Justices Deny Van Houten's Habeas Corpus Petition



newsfeed.time.com

"In other conference action, the justices:

•Denied review of the summary denial, by this district’s Div. One, of the most recent habeas corpus petition by Manson family member Leslie Van Houten. Van Houten, now 63, was 19—the youngest of the defendants—at the time of what have become known as the Tate/LaBianca murders.

Van Houten admitted her involvement in the August 1969 murders of Leno and Rosemary La Bianca in their Cielo Drive home. One day earlier, actress Sharon Tate and four others were murdered at the home Tate rented with her husband, director Roman Polanski, who was in Europe at the time.

Van Houten was convicted of the La Bianca murders. She was not present during the Tate murders but was convicted of conspiracy to commit them.

Rosemary La Bianca was stabbed a total of 42 times, and Van Houten said at various times that she had herself stabbed the woman 14 or 16 times. Another Manson Family member testified that Van Houten admitted stabbing La Bianca after she was already dead and said “the more she did it the more fun it was.”

She has now been denied parole 19 times."

http://www.metnews.com/articles/2013/conf012413.htm

Bizarre 'Nomads' Held in Slaying

San Francisco Chronicle December 2, 1969 - front page

United PressLos Angeles

A man and two women described as members of a nomadic desert commune were identified yesterday as suspects in the bizarre murders of actress Sharon Tate and four other persons August 9.

Police Chief Edward Davis told newsmen that the suspects were part of a "roving band of hippies" who also allegedly killed a middle-aged couple one day later across town from the luxurious home of Miss Tate in Benedict Canyon.

Warrants were issued for Charles D. Watson, 24, now in custody in McKinney, Tex., and two women suspects. Patricia Kernwinkel, 21, was arrested yesterday in Mobile, Ala., and Linda Kasabian, age unknown, is being hunted in New Mexico.

Watson was taken into custody Sunday night. Sheriff Tom Montgomery of Collin county at McKinney said, "You could kinda say he walked in and gave himself up." The suspect was described in Texas as clean-shaven and neat, although Los Angeles police said he was long-haired and bearded while living in the desert commune.

Davis said it is expected that four or five other persons will be indicted for the murders next week.
The other suspects are said to be in custody in Inyo county, where 26 young men and women accused of living a roving life of thievery were rounded up by a sheriff's posse.

Davis confirmed that the Tate murders were linked to the slayings of a wealthy owner of a small grocery chain and his wife in the Silverlake district of Los Angeles a day later.

There were gruesome similarities between the two cases. The word "pig" was smeared in blood on the front door of the Tate residence. The words "death to pigs" were written in blood on a refrigerator door at the home of Leon and Rosemary La Bianca. The word "war" was carved on La Bianca's chest.
Davis said members of the commune were living at the Spawn movie ranch, and abandoned movie set northwest of Los Angeles, at the time of the murders. Then they moved to the Barker ranch in Death Valley.

RAIDERS
Deputies said the group seemed to operate as an updated Indian-type raiding party - traveling in dune buggies, living in abandoned mining shacks, stealing as they went.

They roamed by night and posted lookouts equipped with walkie-talkies during the day. The men wore shoulder-length hair. At the time of the raids, some of the girls were clad only in bikini bottoms and others were nude.

Sheriff's deputies, guided by a spotter plane, picked up 15 youths near Badwater October 10. Six more women and five more men were arrested October 12 in a raid on the same camp.

Two babies were taken to Inyo county hospital for treatment for malnutrition. At the time, the suspects were booked on suspicion of auto theft, receiving stolen property, possession of a sawed-off shotgun and contributing to the delinquency of a minor.

Davis said the names of additional suspects in custody in Inyo county, site of Death Valley, will be given to the county grand jury sometime before December 9.

MYSTERY
The motive for the slayings remains a mystery. Davis said the victims did not know the suspects, although evidence indicated that the killers had visited the home leased by Miss Tate and her husband, Roman Polanski, before the killings.

"It had all the earmarks of premeditation," Davis said.

He said all the suspects were members of what could be called a "commune," and the group might have been a religious one," depending on your definition of religion."

