instead encourage them to "man up", says the charity. The group offers a safe space for men to vent, talk about problems, and find community. Owen added: "The self-social exclusion that I've created in my mind, I came to realise that what Dads and Dudes allows for is all sorts of people and all sorts of mannerisms. It offers a group of guys to put aside having to watch what they're saying in front of their partners and kids and get stuff out of their system. "It's like therapy, it's just to vocalize what's going on. It's to help us share frustrations in safe group where if you wanted to say something, it's not going to be overanalyzed. 'I think I am a happier person. It has improved my mental health and my ability to handle things thrown at me which I previously would have squandered under. 'It helps demystify the concept of men and mental health and not talking about things. There is a degree go collectiveness that the sessions offer. We don't all need to be social butterflies.' Dads and Dudes meets weekly across East Lothian and Edinburgh, offering physical training sessions where men can make social connections. Founder Alan Nash told Edinburgh Live the community was "life changing" for him. He launched the group after he realised he was lonely training on his own. It began with just a few men meeting in Alan's garden and has grown to a group of 50 to 100 members per session. He said: "There is a bit of demand for men to have place to feel confortable and turn up and talk without judgement. It's been life changing to the point of new friends I've got. "We've found role models in the community for the kids, people who can look after each other. It's something I'm proud to have started and keep going." Join Edinburgh Live's Whatsapp Community here and get the latest news sent straight to your messages.
