Leslie Van Houten, who was convicted of murder and conspiracy for her role in the 1969 killings of Leno and Rosemary La Bianca by the followers of Charles Manson, has been released from prison after serving 53 years behind bars.
Van Houten, 73, was granted parole by a California appeals court in May, which overturned a decision by Governor Gavin Newsom to deny her release. Newsom said on Friday that he would not challenge the court’s ruling in the state Supreme Court.
Van Houten was one of the youngest members of the Manson “family”, a cult that committed a series of brutal murders in Los Angeles in the summer of 1969. She did not participate in the slaying of actress Sharon Tate and four others on August 9, but she joined Manson and other cult members in breaking into the home of the La Biancas the next night. She stabbed Rosemary La Bianca at least 14 times while Manson and another follower killed Leno La Bianca.
Van Houten was originally sentenced to death, but her sentence was commuted to life with the possibility of parole after the California Supreme Court abolished capital punishment in 1972. She has been denied parole 22 times before being approved by a parole board in 2016. Since then, she has been blocked by two governors and an appeals court before finally winning her freedom.
Van Houten’s lawyers have argued that she has been a model prisoner who has shown remorse, earned college degrees, and participated in various programs. They have also cited her age at the time of the crimes, 19, and her history of abuse and trauma as mitigating factors. The court that granted her parole said that Van Houten has “shown extraordinary rehabilitative efforts, insight, remorse, realistic parole plans, support from family and friends, favorable institutional reports, and had received four successive grants of parole.”
However, the victims’ families and some prosecutors have opposed her release, saying that she remains a danger to society and that her crimes were too heinous to be forgiven. Newsom’s office said that he is “disappointed” by Van Houten’s release and that “the victims’ families still feel the impact, as do all Californians.”