The Tate slayings appeared to be the outcome of a weird religious rite, police investigators said during the initial stages of the investigation. Later, they dropped that theory.

In addition to Miss Tate, 26, who was eight months pregnant, the victims were Abigail Folger, 26, San Francisco, heiress to the Folger coffee fortune; Jay Sebring, 35, Hollywood innovator of hair styling for men and once Miss Tate's fiance;

Voityck Frokowsky, 37, who worked with Polanski in Polish films, and Steven Earl Parent, 18, of suburban El Monte, who had been visiting a caretaker at the estate.

Update on Prettyface: The Movie

A couple of years ago, there were, like eight hundred moves about The Family in pre production, none of which have yet come to fruition.  It appears that "Prettyface" may be gaining some traction with slick new movie posters, a website and facebook page though IMDB says it is still "in production:" http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1188735/ 
Think it will happen? Go to http://www.prettyfacemovie.com/ and see what you think...

Charles Manson Low Risk

"What do Scott Peterson, Sirhan Sirhan and Charles Manson have in common besides murder?  They are all classified as "low risk" offenders by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation."

http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/matier-ross/article/Some-on-Death-Row-low-risk-for-parole-4189492.php

I think this article speaks to the very real possibility that Bruce Davis will be paroled.  It also highlights the politics of the parole situation.

Steve McQueen A Biography Part 2 of 2

The final post from "Steve McQueen A Biography" by Marc Eliot.

I previously posted one write up at-  http://www.eviliz.com/2012/11/steve-mcqueen.html.

Not being a big Steve McQueen fan I didn't read the entire book, just the chapters pertaining to the murders.  I am sure everyone knows Steve and Jay were very tight friends.  The book reflects on their friendship built on womanizing, drugs, plus a few hair cuts.  Sharon and Voytek are mentioned in a few more other places as well.  Also mentioned in the book is the "guest list" for the night of August 9th at Cielo Drive is mentioned.

I personally found nothing new or exciting in the book but wanted to share it with you all.

On the afternoon of Thursday August 7th, Sebring went to Steve’s house to give him a trim.  Afterwards they went for some Mexican food at El Coyote in Hollywood.  While they ate Sebring told him there was a little soiree planned for the next night at Sharon Tate’s rented house up at Cielo Drive and that Steve should come.  Tate had since married film maker Roman Polanski but kept Jay and others from her single days close at hand.  Polanski didn’t seem to mind.  He wasn’t a very jealous man and believed that he and Sharon were so in love that nobody could possible pose a threat.  Nonetheless everyone who knew Sebring and Tate believed they were still in love and still carrying on.

Tate’s acting career was moving along nicely; Polanski had used her in 1967’s The Fearless Vampire Killers and married her a year later, and her career as a magazine model was equally hot until her pregnancy began to show.  She was in her eighth month which kept her more housebound then she would of liked.  While Polanski was off in England scouting for locations for what he thought would be his next movie Day of the Dolphin with his friend Warren Beatty and production designer Richard Sulbert and the woman Polanski was having an affair with Michelle Phillips of the Mamas and the Papas.  Tate had regular soirees at her home.  The next one was scheduled for that Friday night.  Steve happened to run into Robert Vaughn.  The two chatted for awhile and Steve invited him to come along that night to Tate’s place up on Cielo Drive.  Vaughn politely declined; he had other business he needed to take care of.

Still later Steve received a call from a young and beautiful blonde he had been seeing.  He invited her as well but she told him she had a better idea for just the two of them.  Early Saturday morning the mutilated bodies of Sharon Tate, coffee heiress Abigail Folger, Voytek Frykowski and Jay Sebring were discovered by the housekeeper.  Sebring had been stabbed seven times and shot in the head.  The news spread through L.A. like a firestorm.  When Steve heard about it he immediately arranged to have someone go to Sebring’s house and clean out all the drugs, sexual paraphernalia. And anything else he knew his friend would not of wanted anyone to find (of that could possibly tie Steve to Sebrings life style).  Sebring was known as something on an S&M freak around town and Steve did not want any of that turned into fodder for the gossip mongers; it was bad enough that coke and pot had already been found in Sebring’s Porsche by the police at Cielo Drive that morning.

