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The stories we see play out on our screens are often inspired by true events, but — despite its stark similarities to the 1987 film — Carolyn Warmus wasn’t actually inspired by fiction when she committed the Fatal Attraction murder.
The case was closely followed in the early ’90s, when the then-25-year-old Warmus faced charges that mirrored the events of James Dearden’s award-winning film. Warmus ultimately served major jail time following the 1989 murder of Betty Jeanne Solomon, and it was all sparked by a salacious affair with Solomon’s husband.
What did Carolyn Warmus do?
There’s a reason the case surrounding Betty Jeanne Solomon and Carolyn Warmus is referred to as the Fatal Attraction murder. The series of events that left Betty Jeanne deceased are starkly familiar to fans of the 1987 release, which follows the escalating behavior of a scorned mistress as she seeks to replace her lover’s wife. That’s essentially what happened with Warmus, who — following a several-month affair with Paul Solomon — sought any way to keep her former lover in her life. His attempts to break up with her only escalated Warmus’ behavior and eventually led to her decision to off Betty Jeanne permanently.
Warmus seemingly pistol-whipped Betty Jeanne in the back of the head to stun her before shooting her nine times across her legs and back. The investigation into the gristly murder lasted months, prompted a mistrial, a renewed attempt at justice, and ultimately landed Warmus a life sentence in jail.
Where is Carolyn Warmus now?
Warmus served her lengthy sentence, which ultimately shook out to the maximum term, between 1992 and 2019. That’s 27 years in total, which Warmus served at New York’s Bedford Hills Correctional Facility for Women. She attempted, in 2017, to introduce new evidence during her first parole, but the DNA testing she requested was never actually performed.
Instead, she served two more years, was denied parole a second time in 2018, and ultimately earned her freedom following a successful 2019 parole hearing. Ahead of her release from prison, however, Warmus learned that she had a massive brain tumor, and — following the denial of her parole — was forced to undergo multiple surgeries while incarcerated.
Following her release from prison, Warmus underwent several more surgeries combatting the brain tumor, and continues to this day to assert her innocence. She claims she served those 27 years falsely and is still seeking the DNA examination she requested back in 2017. As of 2024, no such DNA testing has been conducted, which leaves the veracity of Warmus’ claims up in the air.