Manson gang member Leslie Van Houten to be paroled. California stopping appeal of her release

WhatInThe said:
They didn't get her on the Tate murders but got her on the LaBianca murders the second night. She was one of the stabbers. But yes just knowing her peers annihilated all living beings in a house and did so her self on a second occasion says something about the individual.
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I thought, according to Vinccent Bugliosi's book Helter Skelter, that Leslie stuck a barbecuing fork in one of the LaBiancas post mortem. So according to Bugliosi, she didn't KILL anyone. Did anyone else read Helter Skelter? It was a good book, I thought. :unsure:
 
Alligatorob said:
Probably not, but it does protect the public.
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I disagree... I am sure there are millions out there who might have committed a murder but didn't knowing essentially they would lose their lives to prison or death... I am one of those... as are my siblings.. and possibly even my late mum... each of us would have killed my father if there hadn't been a sentence of life in prison to face...
 
VaughanJB said:
We can't know anything 100%. But I suspect she's no danger now. We can never know.

In the UK, a guy was driving illegal immigrants into the country. But he got it wrong, and 39 people perished in the back of his truck. He was caught, and taken to court for their deaths. He got 12 years. He'll do 7. Yet surely he's a greater danger? He did it for money, he showed a willful disregard for human life. Yet 7 years and he'll be free. Compare that to this woman - and the years that have passed. I'm not worried about HER.
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He got 12 years because he wasn't the matermind,he was just the paid driver.... horrific as it was... but will that stop these people paying to illegally enter this country... I doubt it...
 
chic said:
I thought, according to Vinccent Bugliosi's book Helter Skelter, that Leslie stuck a barbecuing fork in one of the LaBiancas post mortem. So according to Bugliosi, she didn't KILL anyone. Did anyone else read Helter Skelter? It was a good book, I thought. :unsure:
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What her testimony said (not from a book, from the courthouse) was that Krenwinkel tried to stab Mrs. LaBianca but the knife got stuck in her sternum and they called to Watson for help... he had just killed Leno. Testimony stated that Rosemary was still alive, so Lulu/Leslie stabbed her repeatedly in the back. (More than 12 times.)
 
chic said:
I thought, according to Vinccent Bugliosi's book Helter Skelter, that Leslie stuck a barbecuing fork in one of the LaBiancas post mortem. So according to Bugliosi, she didn't KILL anyone. Did anyone else read Helter Skelter? It was a good book, I thought. :unsure:
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I heard the post mortem thing but with multiple killers it would be hard to tell who actually delivered the fatal blow. Also it frequently comes down to state of mind. They went into that home to kill people regardless of who did what. That's why they first degree murder and death penalty at the time.
 
In law there must be justice and so we hope at least, and when an individual has committed a horrendous despicable crime as this individual has committed, society owes her nothing, this is a slap in the face of justice, the victim's memory, and the victims family imo.
 
hollydolly said:
I disagree... I am sure there are millions out there who might have committed a murder but didn't knowing essentially they would lose their lives to prison or death... I am one of those... as are my siblings.. and possibly even my late mum... each of us would have killed my father if there hadn't been a sentence of life in prison to face...
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You are probably right, you would know.

I don't know why we are trying to figure out if she is a threat, she does not deserve freedom, and society does not deserve her presence, threat or not. And of course there is no real way to know what future treat she might present, safer and more just to leave her in prison. However, I think the decision has been made and she's out.
 
Naturally said:
Another one that surprised me by getting parole from a life sentence was "Squeaky" Fromme
She was never even remorseful for anything and still loves Manson.
Wonder if Gerald Ford would have said she wasn't a threat?
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What bothers me is that the true risks to society aren't going to voice their plans to some prison shrink. They're going to bide their time and "be good." They're going to "find Jesus." Oh wait, she already knows him, I guess, since Manson claimed he WAS Jesus. Well now he's dead and what could this lady who "loved him so much" have in her head about making amends for her true love not being able to get HIS parole?

Yep, that's just me speculating/being the writer I am... but there's merit in it, too. And the past two gov's of the state agree. Being over 70 shouldn't be an automatic get out of jail (literally) free card.
 
She, along with the others, received the death penalty. The judge should have resentenced them by saying, "Life without the possibility of parole."
Wouldn't that have sealed her fate?

They were supposed to kill Terry Melcher, not the people they did kill. These people did nothing to anyone.
 
Hypothetical comparison case here... say that one of these mass murderers in a school shooting would actually go to jail instead of being shot or being a coward and killing themselves... and they get out on parole 53 years from now because they were "a good prisoner." Would people be saying he/she deserved to roam the streets because they served their time?

And if not, why is one murder scene different from others whether or not children are involved? If that's a factor, then pretend I said mass murder at a mall or mass murder at a church. It would make a very interesting study... has the Manson slaughters nightmare gotten watered down in people's minds since all those decades have passed? And will all these current mass murders be weakened in minds half a century from now?
 
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hollydolly said:
He got 12 years because he wasn't the matermind,he was just the paid driver.... horrific as it was... but will that stop these people paying to illegally enter this country... I doubt it...
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Sure, the mastermind will get more. But in real-world terms, he drove them, he failed to provide air to them, and he was part of the conspiracy. 12 years is nowhere near enough, imo. YMMV.
 
Alligatorob said:
You are probably right, you would know.

I don't know why we are trying to figure out if she is a threat, she does not deserve freedom, and society does not deserve her presence, threat or not. And of course there is no real way to know what future treat she might present, safer and more just to leave her in prison. However, I think the decision has been made and she's out.
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Good points here.
 
She was only 19 and probably high when the murders were committed, so I'm sure she's not the same person as she was back then.
 
Chet said:
She was only 19 and probably high when the murders were committed, so I'm sure she's not the same person as she was back then.
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But she wasn't convicted and punished for the person she is today , she was convicted and punished for the monster she was then.
 
In order for there to be a logical approach to crime and punishment we need to agree first that there is never justice. You can put a mass murderer to death only once…no matter how many persons they killed. We need swifter punishment that is definitive for specific crimes. An eye for an eye…so to speak. And on crimes where there is no doubt about who committed the crime…there should be a set time for enactment of punishment. She should of died 50 years ago. Now as a society we are facing quite literally a different person and debating fate based upon actions done over 50 years ago. To say nothing about going from death row to supposed life in prison. Impossible.
 
rgp said:
But she wasn't convicted and punished for the person she is today , she was convicted and punished for the monster she was then.
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It does make me wonder, if Harris and Klebold had lived and been jailed "for life" and were freed in a few decades... would people be saying "aw, they were just kids, let 'em go?" I'd hope not, but how's it different? Scary. Uh, actually I think Dahmer was only 17 or 18 for his first! "Just a teenager... let him go????"
 

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