Two  months later the Manson gang was arrested and charged with the Tate murders and others that had taken place during their spree.  Part of the evidence police found was a “hit list” that Manson had made of celebrities he wanted to kill.  At the top of it was Frank Sinatra.  Charlie was going to have Frank seduced by one of the pretty young Manson girls and killed while having sex with her.  Liz Taylor and Richard Burton (they were going to be tied together and boiled alive), and Steve McQueen who’s death was to be made to look like a suicide.  Presumably he made the list because Star had rejected hi manuscript.

To be on Nixon’s enemies list was one thing; to make Manson’s death list was quite another.  Steve was freaked out.  He wired and burglar proofed with all the latest security equipment. He was not alone.  All over town celebrities were imprisoning themselves in their own homes..  Overnight the peaceful easy feeling that had permeated Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Brentwood and Malibu were gone, replaced by a giant paranoia that made it feel like one giant war zone.

Steve began carrying a loaded Magnum with him at all times.  However no matter how safe and secure he had made himself and his family, he could not shake the dark feeling of having come so close to death.

A simple decision to get laid had saved his life.  He would never again go out in public without a weapon.

The Labiancas (band)

"New Spahn Ranch" writes-

Hi Liz, Patty & Matt,

I love your Manson Family blog and I just wanted to share something for possible inclusion.  

There is an amazing new NY-based "Charles Manson concept band" that claims to be a new component of the Manson Family.  They seem incredibly well versed in the intricacies of the case (going so far as to assert that they have "the little black book" that Leno LaBianca allegedly possessed, thereby hinting at their support of that theory/motive) and their songs are all centered around the events that transpired.  I personally think it is some sort of postmodern performance art project but I can't speak for them; I suppose it is possible that they genuinely believe as it says on their site that "Charles Manson is Jesus Christ."

You can check out their blog and songs here:  http://thelabiancasband.tumblr.com/

And then there is their first video, in which singer JJ Brine plays Manson and Lena Marquise appears to portray Sharon Tate:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EyhLBzOYwC0

Hope you guys get a kick out of this; I thought it was simply too good to go unnoticed!

Best, 

http://www.newspahnranch.tumblr.com

Manson Trial Jurors

Patty has been perusing a copy of "Trial by your Peers," by Manson juror William Zamora (pictured at left)  that Grump sent her some time ago.  The book details the goings on of the trial from Zamora's perspective which at times is truly comical. There are a lot of interesting tidbits in the book, which Patty will recount in other posts. One thing she found interesting was the list of jurors on the trial, and what Zamora thought of each of them. Zamora uses pseudonyms for each juror, presumably to keep from being sued (?):

"Frank Welch" (described as "self educated," true name Alva Dawson, retired deputy sherriff, pictured above right)

"Mr. White" ("alienated:" true name John Baer, electrical technician, pictured at left)
"Genaro Swanson" ("popular," true name Anlee Sisto, pictured at right)
"Olivia Madison" ("a drunk:" true name Evelyn Hines, dictaphone operator)
"Betty Clark" ("solitary")
"Mr. Scalise" (dissatisfied: true name Walter Vietzelio, retired security guard)

"Martin Payne" (narrow minded: true name Herman Tubick, undertaker and foreman, pictured at left)
"Marvin Connolly" (immature: true name William McBride, reactor operator)
"Violet Stokes" (insecure)
"Deborah Hart" (had affair with Tom Brooks, true name Jean Roseland, mother of three and secretary at TWA, pictured at right)
"Mildred Osborne"

Alternates:
"Ray Harris" (hostile, true name Larry Sheely)
"Ruth Collingwood" (searching for a husband)
"Daniel Jackson" (naive)
"George Kiefer, Jr." (simple)
"Edith Rayburn" (traveler)
"Tom Brooks" (had affair with Deborah Hart, true name Bob Douglass)

Q&A Manson Girls Movie

 Stars Photos From The IMDB Site

From Randy J-

so according to IDMB "Manson Girls" is currently filming and scheduled for a 2013 release. Heard anything bout this?

