236 THE MANSON FAMILY
On the refrigerator door, she
incorrectly spelled out “Healter
Skelter”. The killers then left the
blood-soaked scene.
Around 10:30pm on 10 August,
Rosemary LaBianca’s son Frank
Struthers returned from a camping
trip and found Leno LaBianca’s
boat on the drive. Suspicious, he
called his sister and her boyfriend.
The men entered the house to find
the LaBiancas’ bodies.Despite the similarity of the crimes,
the Los Angeles Police Department
(LAPD) did not initially connect the
Hinman, Tate, and LaBianca cases.
The sheriff’s department was
handling the Hinman case, and the
LAPD believed the Tate murder to
be related to drugs. Investigators
in each of the three cases found
themselves at dead ends, partly
due to the lack of communication
between the authorities involved.
However, the Manson Family’s
crime spree continued, and would
provide the police with major leads.
Kitty Lutesinger, girlfriend of
Bobby Beausoleil, was arrested for
burning machinery in Death Valley,California, near the Family’s new
hideout at Barker Ranch. Lutesinger
snitched, and informed detectives
that Susan Atkins had also been
involved in the murder of Hinman,
for which her boyfriend was already
doing time.
Meanwhile, on 16 August, in an
unrelated case, the sheriff’s office
raided Spahn Ranch, which they
suspected was the main base of
an auto theft ring. Susan Atkins
was arrested, and Manson, Watson,
and a follower named Bruce Davis
killed Spahn Ranch-hand Donald
Shea, because they believed he
had reported them to the police.
In jail on car theft charges,
Susan Atkins told another inmate
about her participation in the Tate
and LaBianca murders. The inmate
reported the claims and Atkins not
only confessed to the crime, but
agreed to testify against the others
if the death penalty was dropped.Family trials
Manson, Krenwinkel, and Atkins
were each charged with seven
counts of murder and one count
of conspiracy. Because Van Houten
had only participated in the
LaBianca killings, she was charged
with two counts of murder and one
of conspiracy. Kasabian, who
waited outside during the killingsSharon Tate starred in Roman
Polanski’s 1967 movie The Fearless
Vampire Killers, and married him in
January 1968. Exactly 17 months later,
the actress and model was murdered.They haven’t made
atonement to any one of
my family members.
Debra Tate230_237_Manson_Family.indd 236 02/12/2016 15:04
MURDER CASES 237
and fled the Ranch after the
murders, was granted immunity
in exchange for her testimony.
The trial began on 15 June 1970.
On the first day of testimony,
Manson appeared in court with a
cross carved into his forehead. In
the days that followed, the other
Family members at the trial –
including the female defendants –
followed suit, wearing the mark.
Throughout the trial, Atkins
and her codefendants attempted
to disrupt proceedings. They sang
songs Manson had written as
they were led in and out of the
courtroom. Atkins giggled,
snickered, and shouted insults.
Family members loitered around
the courthouse and held vigils
on the sidewalk. Later, Manson
and his codefendants all shaved
their heads.
Their tactics did little to affect
the trial’s outcome. The prosecution
argued the motive of the killings
was to trigger Manson’s race war,
with the case hinging largely on
the testimony of Kasabian. The
defence, meanwhile, rested after
three days without calling a single
witness, which angered MansonThe psychology of cults
Contrary to stereotypes,
95 per cent of the people who
join cults are psychologically
sound. Personality is also not a
major factor in cult membership.
Those who join cults do so in
response to individual and
circumstantial needs: a desire to
belong, a search for answers to
life’s big questions, or an
attraction to the insular,
structured aspect of cult life.
Cult leaders play the most
important role in recruiting and
retaining members. Thesefigures are usually incredibly
charismatic and manipulative,
and therefore exert significant
influence over cult members.
Leaders encourage the group
to embrace a collective identity,
often ordering group activities,
such as prayer, manual labour,
and orgies. Members follow
rules set by the leader, who
often forbids outside interaction.
This makes it hard for them to
leave, as they become isolated
from support systems outside
of the cult.and his followers. As the trial
concluded, with closing arguments
pending, Van Houten’s defence
lawyer, Ronald Hughes,
disappeared during a weekend trip.
His body was found months later.
The trial concluded in January- Manson, Atkins, Van Houten,
and Krenwinkel were found guilty
of all 27 counts, and sentenced to
death. In a separate trial in 1971,
Watson was also found guilty and
sentenced to death. The sentences
were commuted to life in prison in
1972 when the death penalty was
abolished in California. Manson
followers Bruce Davis and Steve
Grogan were convicted in 1972 for
the murders of Hinman and Shea.
In 1971, Manson followers
Catherine Share, Lynette Fromme,
Dennis Rice, Steve Grogan, and
Ruth Ann Moorehouse were
convicted for plotting to kill
Barbara Hoyt – a former Family
member – to prevent her from
testifying at the trial. Hoyt,
Kasabian, and another former
Family member Paul Walker all
testified against Manson. Share
later claimed that Manson had
threatened to harm her if she did
not testify on his behalf.
For decades after the killings,
Manson remained in the news,
giving interviews from prison.
His case remains unique because
he never actually killed anyone
himself; instead, he used his
powers of persuasion to convince
his followers to do so. ■Entering the courtroom in
August 1970, Susan Atkins, Patricia
Krenwinkel, and Leslie Van Houten
all sport crosses they have carved
into their foreheads.230_237_Manson_Family.indd 237 13/01/2017 15:19