Leslie Van Houten
Leslie Van Houten | |
---|---|
Conspiracy to commit murder | |
Criminal penalty | Death; commuted to life imprisonment with the possibility of parole after 7 years[1][2] |
Leslie Louise Van Houten (born August 23, 1949) is an American convicted murderer and former member of the Manson Family. During her time with Manson's group, she was known by aliases such as Louella Alexandria, Leslie Marie Sankston, Linda Sue Owens and Lulu.[citation needed]
Van Houten was arrested and charged in relation to the 1969
Early life
Van Houten was born on August 23, 1949, in the
Manson Family
After a few months in a commune in Northern California, Van Houten met Catherine Share and Bobby Beausoleil and moved in with them and another woman during the summer of 1968. The four broke up after jealous arguments, and Share left to join Charles Manson's commune. Van Houten, then aged 19, followed Share. At this time, she phoned her mother to say she was dropping out and would not be making contact again.[7]
Manson decided when they would eat, sleep, and have sex, and with whom they would have sex. He also controlled the taking of LSD, giving followers larger doses than he himself took. According to Manson, "When you take LSD enough times, you reach a state of nothing. Of no thought."[11] According to Van Houten, she became "saturated in acid" and could not grasp the existence of those living a non-psychedelic reality.[12][13][14]
From August 1968, Manson and his followers were based at the Spahn Ranch. Manson ostensibly ran his Family based on hippie-style principles of acceptance and free love. At the remote ranch, where they were isolated from any other influences, Manson's was the only opinion heard. At every meal he would lecture repetitively. Van Houten said Manson's attitude was that she "belonged to Bobby".[15][16][17][18] According to Van Houten she and other Manson followers looked to 14-year-old Family member Dianne Lake as the "empty vessel", the epitome of what women were supposed to be in the Manson system of values.[9] When Barbara Hoyt spoke at Van Houten's parole hearing in 2013, she said that Van Houten was considered a "leader" in the Family.[8][19]
Murders
Murders of Leno and Rosemary LaBianca
On August 9, 1969, Van Houten, Tex Watson, Patricia Krenwinkel, Linda Kasabian, Susan Atkins, Clem Grogan and Manson went to the house of Rosemary and Leno LaBianca.[12][20][21][22][23] Manson entered the house with Watson, then left with Kasabian, Atkins, and Grogan.[8][18][24]
Van Houten and another woman held down Rosemary LaBianca as Watson stabbed Leno LaBianca. After stabbing Rosemary, Watson gave Van Houten a knife, and she stabbed the woman at least 14 more times. She testified in 1971, “And I took one of the knives, and Patricia [Krenwinkel] had one – a knife – and we started stabbing and cutting up the lady.”[25]
Motive
Manson, who denied responsibility, never explained a motive for the murders. Prosecutor Vincent Bugliosi suggested Manson was attempting to start a racial civil war.[26] The racial nature of the motive for the murders Van Houten was convicted of was later adduced by a judge, increasing the gravity of her offense.[8][17][18]
Trial
Manson was accused of orchestrating both attacks, but the only defendants at the trial whose murder charges were for actually inflicting injuries on the LaBiancas were Van Houten and Krenwinkel.[10] Unlike the others, Van Houten was not accused of the murders of Tate and her friends.[27]
Manson opposed his three female co-defendants running a defense that he had asked them to commit killings. Van Houten did not appear to take the court seriously (later claiming to have been supplied with LSD during the trial) and giggled during testimony about the victims. She testified to committing the murders she was charged with and denied that Manson had been involved.[28] An often-cited example of how he seemed to exert control over Van Houten and the others was when Manson carved an X on his forehead and she and the other two women defendants copied him. In the latter stages of the trial they stopped mimicking him, Bugliosi suggested, because they realized it was making the extent of his influence over them apparent.[29]
Van Houten dismissed three defense lawyers in succession for claiming her actions were attributable to Manson's control over her.
