Charles Manson follower denied parole by California governor
A Charles Manson disciple who killed a man with a fork and scribbled messages in his blood was denied parole by California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Friday.
A parole board had recommended 74-year-old Patricia Krenwinkel for release in May, but Newsom had the final say.
“Beyond the brutal murders she committed, she played a leadership role in the cult, and an enforcer of Mr. Manson’s tyranny,” Newsom said. “She forced the other women in the cult to obey Mr. Manson, and prevented them from escaping when they tried to leave.”
In this file photo taken Aug. 20, 1970, Charles Manson follower Patricia Krenwinkel, center, is seen walking to court with Susan Atkins, left, and Leslie Van Houten, to appear for her role in the 1969 cult killings of seven people in Los Angeles. (George Brich / AP /)
Krenwinkel was part of the “Manson family” killings of pregnant actress Sharon Tate and six other people in 1969. She was initially sentenced to death, but her sentence was changed to life in prison when California briefly outlawed the death penalty in 1972.
Before May’s hearing, Krenwinkel was denied parole 14 times, most recently in 2017. Newsom said Friday she was still a danger to society despite her age.
“Ms. Krenwinkel fully accepted Mr. Manson’s racist, apocalyptical ideologies,” Newsom said. “Ms. Krenwinkel was not only a victim of Mr. Manson’s abuse. She was also a significant contributor to the violence and tragedy that became the Manson family’s legacy.”
Patricia Krenwinkel listens to the ruling denying her parole, at a hearing at the California Institution for Women in Corona, Calif., in January 2011. (Reed Saxon/)
The gruesome Manson killings shook all of California in 1969. Krenwinkel became notorious for stabbing Leno LaBianca with a fork and writing “Helter Skelter,” ″Rise” and “Death to Pigs” on the wall with his blood.
Descendants of Manson family victims also opposed Krenwinkel’s release. Newsom has previously denied parole to other Manson family killers.
Krenwinkel is the longest-serving female prisoner in California. Charles Manson died in prison in 2017.
With News Wire Services
