Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) will give up his efforts to appeal the parole of convicted murderer and Charles Manson follower Leslie Van Houten.
Newsom’s last effort to prevent Van Houten’s parole came in May, but was overruled by a California appeals court. It was his fourth appeal in Van Houten’s case.
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“The governor is disappointed by the Court of Appeal’s decision to release Ms. Van Houten but will not pursue further action as efforts to further appeal are unlikely to succeed,” Newsom’s communications director Erin Mellon said in a statement.
Van Houten was convicted in 1971 of killing supermarket executive Leno LaBianca’s wife, Rosemary LaBianca by stabbing her sixteen times from behind. She claimed LaBianca was already dead, stabbed to death by fellow convicted murderer Tex Watson, when she stabbed her. Leno LaBianca would also be stabbed to death by Watson.
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In 1972, California did away with its death penalty, sparing Van Houten, Atkins, Krenwinkel, and Manson at once. Manson died in prison in 2017.
The parole board recommended Van Houten’s release in September 2021.
