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Newsweek
a day ago
- Newsweek
Manson Family Member Recommended for Parole 55 Years After Grisly Murders
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. A California prison panel has recommended Patricia Krenwinkel, a longtime imprisoned member of the Manson Family cult, who was convicted in the infamous 1969 Los Angeles murder spree, for parole on Friday. Newsweek has reached out to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and the California governor's office for comment via email on Sunday. Why It Matters Krenwinkel is the longest-serving female inmate in California prisons. She was a member of Charles Manson's "family," a devoted group living communally on an abandoned movie set in California. Manson was notorious for his ability to manipulate and control others, having quickly gained followers and convinced them to view him as a God-like figure, with testimonies emphasizing drug use and abuse. He led sermons, orchestrated orgies and fostered a cult-like environment, as well as directing his family members to kill. Members of the "Manson Family," including Krenwinkel, stabbed and killed several people, including actress Sharon Tate who was pregnant at the time. Krenwinkel first met Manson at a party when she was 19 years old and immediately left her life for him. What To Know During a four-hour hearing Friday, panel members of the California Board of Parole found that Krenwinkel, 77, poses a low risk of reoffending due to her age and decades of good behavior in prison, and recommended her for parole, according to CBS News' San Diego affiliate. Krenwinkel did not speak during the hearing, but several victims' family members, including Tate's younger sister, Debra Tate, spoke in opposition, according to CBS. Krenwinkel, a Los Angeles native, is incarcerated at the California Institution for Women, and has been denied parole over a dozen times, most recently by Newsom in 2022. She is serving a life sentence after being convicted of seven counts of murder in 1971. During her trial, she confessed to running down and repeatedly stabbing Abigail Anne Folger, who was at Tate's home that night, and assisted in killing the LaBiancas the following evening. She says Manson told her to do something "witchy," and so after stabbing the LaBiancas with a fork, she used the victims' blood to write "Death to Pigs," "Rise," and "Healter [sic] Skelter" on the walls. The disturbing murders were orchestrated by Manson, but not personally done by him. He died in prison in 2017. Charles Manson follower Patricia Krenwinkel is seen on March 13, 2020. Charles Manson follower Patricia Krenwinkel is seen on March 13, 2020. California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation What People Are Saying California Governor Gavin Newsom said in reversal of Krenwinkel's parole in 2022: "Ms. Krenwinkel fully accepted Mr. Manson's racist, apocalyptical ideologies. Ms. Krenwinkel was not only a victim of Mr. Manson's abuse. She was also a significant contributor to the violence and tragedy that became the Manson Family's legacy... Beyond the brutal murders she committed, she played a leadership role in the cult, and an enforcer of Mr. Manson's tyranny. She forced the other women in the cult to obey Mr. Manson, and prevented them from escaping when they tried to leave" Debra Tate, Sharon Tate's younger sister, said during Friday's hearing: "Releasing her to society puts society at risk. I don't accept any explanation for someone who has had 55 years to think of the many ways they impacted their victims, but still does not know their names. My life, the victims' families are forever affected." Commissioner Gilbert Infante said during the hearing on Friday: "This decision does not minimize or forgive the criminal conduct or the loss your victims and their families have suffered. At the time of these crimes, you exhibited all the hallmark features of youth. When we look at subsequent growth, you have made strides, and this is evidenced in the work you have done." What Happens Next The panel's recommendation now goes to the full California Board of Parole Hearings for review, which must occur within 120 days. If approved, Governor Gavin Newsom will have 150 days to affirm, reverse or take no action on the decision.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Manson 'family' follower Patricia Krenwinkel recommenced for parole
By Steve Gorman LOS ANGELES (Reuters) -A California prisons panel on Friday recommended that Patricia Krenwinkel, serving a life sentence for her role in murdering seven people in a 1969 Los Angeles killing spree by followers of cult leader Charles Manson, be released on parole. The state Board of Parole Hearings found that Krenwinkel, 77, the longest-serving female inmate in California prisons, posed little risk of reoffending based on her age and a spotless behavior record while incarcerated, according to the CBS News affiliate in San Diego, KFMP-TV. The state Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation confirmed the finding of parole suitability, which came on Krenwinkel's 16th parole hearing, but gave no further details. The decision amounts to a proposal subject to review by the full state Board of Parole Hearings and the California governor for up to 150 days before it can become final. Even if the full board affirms the finding of parole suitability, the governor could reject it or send it back for further review. A May 2022 parole board panel recommendation to free Krenwinkel was reversed by Governor Gavin Newsom in August of that year. Krenwinkel, incarcerated at the California Institution for Women, appeared with her lawyer during Friday's four-hour hearing but did not address the commissioners, KFMP reported. Several victims' family members spoke in opposition to her release. Krenwinkel was convicted on seven counts of first-degree murder in 1971 for participating in a bloody two-night rampage whose victims included actress Sharon Tate, the 26-year-old wife of filmmaker Roman Polanski. Tate, then eight months pregnant, was slain with four friends, among them coffee heiress Abigail Folger and hairstylist Jay Sebring, at the rented hillside house the actress and Polanski shared in the Benedict Canyon area of Los Angeles. Polanski was in Europe at the time. The following night grocery owner Leno LaBianca and his wife Rosemary were stabbed to death in their home, where the words "Death to Pigs" and "Healter Skelter," a misspelled reference to the Beatles song "Helter Skelter," were found scrawled in the victims' blood at the crime scene. Although Manson did not personally kill any of the seven victims, he was found guilty of ordering their murders as part of a delusional plot to ignite a race war. He, Krenwinkel and other members of his so-called "family" of hippies, runaways and misfits, including Leslie Van Houten, Susan Atkins and "Tex" Watson, were originally sentenced to death. Their sentences were commuted to life in prison after the California Supreme Court abolished capital punishment in the state in 1972. Manson died in prison at age 83 in 2017. Van Houten was released from prison on parole in 2023 after spending 53 years behind bars. Newsom had rejected her parole recommendation but was overruled by a California appeals court. The governor could have petitioned the state Supreme Court to review the case but opted not to, deciding that further efforts to keep Van Houten locked up were unlikely to succeed. (Reporting Steve Gorman in Los Angeles; Editing by William Mallard)
