More than fifty years after the 1969 killings, what happened to the Manson Family breaks down this way: Charles Manson died in prison in 2017, Susan Atkins died behind bars in 2009, Linda Kasabian lived quietly under a new name until her death in 2023, a handful of lower-profile members were paroled decades ago, Leslie Van Houten walked out in 2023 after a court intervened, and four convicted killers — Patricia Krenwinkel, Charles “Tex” Watson, Bobby Beausoleil, and Bruce Davis — remain incarcerated as California governors continue to reverse parole recommendations.
The Crimes That Put Them Away
On the night of August 8–9, 1969, four followers drove to 10050 Cielo Drive in Los Angeles, the home of actress Sharon Tate and director Roman Polanski. Tex Watson, Susan Atkins, and Patricia Krenwinkel entered the property while Linda Kasabian kept watch. Watson shot 18-year-old Steven Parent as he was leaving. Inside, the group killed Tate, who was eight months pregnant, along with Jay Sebring, Abigail Folger, and Wojciech Frykowski. Atkins used Tate’s blood to write “PIG” on the door.1Britannica. Tate-LaBianca Murders
The next night, Manson himself accompanied followers to the home of supermarket executive Leno LaBianca and his wife Rosemary. After Manson helped tie the couple up, Watson, Krenwinkel, and Leslie Van Houten stabbed them to death and wrote “Death to Pigs,” “Rise,” and a misspelled “Healter Skelter” in blood on the walls.1Britannica. Tate-LaBianca Murders2TIME. The Tate-LaBianca Murders
Those weren’t the only killings tied to the group. In late July 1969, Bobby Beausoleil tortured and stabbed musician Gary Hinman to death on Manson’s orders. Weeks later, Family members killed ranch hand Donald “Shorty” Shea at the Spahn Ranch, reportedly because they feared he was talking to police. Steve “Clem” Grogan and Bruce Davis were convicted for Shea’s murder; Shea’s body wasn’t recovered until 1977, when Grogan drew a map for authorities.3Britannica. Charles Manson – Tate-LaBianca Murders4CieloDrive.com. Steve Grogan
Convictions, Death Sentences, and Why They Became Life Sentences
On January 25, 1971, Manson, Atkins, Krenwinkel, and Van Houten were convicted of first-degree murder and conspiracy. All four were sentenced to death on March 29, 1971. Watson, who had fought extradition from Texas for nine months, was tried separately later that year and also sentenced to death. In a separate 1971–72 trial, Manson, Davis, and Grogan were convicted of the Hinman and Shea murders.5Biography.com. Manson Family Members Today6Britannica. Charles Manson – Trial, Motive, and Conviction
Then came the ruling that turned this case into a story that would never quite end. In 1972, the California Supreme Court held the death penalty unconstitutional in People v. Anderson, and every death sentence in the state was automatically commuted to life with the possibility of parole. From that point on, each convicted Family member would eventually face a parole board.7California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. Inmate Charles Manson Dies of Natural Causes
Linda Kasabian was never among them. She was granted immunity and testified for the prosecution over 18 days, becoming the state’s central witness against the people she had driven to Cielo Drive.8Justia. People v. Manson, 61 Cal.App.3d 102
Who Has Died
Charles Manson
Manson entered the California prison system on April 22, 1971, and spent the next 46 years behind bars, moving through San Quentin, Folsom, Pelican Bay, and the California Medical Facility before landing in the Protective Housing Unit at Corcoran State Prison in 1989. He became eligible for parole in 1978 and was denied 12 times, last appearing before a board in 1997. He showed no interest in release and was not scheduled for another hearing until 2027. He died on November 19, 2017, at a Kern County hospital, from cardiac arrest and respiratory failure caused by colon cancer. He was 83.7California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. Inmate Charles Manson Dies of Natural Causes
Susan Atkins
Atkins was denied parole 12 times and was California’s longest-serving female inmate at the time of her death. She died in prison on September 24, 2009, at age 61, after a battle with brain cancer that had left most of her body paralyzed.9ABC News. Susan Atkins, Charles Manson Murderer, Dies in Prison
Linda Kasabian
After testifying, Kasabian changed her name and largely disappeared from public life, living at different times in New Hampshire and the Pacific Northwest, sometimes in poverty. A documentary crew located her in 2009 for a rare interview. She died on January 21, 2023, in Tacoma, Washington, at age 73, under the name Linda Chiochios. No cause of death was made public.10New York Times. Linda Kasabian Dead
Who Has Been Released
Leslie Van Houten
Van Houten’s release in 2023 is the only time a core Tate-LaBianca killer has walked free, and it took a court order to make it happen. Five separate parole recommendations for her had been blocked, by Governor Jerry Brown in 2016 and 2018 and by Governor Gavin Newsom afterward. In May 2023, a California appeals court granted her habeas corpus petition and ordered her release. Newsom declined to challenge the ruling. Van Houten walked out of the California Institution for Women on July 11, 2023, after 53 years in prison, was placed in transitional housing, and is serving a three-year parole term.11NPR. Leslie Van Houten, Manson Murder, Freed From Prison on Parole12New York Times. Leslie Van Houten Parole