On March 29, 1971, she was convicted of murder along with the other defendants. During the sentencing phase of the trial, in an apparent attempt to exonerate Manson, Van Houten testified that she had committed a killing in which she was not, in fact, involved. She told a psychiatrist of beating her adopted sister, leading him to characterize her as "a spoiled little princess" and a "psychologically loaded gun", and was adamant that Manson had no influence over her thought processes or behavior. Van Houten also told the psychiatrist that she would have gone to jail for manslaughter or assault with a deadly weapon without ever meeting Manson. When her lawyer, attempting to show she felt remorse, asked if she felt sorrow or shame for the death of Rosemary LaBianca, Van Houten replied "sorry is only a five-letter word" and "you can't undo something that is done." In cross-examination, Van Houten aggressively implicated herself in inflicting wounds while the victim was living, and severely wounding the victim, severing her spine, which might have been fatal by itself. She vehemently denied acting on instructions from Manson, and said a court-appointed attorney who "had a lot of different ideas on how to get me off" had told her to claim Manson ordered the killings.[32]
Van Houten was sentenced to be executed; she was the youngest woman ever condemned to death in California. No death row for female prisoners existed, and a special unit was built. The death sentences were automatically
Re-trial
Van Houten was granted a
It was reported in the news media that because of time already served, Van Houten could go free that year if she was convicted of manslaughter.[34][35] By law, prosecutors are not allowed to mention the possibility of the defendant being released on parole when arguing for a murder rather than manslaughter conviction because it is considered highly prejudicial to the defendant.[36]
Second re-trial
The prosecution in 1970–71 had emphasized that the motive had nothing to do with robbery and the killers ignored valuable pieces of property. At Van Houten's second re-trial, the prosecution, who were now being aided by a specialist in diminished responsibility, altered the charges by using the theft of food, clothing and a small sum of money taken from the house to add a charge of robbery, whereby the
Post-trial events
After the first trial, Van Houten and her female co-conspirators Susan Atkins and Patricia Krenwinkel were housed in a special housing unit built at the California Institution for Women. They were initially kept separate from the prison population, because they were viewed as a threat to the other inmates.
In the early 1970s, Van Houten, Atkins and Krenwinkel worked with a social worker, Karlene Faith, who sought to help them re-establish their identities separate from the Manson Family.[37] Faith later wrote a book about her work with the women, The Long Prison Journey of Leslie Van Houten. In the book, Faith tells how two of the women believed that they would "grow wings and become fairies" after the expected race war had occurred. The women told Faith that they obtained this belief from Manson. Faith viewed all three of the Manson women as victims, and lobbied for their early release from prison.[38] Faith's work with the Manson women was later portrayed in the feature film, Charlie Says.
Van Houten was also befriended by film director John Waters. He also campaigned for her early release from prison.[39]
In 1975, the Manson women were moved to the general population at the California Institution for Women.
Parole requests
Under California law, some life sentences are eligible for parole, and a parole board rejection of an application does not preclude a different decision in the future.[40] Susan Atkins and Patricia Krenwinkel (who were originally convicted along with Van Houten and Manson at the main trial) had both been found guilty of the most notorious crime, the murder of five people at 10050 Cielo Drive. In addition, Krenwinkel was also convicted of the murders of Leno and Rosemary LaBianca, while Atkins was also convicted of murdering Gary Hinman.
Only one other member of the Manson Family has been convicted of murder and later released:
After receiving her 13th rejection, in which the hearing concluded she posed "an unreasonable risk of danger to society", Van Houten took legal action. Judge Bob Krug ordered the board to re-hear the application because their reasoning turned solely on the unalterable gravity of her offense and effectively gave her life without parole, "a sentence unauthorized by law". The judgment was overturned by a higher court, which said although parole hearings must consider evidence for an inmate being rehabilitated, a hearing had discretion to deny parole based solely on a review of the circumstances of the crime, if "some evidence" supported their decision.[17][47]
In 2013, Van Houten was denied parole for the 20th time at a hearing. In announcing a decision to deny parole, the commissioner of the hearing board said that she had failed to explain how someone of her good background and intelligence could have committed such "cruel and atrocious" murders.[9]
On April 14, 2016, a two-person panel of the California Parole Board recommended granting Van Houten's parole request, but California Governor Jerry Brown vetoed the release on the grounds that: "Both her role in these extraordinarily brutal crimes and her inability to explain her willing participation in such horrific violence cannot be overlooked and lead me to believe she remains an unacceptable risk to society if released."[48]
On September 29, 2016, Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge William C. Ryan issued an 18-page ruling upholding the governor's reversal earlier in the year of a parole board's decision to release Van Houten. Ryan wrote that there was "some evidence" that Van Houten presents an unreasonable threat to society.
