LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Former member of the Charles Manson Family cult, Leslie Van Houten was freed from a California prison on Tuesday, July 11. She was sentenced to more than 50 years in prison for the 1969 LaBianca murders, which shook the country and Hollywood. According to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, Van Houten, the cult's youngest member, "was released to parole supervision" and taken to transitional housing. According to her lawyer Nancy Tetreault, the convicted murderer, 73, is anticipated to spend around a year in transitional housing acquiring fundamental skills like using a bank card and going to the grocery shop.
Van Houten was found guilty in 1971 along with fellow Manson devotees Charles Watson aka Tex and Patricia Krenwinkel for the horrific stabbing and killings of Leno LaBianca, 44, a grocery store clerk, and his wife Rosemary, 38, in their Los Feliz home on August 10, 1969. As per NBC News, Governor Gavin Newsom of California announced on Friday, July 7, that he would not appeal Houten's release to the state Supreme Court, despite having previously opposing parole initiatives.
Who are the other surviving Manson killers?
The Manson Family cult was founded in the late 1960s, but by the early 1970s, several members of the cult had been found guilty of crimes like murder and murder conspiracy.
Charles "Tex" Watson
Charles "Tex" Watson was involved in both the killings at 10050 Cielo Drive, which caused the death of pregnant actress Sharon Tate and four other people. The next night itself, he played a part in the murders of Leno and Rosemary LaBianca. In 1971, Watson was found guilty on seven charges of murder and one count of conspiracy to murder. He was initially given a death sentence, but due to a change in the legislation, his sentence was reduced to life in prison.
Watson received an 18th denial of parole in 2021. In 2026, he will be qualified for another parole hearing. Watson, who is now 77, wed Kristin Svege in 1979 while he was imprisoned. Before California banned conjugal visits for inmates serving life sentences, the pair had four children together. They got divorced in 2003, as per Rolling Stone.
Patricia Krenwinkel
Patricia Kenwinkel, a member of the Manson Family, was convicted on seven counts of murder and one count of conspiracy to commit murder for her involvement in the Tate-LaBianca killings, much like Tex Watson. Her execution sentence was commuted to life in prison, much like those of her co-conspirators. Later, Krenwinkel joined Susan Atkins and Leslie Van Houten in denouncing Manson and pleading with young people not to view him as a hero. She has been continuously incarcerated for more than 50 years and is now 75 years old.
According to the Associated Press, Krenwinkel was granted parole in 2022 after being denied 14 times, but the decision was overturned by California Governor Gavin Newsom, who claimed that her release would endanger public safety. After Atkins died, Krenwinkel, who is now 71, took the title of the inmate with the longest imprisonment for a female in California. She currently resides in Chino district at the California Institution for Women.
Lynette "Squeaky" Fromme
An early associate of the Manson Family was Lynette "Squeaky" Fromme. Despite the fact that she did not take part in the Tate-LaBianca killings like some of the other group members, she was sentenced to prison after being found guilty of attempting to kill President Gerald Ford in Sacramento, California.
After serving 34 years, Fromme, who is now 74, was granted parole in 2009. She admitted to loving Manson again to ABC News in 2019. She said, "I don't think you fall out of love. I feel very honored to have met him, and I know how that sounds to people who think he's the epitome of evil."
Catherine Share
In 1970, Catherine Share was found guilty of witness intimidation in connection with the Tate-LaBianca homicide trial and given a 90-day prison term. She and other members of the Manson Family were found guilty of armed robbery the next year and sentenced to five years in prison and was released in 1975. She disassociated herself from the Manson Family after her release. Share, 80, has opened up in interviews over the years about her relationship with Manson. In an interview for a film being made about Manson by Oxygen, she stated, "I felt very, very sad for the victims … I also feel very sad for the young people who were turned into murderers."
Steven "Clem" Grogan
T=Apart from Van Houten, the only Manson Family member to have been freed from prison following a murder conviction is Steven "Clem" Grogan. Grogan was given a life term in jail for his role in the murder of Donald Shea, a ranch hand at Spahn Ranch, where the Mason Family members made their home. Grogan was granted parole in 1985. The 71-year-old moved to the California Bay Area and is a musician, as per LAist.
Bruce M. Davis
Bruce M Davis, referred to as Manson's "right-hand man," was found guilty of first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit murder, and robbery in connection with the deaths of Shea and musician Gary Hinman. Davis has been eligible for release several times, but each time the parole board has either rejected him or the governor has overruled their recommendation. According to the Associated Press, the 80-year-old was most recently turned down for parole in July 2022 due to his "lack of empathy."
What happened to other key figures of Manson 'family'?
Charles Manson
Manson was convicted of murder and given the death penalty despite not participating in any of the Tate-LaBianca killings. Manson's sentence was commuted to life in prison in 1972 after the California Supreme Court struck down the death penalty given prior to that year. Manson was transferred from prison to a hospital on January 3, 2017, for an unidentified medical condition. While unable to provide more details, one insider claimed that he was gravely sick. Manson died on November 19, 2017, at 83.
Susan Atkins
One of Manson's closest followers and former topless dancer Susan Atkins died in prison in 2009 at the age of 61. A previous prosecutor once referred to Atkins as the "scariest of the Manson girls" after she confessed to killing Tate, Roman Polanski's pregnant wife, who was stabbed 16 times while pleading for her unborn child's life and was then hanged. Atkins was sentenced to death in 1971 but this was later changed to life in prison.
