Leslie Van Houten was a young girl of 19 when she fell under the influence of the charismatic cult leader Charles Manson. Van Houten has spent the last 44 years in prison after participating in the gruesome LaBianca murders and is likely to be denied parole for the 20th time, according to the Associated Press.
As has been done many times in the past a prosecutor is prepared to oppose the release of Van Houten. Unlike in previous times Van Houten is expected to speak and try to convince the parole board that she has changed and is worthy of parole, her attorney, Michael Satris, told the Associated Press.
"She is living a life of amends for her crime on a daily basis," Satris said. "Everything she does now is to be of service and of benefit to the world."
Satris says that Van Houten has changed since she was under the influence of Manson, and that her desire to change was motivated by more than just trying to get out of prison.
"She just wants to be as good of a person as she can be," Satris said. "And it would be a matter of grace if the parole board would bestow on her the chance to accomplish this on the outside."
If the parole board were to grant parole Van Houten would be the first member of the Manson family to be released from prison. Bruce Davis, a former member of the Manson family who was not involved in the Tate-LaBianca killings, was granted parole last year only to have it reversed by California Governor Jerry Brown, according to the Associated Press.
Van Houten was the youngest of the defendants at the trial alongside Charles Manson, Susan Atkins and Patricia Krenwhinkel. It was thought at the time that the 19 year-old Van Houten may have received mercy from the jury but after she was giggling in the courtroom as the murders were described that hope was gone, according to the Independent.
Van Houten has always been given high marks by the parole board although, ultimately, she has always been denied parole. The last time she was denied parole was in 2010, reports the Associated Press.