Van Houten has long since renounced Manson, who died in prison in November 2017. She has expressed remorse for her crimes, and at her 2013 parole hearing, her attorney argued that her value system was completely different from what it was in 1972. She expressed that she "takes offense to the fact that Manson doesn't own up" to his role in the murders. She told Vincent Bugliosi, the man who sent her to prison, "I take responsibility for my part, and part of my responsibility was helping to create him." She has written several short stories, once edited the prison newspaper and did some secretarial work at the prison.[51]
Van Houten was again recommended for parole at her 21st parole hearing on September 6, 2017. The two-member panel found that Van Houten had radically changed her life in the more than 40 years she had been incarcerated.[52] Governor Jerry Brown again denied her parole on January 19, 2018. Her legal team stated they would fight the decision.[53] On June 29, 2018, Van Houten's parole was once again vetoed. The judge was again William C. Ryan, who said: "Unless the inmate can demonstrate that there is no evidence to support the governor's conclusion that the inmate is a current danger to public safety, the petition fails to state a prima facie case for relief and may be summarily denied."[54]
On January 30, 2019, during her 22nd parole hearing, Van Houten was recommended for parole for the third time. But on June 4, 2019, Governor Gavin Newsom overruled the parole board's recommendation, claiming the then 69-year-old Van Houten was still a "danger to society" and that she had "potential for future violence".[55] She appealed the governor's decision, but on September 21, 2019, the appeals court panel ruled 2–1 in the governor's favor.[56]
Van Houten was recommended for parole for the fourth time at a 23rd parole hearing on July 23, 2020, and a 120-day legal review period began. On November 28, Governor Newsom again rejected the board's recommendation and vetoed Van Houten's parole. Among his reasons for denial, Newsom stated the then 71-year-old Van Houten "currently poses an unreasonable danger to society if released from prison".[57][58] Again, her lawyer, Rich Pfeiffer, said they would appeal the governor's latest decision.[59]
On November 9, 2021, Van Houten was recommended for parole by a
Her request for review was rejected by the California Supreme Court on February 9, 2022.[62]
On May 30, 2023, a California Court of Appeal in Los Angeles set aside Governor Newsom's denial of Van Houten's parole, thus making her the first Manson family member to have a court rule in her favor for a parole recommendation.[63] On July 7, 2023, Governor Newsom announced that he would not file an appeal with the California Supreme Court to block her parole, paving the way for her release.[64] Van Houten was released on parole on July 11, 2023.[4] To date, Krenwinkel and Watson remain imprisoned.
In the media
Van Houten's parole hearings have appeared on Court TV and attracted nationwide media attention. They have featured comments from former prosecutors, relatives of her victims, and relatives of the victims of other killers.[65][66][67] John Waters advocated for Van Houten's parole.[13][10][68][69]
Van Houten told her story on the podcast Ear Hustle in the 2021 episode 'Home for Me Really is a Memory.' [70]
Dramatic portrayals
Van Houten was first portrayed by actress Cathey Paine in the 1976 made-for-TV film Helter Skelter. San Francisco-based actress Connie Champagne portrayed Van Houten in Dude Theater's long-running 1989 stage play The Charlie Manson Story, first at Climate Theater and then Theatre Artaud, a black comedy directed by Christopher Brophy. The production was the first to de-glamorourize the Manson-myth and to question Manson's belief in the so-called "Helter Skelter".
The 2009 film
See also
- Ronald W. Hughes, her first attorney
References
- ^ Transcript of Subsequent Parole Consideration Hearing. State of California. Hearing September 6, 2017. Transcribed September 16, 2017. Accessed October 10, 2017. Acquired through California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation Request for Parole Suitability Hearing Transcript Archived October 12, 2017, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ a b "Manson follower Leslie Van Houten granted parole in notorious murders". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on October 9, 2017. Retrieved October 10, 2017.
- ^ Sanders, Ed; The Family, p. 74
- ^ a b Weber, Christopher (July 11, 2023). "Leslie Van Houten, follower of cult leader Charles Manson, released from California prison". AP News. Archived from the original on July 11, 2023. Retrieved July 11, 2023.
- ^ "Classmates – Find your school, yearbooks and alumni online".
- ^ "Leslie Van Houten, Ex-Manson Follower, Approved for Parole". NBC News. New York: NBCUniversal. AP. September 7, 2017. Archived from the original on September 3, 2019. Retrieved August 25, 2019.
- ^ ISBN 0-09-997500-9.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Walker, Tim (June 6, 2013). "Leslie Van Houten, youngest member of Charles Manson's 'Family', has parole denied for 20th time". The Independent. London. Archived from the original on June 14, 2022.
- ^ a b c CieloDrive.com, retrieved December 17, 2014, "State of California Board of Parole Hearings: In the matter of the Life Term Parole Consideration Hearing of: Leslie Van Houten" Archived December 17, 2014, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ a b c d e Linder, Douglas O. (2014). "The Charles Manson (Tate–LaBianca Murder) Trial: The Defendants". Famous Trials. University of Missouri–Kansas City School of Law. Archived from the original on May 26, 2012. Retrieved December 16, 2014.
