After more than 40 years in jail and 19 failed attempts at getting approved for parole, former Manson Family member Leslie Van Houten managed to earn the approval of the California parole board. After a five-hour hearing at the California Institution for Women in Corona, Van Houten finally saw hope.
Van Houten was the youngest among those who were convicted in the brutal Manson Family killings way back in 1969. During her conviction, she was initially given the death penalty, but after a change in California law, her sentence was downgraded to life in prison.
After getting the all-elusive approval of the parole board, Van Houten simply stated that the decision made her feel "numb."
"I don't let myself off the hook. I don't find parts in any of this that makes me feel the slightest bit good about myself," she said.
During her long stint in prison, Van Houten proved herself to be an ideal inmate, earning both her bachelor's and master's degrees behind bars. She also organized a number of notable self-help groups for women in prison. Indeed, her actions seemed to have shown that through the years, the now 66-year-old Van Houten became a changed woman.
Despite her efforts in earning more freedom for herself, however, her parole is not guaranteed. After the initial approval from the parole board, the decision is set to be endorsed to an administrative review and later on to the governor of California, Jerry Brown.
Of course, her possible parole has caused much criticism, especially among the families of the people she murdered on that fateful night almost 50 years ago.
Cory LaBianca, whose mother and father were killed by the Manson family, acknowledged that Van Houten might have done good things in prison. Regardless of what she has done behind bars, however, LaBianca believes that it was her actions before she ended up in prison that should determine whether or not she gets parole.
"I very much disagree with the ruling. We all need to be held responsible for our behavior. The least we can do, for someone who commits a crime against another human being, is to keep them in jail," LaBianca said. "Maybe Leslie Van Houten has been a model prisoner. But you know what, we still suffer our loss. My father will never be paroled. My stepmother will never get her life back."
Rich Pfeiffer, Van Houten's attorney, disagrees with the criticism. According to the lawyer, throughout the years, his client has suffered from the stigma brought about by her participation in the gruesome murders and not much else.
"A lot of people who oppose parole don't know anything about Leslie's conduct. Her role was bad. Everyone's was. But they don't know what she's done since then and all of the good she's done," he said.