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1408045/

The Myth of Helter Skelter

Thanks to a tip from "The Grump" it appears James Whitehouse took down the free read at Susan's web site "The Myth of Helter Skelter" the book Susan was writing and never finished before she died.  You can BUY it now on Amazon.

http://www.amazon.com/Myth-Helter-Skelter-Susan-Atkins-Whitehouse/dp/0985983213/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1358372648&sr=1-1&keywords=susan+atkins

Bobby Interview

From our German friends-

Cupid's Odyssey: The rise, fall and rebirth of Bobby Beausoleil- Essay and interview
From what I can tell, this is one of the most recent interviews with Bobby.

I have copied the interview part for you all.  To read the essay and interview go to-

http://www.blackmagazin.com/?p=4273

It is in German but there is an English translation option at the top of the page.  Enjoy.

Q- As Of 30 January to 26 April 2009 showed the Kunsthalle Hamburg, the exhibition "Man Son 1969", which was dedicated to the employment of contemporary artists in the counterculture of the late 1960s, with a particular emphasis on the activities of Charles Manson and his Family. In the catalog to the exhibition there is also a new edition of the infamous interview that Truman Capote had with you, I know, one of the few German publications on you. Do you get some form of support and attention from persons or organizations from Germany and Europe?

A- It is unfortunate that one of the few I attributed texts that have been translated into the German language, the invention is almost complete.In the Dialogue section of my website, I describe in detail how Mr. Capote has this "interview" distorted in the early 1980s, probably in his recollection of an interview that took place ten years before. This interview says far more than from Truman Capote, as it would ever be able to say about me. I have the curators of the exhibition mentioned by you, carefully explained, as they contacted me prior to the opening of the show in January 2009. They used the Capote-text yet, and indicated that it was more likely been their intention to use a cult figure to present authentic materials instead. That was a disappointment, but no, I was not accustomed to. Incidentally, a short passage of the interview Michael Moynihan has done to me for the Seconds Magazine, also appeared in the exhibition catalog. At least this excerpt is from an authentic interview.

I receive from any country grants from organizations or individuals. However I get from people from many countries, including German, explicit support. Most of the letters I receive, are friendly and often show appreciation for my art and music.

Q- In January 2010, the former member of the Family, Bruce Davis, asked the probation prospect (Arnold Schwarzenegger, the governor of California, has refused to release Davis from now). Do you still have the hope of one day being able to leave the prison as a free man?

A-The Government of the State of California, including its Parole Board, competes with the Almighty about whose ways are mysterious. It is impossible to predict how the parole board to decide the case. I come since 1976 for a calling into question many times and I've gone through the ordeal of an appeal hearing. The parole guidelines seem to change with the weak economy, but whether what has happened in the case of Bruce Davis for me is true or not, one can only guess. I stand on the threshold of a new day.

Q-  Do you already have plans for new musical projects and do you see opportunities for further collaborations with other musicians, such as the recent Axis of Blood?

A- I'm currently working on new music for an album that I Voodoo Shivaya call. It is so far a departure from my previous albums because I sing and the emphasis here is more on gitarrenerzeugtem sound than anything I since Lucifer Rising did. Of course I am looking forward to working with other musicians, many of whom have expressed their interest to play with me to act and record music. I have for so many years mostly done solo music, and that can be very restrictive, compared to what can happen when musicians play together. The technology has made ​​it possible to do this all over the world, without ever leaving your home! I look forward to exploring these possibilities.

 Q- 2006, a Swiss label old recordings of The Orkustra on vinyl that you have 2009 published on your label White Dog Music again. Significant proportion of this was your ex-combatants Orkustra David LaFlamme. You're still in touch with LaFlamme, and do you see a way to work with him again? (By the way, have you ever noticed that Child in Time by Deep Purple sounds largely like the song Orkustra Bombay Calling?)

A- There David LaFlamme is thanks to them that even some footage of The Orkustra have survived the decades, which also applies to the recording of the 1967 version of the Lucifer Rising soundtrack of The Magick Powerhouse of Oz Anyway, except my box of tapes for keep me, David had no part in it, to arrange the release of an album of Orkustra recordings. Both, the 2006 album Orkustra the European label as well as the recently released double album in the U.S. with Orkustra recordings were produced as a collaboration between me and the White Dog Music LP two respective labels. The opportunity to make music again with David would be a delight. Sadly, his wife clearly does not agree that he has some kind of connection to me. Bombay Calling is written by David long before Deep Purple to Child in Time even thought - any similarity is purely coincidental anyway.

