Post by natalie on Apr 14, 2016 11:24:57 GMT -5
Youngest Manson Follower Tries for Parole Again
Leslie Van Houten, the youngest of the Charles Manson followers to take part in one of the nation’s most notorious murders, is trying again for parole. The homecoming princess, who descended into a life of drugs and communal living before joining Manson’s cult in the 1960s, is scheduled for her 21st hearing before a parole board panel on Thursday at the California Institution for Women in Chino. Van Houten, 66, has spent more than four decades in prison, completing college degrees and demonstrating exemplary behavior.
The Manson “Girl” was convicted for her role in the murders of well-to-do grocer Leno LaBianca and his wife Rosemary in their Los Angeles home in the early morning hours of August 10, 1969. The two were stabbed numerous times and the word “WAR” was carved on Leno LaBianca’s stomach.
Manson believed there was a coming race war and dubbed the Tate and LaBianca killings “Helter Skelter” after the Beatle song of the same name.
Rich Pfeiffer, Van Houten’s attorney, claims his client presents no danger to the public and should be freed. “The only violent thing she has ever done in her entire life was this crime and that was under the control of Charles Manson,” he said. “She is just not a public safety risk, and when you are not a public safety risk, the law says you shall be released.”
The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s office declined to comment ahead of Thursday's hearing. Sharon Tate’s sister, Debra, has started an online petition opposing Van Houten’s parole, saying she failed to show remorse for years after the crimes and cannot be trusted.
At her last hearing in 2013, a parole commissioner told Van Houten she had failed to explain how someone as intelligent and well-bred as she could have committed such cruel and atrocious crimes. Van Houten told the panel she had been traumatized by her parents’ divorce when she was 14, her pregnancy soon after and her mother’s insistence she have an abortion. During the hearing, she apologized to everyone she had harmed.
Van Houten did not participate in the Tate killings, but was present when the LaBiancas were slain the following night and reportedly stabbed Rosemary 16 times after she was already dead. Van Houten was 19 at the time. Her defense lawyers portrayed her as a young woman from a good family who had been a homecoming princess and showed promise until she got involved with drugs and was recruited into Manson’s cult. During the penalty phase of her trial, she confessed to joining in stabbing Mrs. LaBianca.
Van Houten’s initial conviction was overturned on appeal. She was retried twice and convicted in 1978 of two counts of murder and conspiracy.
What happened to the rest of the Manson family?
Charles Manson, now 81, remains incarcerated at a California state prison in Corcoran. He, like Van Houten, had received the death penalty, but his sentence was commuted to life in prison.
Charles “Tex” Watson, along with Van Houten, Susan Atkins and Patricia Krenwinkel, murdered the LaBiancas. The 70-year-old Watson is an inmate at Mule Creek State Prison. He has been denied parole 16 times.
Susan “Sexy Sadie” Atkins (aka Sadie Mae Glutz) was implicated in the Tate and LaBianca murders. She died in prison in 2009.
Patricia Krenwinkel, now 68, remains imprisoned at the California Institution for Women. She has been denied parole 13 times.
Bobby Beausoleil, convicted of the murder of Gary Hinman, is serving a life sentence at a medical facility in Vacaville, California.
Bruce Davis, convicted of the murders of Gary Hinman and stuntman Donald “Shorty” Shea, is serving a life sentence and had his parole reversed by Gov. Brown in 2014.
Lynette “Squeaky” Fromme was convicted in 1975 of pointing a gun at President Gerald Ford. She was sentenced to life in prison, but was released on parole in 2009 after serving 34 years.
Steven “Clem” Grogan was released on parole after revealing the location of the body of ranch-hand Donald “Shorty” Shea, who was killed in 1969.
Sources: Amy Taxin, Associated Press, April 14, 2016, and Steve Almasy, Artemis Moshtaghian and Madison Park, CNN, April 14, 2016.
