Charles CUllen

Cullen committed his first murder in the summer of 1988 and attempted his last murder in the summer of 2003 but the man survived and was discharged then died 6 months later of natural cause. Cullen was a nurse for 16 years and during those years he worked at 10 different hospitals in both New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Cullen was born in West Orange, New Jersey and was the youngest of 8. Cullen grew up in a very religious catholic family. Cullen's father was a bus driver and his mother stayed at home to raise Cullen and his siblings. Cullen's father died short after his birth, it has been said that Cullen was raped by his father Meme Cullen. Two of Cullen's siblings also died once in adulthood. Cullen's mother died when he was only 17, of an automobile accident. Shortly after the devastating death of his mother Cullen dropped out of high school and enlisted in the Navy in 1978. Cullen was assigned to the submarine corps and served on the ballistic missile sub USS Woodrow Wilson. Cullen quickly rose to the rank of petty officer 3rd class as part of a team that operated the ships poseidon missiles. Cullen quickly showed signs of mental instability. He once served a shift in a green surgical gown, surgical mask and latex gloves stolen from the ship's medical cabinet. Cullen has described his childhood as miserable admitting that the first time he tried to commit suicide was at the age of 9 by drinking chemicals taken from a chemistry set. Cullen states that this was the first of at least 20 attempts to take his own life. Several attempts were the reason of his discharge from the Navy in March of 1984 Cullen also states that throughout his years of being a nurse Cullen dreamed of stealing the drugs from hospitals he worked at and using such drugs to commit suicide. In one attempt he took a pair of scissors and struck himself in the head, shortly after he was rushed to the hospital where life saving surgery was performed. After leaving the Navy Cullen attended Mountainside School of Nursing and obtained a job at St. Barnabas Medical Center in Livingston, New Jersey, in 1987. The same year he married Adrienne Taub, the couple had two daughters together. In January 1993, Adrienne Cullen filed for divorce. She later filed two domestic violence complaints against him. The divorce papers and domestic violence complaints depicted Cullen as an alcoholic, someone who abused pets by placing them in bowling bags and trash cans, poured lighter fluid into other people's drinks and made prank calls to funeral homes. Cullen had shared custody of his daughters and moved into a basement apartment on Shaffer Avenue in Phillipsburg. Cullen says he wanted to quit nursing in 1993, but court-ordered child support payments forced him to keep working. In March 1993, he broke into a co-worker's home while she and her young son slept, but left without waking them. Cullen then started phoning her frequently, leaving messages and following her at work and around town. The woman filed a complaint, and Cullen pleaded guilty to trespassing and was placed on a year's probation. The day after his arrest, Cullen attempted suicide. He took two months off work, and was treated for depression in two psychiatric facilities. He attempted suicide two more times before the end of the year.Cullen states that he wanted to quit nursing in 1993 but due to child support costs he was forced to continue working.