.
By age eleven, Alieen had a close, yet dysfunctional, relationship with her brother, and they began having sexual relations with each other. It was not too long after she began having sex with her brother that she engaged in sexual activities with other neighborhood boys. Quickly she realized that she could exchange sexual favors in exchange for things she wanted. She would exchange sex for pocket change and cigarettes, earning her the nicknames of "Cigarette Pig"" and "Cigarette Bandit" " (Russell, 2002, para. 17). After having sex with a number of neighborhood boys, Aileen became pregnant at the age of fourteen. Nearly six months pregnant, Aileen claims that she had been raped by an older man in the neighborhood. Lauri then sent Aileen to a home for unwed mothers where she would then give birth to a baby boy which she would immediately give up for adoption. At the age of fifteen, Aileen returned home to her grandparents only to be thrown out. That same year her grandmother, Britta, passed away of liver failure. She then began her cross country spree of crime and prostitution.
The troubled teen headed west, hitchhiking her way to Colorado and participating in the dangerous act of prostitution along the way. According to friends and family, Aileen believed that was the only thing she was good at and the only way to earn a living. When Aileen left Michigan, she quickly found herself in trouble with the law. She was arrested in Jefferson County, Colorado for disorderly conduct, driving under the influence of alcohol, and firing a gun from a moving vehicle. She then returned to Michigan, incurring additional charges of failure to appear. Once back in Michigan, Aileen was arrested for assault, disturbing the peace, and previous charges of driving without a license and DUI. After paying her debt to society in Michigan, Aileen decided to head south to Florida.
In Florida, Aileen continued to engage in a life of prostitution, drugs, and alcohol.
