Leslie Van Houten
No one associated with the August 1969 Tate-LaBianca murders has ever been paroled. Good.
When I say this to some people they quickly bring up would-be Gerald Ford assassin Lynette “Squeaky” Fromme, who was paroled in 2009 for her 1975 attempt to kill the American President. But while Squeaky was a member of the Manson Family, she was not a participant in the Tate-LaBianca murders.
I'm very happy that 68-year-old convicted murderer Leslie Van Houten, who at 19 was the youngest follower of Charles Manson to participate in those murders, has again been denied parole by California Gov. Jerry Brown despite a Parole Board recommendation that she is fit for parole.
Screw the Parole Board.
Van Houten has been in prison for almost fifty years. If this pattern of denied paroles continues she might die in prison of old age and become the longest-incarcerated person - male or female - in U.S. History. Tough. It's not that I disagree with paroling inmates. I certainly do. I believe that we can begin considering parole once they have undone the crimes they committed - not just convicted murderers, but any felons. It’s just easier and more popular to talk about perpetrators of heinous crimes. So when Sharon Tate and her baby are restored to life, when the LaBianca family is returned to life, only then may we begin to consider parole, by regarding other factors in an inmates life, like ‘rehabilitation.’
Being forgiven for your sins does not mean you go to heaven. You still go to hell, only without malice. Being forgiven for your crimes does not mean you get out of jail.
It's not that I'm mean and unforgiving. I am very forgiving. I forgive Van Houten. There, that’s done and I declared it. But forgiveness does not mean absolution. Being forgiven for your sins does not mean you can go to heaven. You still go to hell, only without malice. Being forgiven for your crimes does not mean you get out of jail. Also, I don’t care one iota if an inmate is so old that she is considered no longer a danger to society. Incarcerating people for the protection of society is one view of judicial incarceration. My view is that incarceration is for punishment, and if the courts have the courage of their convictions then if they sentence an offender to life in prison, then life it ought to be. Otherwise, WTF?! It is in a spirit of love and forgiveness that I want her kept in prison until she dies there. That’s a very forgiving attitude, I think. I love her, so please die in prison.
Van Houten could be released by a future state Governor. I hope not.
But I could be wrong.