United States. – The governor of California announced today that he will ask the state Supreme Court not to block the parole of Leslie Van Houten, a supporter of Charles Manson, paving the way for his release after 53 years in prison for two notorious murders .
In a brief statement, the governor’s office said an appeal is unlikely to succeed. The statement said Newsom was disappointed.
“More than 50 years after the Manson Cult committed these brutal murders, the victims’ families continue to feel the effects,” the statement said.
Van Houten, now in his 70s, is serving a life sentence for helping Manson and other supporters in the 1969 murder of Los Angeles supermarket owner Leno LaBianca and his wife Rosemary.
Van Houten could be released in two weeks after a parole board reviewed her record and processed the paperwork for her release from the California Institute for Women in Corona, her attorney Nancy Tetreault said.
She has been recommended five times parole since 2016, but Newsom and former Gov. Jerry Brown have both rejected those recommendations.
However, in May a state appeals court ruled that Van Houten should be released, citing “her extraordinary efforts in rehabilitation, reflection, remorse, realistic probation plans, support from her family and friends, and the positive attitude he had in prison.” . .
“She’s emotional and overwhelmed,” Tetreault said.
“She is grateful that people are acknowledging that she is no longer the same person she was when she committed the murders.”
After her release, Van HOuten will spend about a year in temporary accommodation learning basic life skills, such as going to the grocery store and getting a debit card, Tetreault said.