- ISBN 978-1883536220.
- ^ a b Lorentzen, Christian (November 7, 2013). "The Way Out of a Room Is Not Through the Door". London Review of Books. pp. 20–22. Archived from the original on January 10, 2015. Retrieved December 20, 2014.
- ^ a b Leslie Van Houten: A Friendship, Part 5 of 5 Archived August 2, 2018, at the Wayback Machine retrieved 16/12/14
- ^ Meares, Hadley (October 22, 2014). "The abandoned movie ranch where Manson launched Helter Skelter". Curbed. Los Angeles.
- ^ Guinn, Jeff. Manson: The Life and Times of Charles Manson. p. 126.
- ^ The Press on Trial: Crimes and Trials as Media Events edited by Lloyd Chiasso p 161
- ^ a b c "High Court Spurns Leslie Van Houten's Bid for Release". Metropolitan News-Enterprise. June 24, 2004. Archived from the original on July 20, 2008. Retrieved April 2, 2008.
- ^ a b c "Encore Presentation: Interview with Leslie Van Houten". CNN. Larry King Weekend. June 29, 2002. Archived from the original on February 1, 2009. Retrieved January 26, 2009.
- ^ Fox News, June 6, 2013, Parole denial for Leslie Van Houten suggests stigma too great for release Archived November 20, 2014, at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved December 17, 2014.
- ^ "Rock and Roll's Most Infamous Tour Manager". VICE. Archived from the original on August 9, 2021. Retrieved September 11, 2017.
- ^ "cc | Grand Theft Parsons : Phil Kaufman [ Interview ] »". www.counterculture.co.uk. Archived from the original on January 26, 2013. Retrieved January 18, 2015.
- ISBN 9781888580082. Archivedfrom the original on April 2, 2002. Retrieved September 3, 2017 – via Amazon.
- ^ "True story of Sharon Tate's death". Goodhousekeeping. July 30, 2019. Archived from the original on August 9, 2021. Retrieved August 9, 2021.
- ^ Linder, Douglas O. (2014). "The Influence of the Beatles on Charles Manson". Famous Trials. University of Missouri–Kansas City School of Law. Archived from the original on December 5, 2014. Retrieved December 17, 2014.
- ^ Martinez, Christian; Lin, Summer; Hernandez, Salvador; Winton, Richard (July 11, 2023). "Former Manson follower Leslie Van Houten freed; 'gut-wrenching,' says relative of a victim". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 12, 2023.
- ISBN 0-393-08700-X.
- ^ Linder, Douglas O. (2014). "Closing Argument, The State of California v. Charles Manson et al. Delivered by Vincent Bugliosi". Famous Trials. University of Missouri–Kansas City School of Law. Archived from the original on December 22, 2014. Retrieved December 18, 2014.
- ISBN 0-09-997500-9.
- ISBN 0-09-997500-9.
- ^ Linder, Douglas (2008). The Trial of Charles Manson.
- ISBN 0-09-997500-9.
- ISBN 0-09-997500-9.
- ISBN 0-09-997500-9.
- ^ a b Lodi News-Sentinel-California, August 8, 1977, (UPI) Houten May Be Set Free.
- ^ "Judge orders new parole hearing for Charles Manson follower Leslie Van Houten". Lodi News–Sentinel. Associated Press. June 5, 2002. Archived from the original on May 17, 2011. Retrieved April 2, 2008.
- ISBN 0-09-997500-9.
- ^ Jeffrey Melnick, "Keeping Faith With the Manson Women," The New Yorker, August 1, 2018.
- ^ Karlene Faith, The Long Prison Journey of Leslie Van Houten: Life Beyond the Cult (Northeastern University Press, 2001) [1] Archived March 4, 2016, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Walters, Ben (November 8, 2018). "John Waters: Why the auteur of outrage won't joke about the Manson murders". The Guardian.
- ^ Warren, Jenifer (April 27, 2002) "Manson Follower to Get Hearing on Bid to Be Freed", Los Angeles Times
- ^ For it being a torture murder, see: DiBiase, Thomas A. (2014). No-Body Homicide Cases: A Practical Guide to Investigating, Prosecuting, and Winning Cases When the Victim Is Missing. p. 189.
- ^ "Manson follower Leslie Van Houten denied parole". New York Daily News. June 5, 2013. Archived from the original on December 22, 2014. Retrieved December 17, 2014.
- Huffington Post. August 28, 2010. Archivedfrom the original on December 8, 2015. Retrieved February 20, 2020.
- ^ "In California, Victims' Families Fight for the Dead". The New York Times. August 19, 2011.