Q- In a way, you were in the seventies to a pioneer of electronic music. Have you ever had the opportunity to get to know the other artists who worked with electronic sounds, such as the German avant-garde composer Karlheinz Stockhausen or bands and musicians such as Throbbing Gristle, Coil, Monte Cazazza or NON ?

A- My fascination with electronically produced sounds and music has never waned, but during my captivity 42jährigen there was rarely an opportunity to experiment and explore this medium. I feel lucky to even get the opportunity and contributed little to the development of this exciting genre to have.

In my situation was the discovery of what other electronic musician who made a matter of luck, because in here I have no access to or record collections online music libraries. Electronically produced avant-garde music is found only sparsely in the U.S. radio, but sometimes I was just lucky. By most of the artists that you've mentioned, I've at least heard of music. I hope to hear much more.

Q- You came during your time in San Francisco, mid-1960s, in closer contact with the Satanism, especially Anton LaVey and his circle, or other types of occultism (apart from Kenneth Anger and his Crowley cult)? Will not you call today as a religious person (if so, in what way)?

A- Satanism is a farce, a tool invented by the Church in the Middle Ages to justify genocide and the subjugation of the population. At times he was among some groups as chic as an expression of rebellion against oppressive dogmas. But what Satanism is, honestly? A closer look, it can quickly identify a rather silly form of mockery, as would be the head of Catholicism, and played the role of a fool.

What this tells us so on Anton LaVey, the self-appointed high priest of Satanism? Yes, I met him `67, as Kenneth invited him to his apartment one afternoon. At that time I held it, as I even now do, a charlatan, who has found a way to provide for his livelihood by serving the fantasies of a group of people who buy his willing his particular brand of snake venom.

About my personal spiritual orientation, I would say that I tend to be a mystic, not so much an occultist. My practice is rooted in the ancient Vedic and Tantric traditions - traditions the same way in which Crowley himself so freely made use in his attempt to form a new religion. These traditions have known in their interior to appreciate that there are many valid ways to God, whom I consider the cause of the divine being, or as a pure, unmanifestiertes defining consciousness.

Q- Right now, you write on your memoirs. Can you estimate when the book will be finished? In what form will it be released?

A- The writing of my memoirs, as well as my life, an eternal work in progress. Nevertheless, I do like some progress. When the book is finished, I plan to publish it in traditional form and as e-books. I also thought to publish it as an audio book, read by me, with self-produced music in the background.

Q- One of your pictures that I like most, is The Green Man . Please tell me something about your painting and the ideas and inspiration behind the paintings.

A- The picture Green Man is of course my interpretation of nature's God of European mythology. God looks at this painting from nature back to us, even though God is not of this nature and romping only as a reflection in it.

All of my paintings, as well as my musical compositions are merely chanting the divine spark that is in each of us. I would prefer to avoid them to be overloaded with meaning.

Q- How did you have a favorite book or writer, and they influence your work as a musician?

A- For many years I've enjoyed getting lost in books, works of pure imagination - the more imaginative the better. Now that I'm the titles of about twenty books that surround me in my cell, scan, I know a bit surprised that almost all of them deal, in one way or another, with the self-knowledge. The journey to the heart, it seems, has broken through the imaginative.

Q- Could you please describe a typical day of your life behind bars?

A- There is no normal day behind bars. Here in the prison, a mindless, brutal routine vies with the unexpected and unpredictable for supremacy. I work hard at trying to avoid it like you're caught between these unintelligent forces. This is a kind of balancing act, and the execution is not quite perfect. It seems to work best when I focus my energy on some form of creativity. The result is that I will not give in to the inclination, to lose myself in either routine or blind chaos that threatens one with meaningless distraction.

Thank you so much that you have you taken so much time to answer my ten questions. Greetings from Germany and good luck!