Steve “Clem” Grogan
Grogan was convicted for the Shea murder and originally sentenced to death, but the trial judge reduced his sentence to life, remarking that Grogan was “too stupid and too hopped up on drugs to decide anything on his own.” He cooperated in 1977 by leading authorities to Shea’s remains and was paroled in November 1985 after 14 years, making him the first Manson Family member convicted of murder to be released. He reportedly worked as a house painter in the San Fernando Valley and lives in the Bay Area.13Los Angeles Times. Manson Family Member Steve Grogan5Biography.com. Manson Family Members Today
Lynette “Squeaky” Fromme
Fromme was not involved in the murders. She was convicted in 1975 for attempting to assassinate President Gerald Ford in Sacramento with a handgun that failed to fire. She briefly escaped from a federal prison in West Virginia in 1987 before being recaptured. She was released on parole in 2009.5Biography.com. Manson Family Members Today
Mary Brunner
The first person recruited into the Family and the mother of Manson’s son, Brunner received immunity for her testimony in the Hinman case. She was later sentenced to 20 years to life after she and other Family members robbed a gun store in 1971, in a reported scheme to hijack a plane and free Manson. She was paroled in 1977 and has lived quietly, reportedly in the Midwest.14People. Where Are the Manson Family Members Now
Sandra Good
Good was imprisoned in 1976 for conspiring to send threatening letters to corporate executives and paroled in 1985. After her release she co-founded an environmental group called ATWA (Air, Trees, Water, Animals) with Fromme and eventually moved to Hanford, California, to be near Manson at Corcoran State Prison.15BBC. Charles Manson Family Members
Who Is Still in Prison
Patricia Krenwinkel
Krenwinkel, 77, is now California’s longest-serving female prisoner. She has been through 16 parole hearings. A board recommended her release in May 2022, and Newsom reversed it. When a panel recommended her again in May 2025, Newsom blocked her release a second time in October 2025, stating she “currently poses an unreasonable danger to society.” Her attorney, Keith Wattley, called the reversal “100% political” and “directly contrary to the evidence and the controlling law.” She remains at the California Institution for Women.16The Guardian. Charles Manson Follower Parole – Patricia Krenwinkel – Gavin Newsom
Charles “Tex” Watson
Watson, who physically carried out most of the Tate-LaBianca killings, has been denied parole 18 times, most recently in 2021. Now 79, he has become a minister and earned a business degree in prison. He is not eligible for another parole hearing until 2026 and remains incarcerated in California.5Biography.com. Manson Family Members Today17Press Democrat. Manson Family Killers Prison Newsom
Bobby Beausoleil
Convicted for the Hinman murder, Beausoleil was recommended for parole in January 2019, and Newsom reversed it. A January 2025 parole suitability finding was again reversed by Newsom on May 2, 2025, with the governor citing “inadequate insight” into Beausoleil’s violent conduct. He remains at the California Medical Facility and continues to produce art and music from prison.18Governor of California. Annual Executive Report on Parole19Oxygen. Bobby Beausoleil and the Gary Hinman Murder
Bruce Davis
Davis, 81, was convicted in 1972 for the Hinman and Shea murders. Parole has been recommended for him seven times between 2010 and 2021, and a governor has reversed every one of those findings. The parole board itself denied him in July 2022, citing a “lack of change, growth and maturity.” A subsequent hearing was postponed after Davis participated in a true crime podcast. He remains at San Quentin, in poor health with emphysema and multiple hip replacement surgeries.20Alta Online. California Parole – Bruce Davis21Fox News. Bruce Davis Parole Hearing Postponed After True Crime Podcast
Why They Keep Being Denied Parole
Under California law, a governor can reverse a parole board’s recommendation for any inmate convicted of murder, and successive governors have used that authority aggressively in Manson-related cases. Jerry Brown blocked Van Houten in 2016 and 2018. Arnold Schwarzenegger reversed Bruce Davis’s parole. Gavin Newsom has reversed recommendations for Van Houten, Krenwinkel, Davis, and Beausoleil, sometimes more than once for the same person. The standard rationale is that the inmate “currently poses an unreasonable danger to society,” often paired with findings of insufficient insight into the causes of the crimes despite acknowledging rehabilitative progress.22NBC News. Manson Family Member Parole Bid Rejected by California Governor23Los Angeles Times. Manson Follower Bruce Davis Denied Parole by Newsom
Victims’ families have been a steady presence on the other side of each hearing. Debra Tate, Sharon Tate’s sister, has opposed parole for every convicted Manson follower. Anthony DiMaria, nephew of Jay Sebring, and Louis Smaldino, nephew of Leno and Rosemary LaBianca, have argued at hearings that the “rare, severe, egregious nature” of the crimes and their lasting cultural impact make release inappropriate.24KCRA. California Governor Blocks Charles Manson Follower’s Parole
Van Houten’s 2023 release, achieved only after a court overruled the governor, offers a legal path others may try. The pattern since suggests the political dynamics that keep Manson followers behind bars have not shifted.