Manson Follower Leslie Van Houten Rejected For Third Parole Appeal

On Friday, a California appeals court rejected Manson follower Leslie Van Houten‘s request for parole.

Van Houten has been recommended for parole three times, and each has been rejected. She was rejected twice by former Gov. Jerry Brown and most recently by Gov. Gavin Newsom.

In June, during oral arguments before a panel of the 2nd District Court of Appeals, Van Houten’s attorney Rich Pfeiffer argued that his client has been fully rehabilitated and is no longer a threat to society.

The appeals court declined to reverse Brown’s decision from 2018, and since the ruling was made nearly two years ago, the Board of Parole Hearings recommended Van Houten again for parole. This was denied by Newsom in June.

In August of 1969, 50 years ago, former homecoming princess, Van Houten was one of three of Manson’s followers who stabbed grocer Leno LaBianca and his wife, Rosemary to death. She was only 19 at the time.

This followed the killing of pregnant actress Sharon Tate, hairstylist Jay Sebring, high school student Steven Parent, coffee heiress Abigail Folger and her boyfriend, Voytek Frykowski.

The convicted killers were originally charged with the death penalty, but in 1972, a California Supreme Court ruling found the state’s death penalty law unconstitutional. Their sentences were then changed to life in prison with the possibility of parole.

Victims’ families were assured that this was just a technicality, and that the members of the Manson clan would stay behind bars. However, in recent years it’s been apparent that their release is within the realm of possibility.

In addition to Van Houten, Patricia Krenwinkel, 71, Bobby Beausoleil, 71, Charles “Tex” Watson, 73, and Bruce Davis, 76, remain in prison. Davis has been recently cleared for parole, however his pending release could still be blocked by Newson.