While Sheila Keen-Warren denied any romantic relationship at the time and was not charged immediately following the murder, she and the victim's widower became married 12 years later.
In 1990, Marlene Warren was shot to death in her West Palm Beach home by someone dressed as a clown who delivered flowers and a balloon that read, “You’re the greatest” to the house. More than 30 years later, the new wife of Marlene Warren's husband has pleaded guilty to her killing.
After a part of a plea deal in which she pleaded guilty to second-degree murder, Sheila Keen-Warren will serve at least 16 months in prison in addition to the six years she spent awaiting trial. It's a prison sentence that gives Marlene’s son, Joseph Ahrens, the closure he has been looking for over the years.
“Now she can rest,” he said in an interview with "20/20."
Ahrens was 21 when his mom was slain in front of him. The last thing he heard her say was “Oh, how pretty,” he told "20/20."
"And then I heard a bang,” Ahrens said. “My mother was gunned down. Murdered by a clown.”
Suspicion quickly fell upon Sheila, who police believed was having an affair with Marlene’s husband. Both Sheila and Michael Warren, Marlene’s widower, denied any romantic relationship at the time, and the case went cold.
But to the shock of many, Sheila and Michael wed 12 years later. They moved to Virginia and started a new life.
Sheila was arrested in 2017 when her hair fiber was found in a white convertible that police said served as the getaway car for the clown after Marlene's murder. Shelia pleaded guilty and signed a plea deal agreeing to a 12-year sentence.
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