- ^ Fortin, Jacey (June 24, 2017). "Bruce Davis, a Charles Manson Follower, Has Parole Blocked for Fifth Time". The New York Times. Archived from the original on February 6, 2018. Retrieved June 25, 2017.
- MSN.com. Archived from the originalon April 8, 2017. Retrieved March 18, 2017.
- ^ Deutsch, Linda (May 24, 2002). "Hearing held for Manson follower". Associated Press. Archived from the original on May 17, 2011. Retrieved April 2, 2008.
- ^ "California Governor Denies Parole for Ex-Manson Follower". NBC News. Associated Press. July 23, 2016. Archived from the original on July 24, 2016. Retrieved July 23, 2016.
- ^ "Judge deals blow to former Manson family member's latest bid to win freedom". Los Angeles Times. October 6, 2016. Archived from the original on October 7, 2016. Retrieved October 6, 2016.
- ^ O'Brien, Brendan (December 22, 2016). "California Supreme Court denies Manson follower's petition". Reuters. Archived from the original on December 23, 2016. Retrieved December 22, 2016.
- ISBN 9780393087000.
- ^ Hamilton, Matt. "Manson follower Leslie Van Houten granted parole in notorious murders; Brown will make final decision". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on September 6, 2017. Retrieved September 6, 2017.
- ^ "Manson follower Leslie Van Houten denied parole by governor". CNBC. January 20, 2018. Archived from the original on November 9, 2020. Retrieved August 15, 2020.
- ^ "Judge denies parole to former Charles Manson follower Leslie Van Houten". Los Angeles Times. June 29, 2018. Archived from the original on February 20, 2020. Retrieved February 20, 2020.
- UPI. June 4, 2019. Archivedfrom the original on September 6, 2020. Retrieved August 22, 2020.
- ^ "Manson follower Van Houten loses appeal for parole". UPI. September 21, 2019. Archived from the original on September 26, 2019. Retrieved November 2, 2019.
- ^ Mossburg, Cheri; Kim, Allen (July 24, 2020). "Manson follower recommended for parole for the fourth time, but California governor has final say". CNN. Archived from the original on September 3, 2020. Retrieved September 9, 2020.
- ^ "Governor nixes parole for Manson follower Leslie Van Houten". Yahoo! News. Associated Press. November 28, 2020. Archived from the original on November 29, 2020. Retrieved November 28, 2020.
- ^ Vigdor, Neil (November 29, 2020). "California Governor Blocks Release of Manson Follower Leslie Van Houten Gov. Gavin Newsom reversed a decision by the state parole board granting her release after about 50 years in prison". The New York Times. Archived from the original on November 30, 2020. Retrieved December 9, 2020.
- ^ Cheri Mossburg (November 10, 2021). "Manson family member Leslie Van Houten recommended for parole for the fifth time". CNN. Archived from the original on November 10, 2021. Retrieved November 10, 2021.
- ^ "California governor rejects parole for Manson family member". Associated Press. March 30, 2022. Archived from the original on March 30, 2022. Retrieved March 30, 2022.
- ^ "California high court won't hear parole case for Manson follower Leslie Van Houten". Los Angeles Times. Associated Press. February 10, 2022. Archived from the original on February 11, 2022. Retrieved March 10, 2020.
- ^ "Manson follower Leslie Van Houten could be freed after court overrules Newsom". Los Angeles Times. May 30, 2023. Archived from the original on May 30, 2023. Retrieved May 30, 2023.
- ^ Jablon, Robert (July 7, 2023). "Newsom will not appeal ruling allowing release of former Charles Manson follower Leslie Van Houten". ABC7 Los Angeles. Archived from the original on July 8, 2023. Retrieved July 8, 2023.
- ^ "Former Manson disciple denied parole". The Age. September 8, 2006. Archived from the original on December 9, 2006. Retrieved September 8, 2006.
- The San Diego Union–Tribune. Associated Press. September 6, 2006. Archivedfrom the original on March 28, 2009. Retrieved April 2, 2008.
- ^ "Manson follower denied parole for the 18th time". Charleston Daily Mail. Associated Press. August 31, 2007.
- National Public Radio. August 5, 2009. Archivedfrom the original on August 7, 2009. Retrieved August 7, 2009.
- Huffington Post. Archivedfrom the original on August 28, 2009. Retrieved September 8, 2009.
- E! Online. Radiotopia. Archivedfrom the original on September 28, 2021. Retrieved September 27, 2021.
- E! Online. NBCUniversal. Archivedfrom the original on July 31, 2019. Retrieved August 17, 2019.
External links
- Leslie Van Houten at IMDb