Who Were Charles Manson's Followers? What to Know About the ‘Manson Family’

Mar. 15, 2025

Members of the Manson “family” shown at pre-trial hearings in 1970 in Los Angeles.Photo:AP Photo

AP Photo

Charles Mansonand his “family” of followers were the perpetrators of one of themost infamous murder spreesin U.S. history.

The cult members known to be involved in the August 1969 murder spree were Susan Atkins, Charles D. “Tex” Watson, Patricia Krenwinkel, Leslie Van Houten,Linda Kasabianand Steven “Clem” Grogan. All except Kasabian, who served as the state’s “star witness” and was granted immunity in exchange for her testimony, were convicted.

In January 1971, Manson was convicted of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder for the deaths of seven people. He was sentenced to death, but that was commuted to life in prison after California’s Supreme Courtinvalidated all death sentences prior to 1972. He was 83 and serving nine life sentences in California’s Corcoran State Prison at the time of his death from natural causes in November 2017.

“Some people glorify [Manson] as a sort of master outlaw,” lead prosecutor Vincent Bugliosi told PEOPLE shortly before his death, in 2015. “But he really was nothing more thanan evil, very sophisticated con man.”

During the Manson family’s 1970 trial, Kasabian told jurors that Manson’s girls did “anything and everything” for him.

The Manson family murders are being examined in Errol Morris’ new documentary,CHAOS: The Manson Murders, now streaming on Netflix. In the film, the director asks one central question: “How did Charles Manson convince the people around him to kill on his orders?”

Here’s everything to know about Charles Manson’s followers, otherwise known as the Manson family.

Who was Charles Manson?

Charles Manson in 1969.Harold Filan/AP

Charles Manson was born Charles Milles Maddox in Cincinnati, Ohio, on Nov. 12, 1934.

Manson — who later took his stepfather, William Manson’s, last name — was sent to the Gibault School for Boys in Terre Haute, Ind., in 1947, when he was 13, per Jeff Guinn’s 2013 bookManson: The Life and Times of Charles Manson. He would spend the next two decades in and out of reform schools and prisons.

Guinn told PEOPLE in 2017 that Manson was drawn to famous and glamorous people, and he “fully intended to become the most famous rock ’n’ roll star in history.”

Mansonworked his celebrity connections, including the Beach Boys and producer Terry Melcher, in an attempt to aid his career. After failing as a musician, Manson’s anger towards the world allegedly grew. He reportedly became obsessed with the Beatles and dubbed his plan to incite a race war “Helter Skelter,” after the group’s song of the same name.

What was the Manson family?

Members of Charles Manson’s “family” congregate in the Los Angeles Hall of Justice on January 27, 1970 in Los Angeles, California.AP Photo/Wally Fong

AP Photo/Wally Fong

The Manson “family” was Manson’s group of followers, most of whom were young women.

The family lived with Beach Boys member Dennis Wilson for a few months in 1968, but the musician had enough of Manson and the group after they allegedly ransacked his home, stole his property and totaled his Mercedes. The group later moved to Spahn Ranch, a former Western filming site.

TheAssociated Pressreported in 1971 that Manson’s followers called him “God,” “Jesus” and “Satan.”

Who were the Manson family members?

Susan Atkins, Patricia Krenwinkel and Leslie Van Houten walking to court on August 20, 1970 in Los Angeles, California.AP Photo/George Brich

AP Photo/George Brich

Beausoleil, an aspiring musician and one of Manson’s main recruiters was arrested on Aug. 6, 1969, after he was found asleep in Hinman’s stolen car, perThe Tribune. Manson set off “Helter Skelter” two days later when his followers killedSharon Tateand four others. The following night, they went on to kill Leno and Rosemary LaBianca, ending a spree that was later given the name the Tate-LaBianca murders.

The cult members associated with the August 1969 murder spree were Atkins, Charles D. “Tex” Watson, Patricia Krenwinkel, Leslie Van Houten, Linda Kasabian and Steven “Clem” Grogan. Kasabian allegedly remained in the car as the lookout and became a key witness in the Manson family trial in 1970.

Theyoungest Manson family cult member was Dianne Lake, who did not participate in the violence of 1969. She was 14 when she met Manson at a party in Topanga, Calif., in 1967. Lake told PEOPLE in 2017 that Manson was an adept manipulator.

“He was extremely intelligent,” she said. “He had the incredible ability to pick up on other people’s weaknesses and their needs and their desires, and he could fulfill those.”

A family member deeply devoted to Manson was Lynette “Squeaky” Fromme, who was allegedly considered the leader when Manson was absent. Fromme was not linked to the Tate-LaBianca murders but during Manson’s trial, she camped outside the Hall of Justice in L.A., sporting a carved “X” on her forehead and spouting her devotion to the cult leader, according to theLos Angeles Times.

She was also not the only Manson “girl” there keeping vigil, waiting for their “father” to be freed, as the AP reported.

Why did the Manson family commit murder?

Members of Charles Manson’s “family” are shown outside the courtroom on January 27, 1970 in Los Angeles, California.AP Photo/David F. Smith

AP Photo/David F. Smith

Manson ordered a string of slayings throughout L.A. in an alleged effort to incite a race war in the United States.

According to the 1974 bookHelter Skelter: The True Story of the Manson Murders, Manson dubbed his plot “Helter Skelter,” after the Beatles song. He apparently believed he would take power after the race war he created, the AP reported.

“That was kind of scary to people: to think there were people walking around who would kill innocent people they didn’t even know to start a race war,” retired L.A. County prosecutor Stephen Kay told PEOPLE in 2017.

Which Manson family members took part in the murders?

Robert Beausoleil leaves Los Angeles County Superior court on June 15, 1970 in Los Angeles, California.AP Photo/David F. Smith

In August 1969, the Manson family killed seven people over two nights in L.A.

The bloodiest evening took place after midnight on Aug. 9, when Watson, Krenwinkel and Atkins killed pregnant actressSharon Tatealongside four others: Jay Sebring, Wojciech Frykowski, Abigail Folger and Stephen Parent.

The family’s previous acquaintance, Melcher, had once lived at the home at 10500 Cielo Drive. The killers used the victims' blood to write messages on the walls of the home, including Atkins’ spelling out “PIG” on the white front door in Tate’s blood.

Not happy with how messy the murders had been, perHelter Skelter, the next night, Manson set out with Watson, Atkins, Krenwinkel, Kasabian, Van Houten and Steve “Clem” Crogan. They then killed Leno and Rosemary LaBianca in theirLos Feliz home. Kasabian later testified that Manson left before the murders.

Lake told PEOPLE in 2019 that she remembered Watson coming back to the ranch after the murders carrying a news article about Tate’s killing.

“Heshows me the newspaperand he slaps it, and he says, ‘I did this. Charlie told me to,’ ” she said, adding that as the other girls started appearing at the ranch, they also “told me their participation in the murders.”

Although the two-day spree known as the Tate-LaBianca murders is the most infamous, Manson’s followers also killed at least two other people. The first known death came almost two weeks before the Tate murders when Manson orchestrated the death of musician Gary Hinman on July 27, 1969.

In her 1971 testimony, Atkins claimed that the motivation for the Tate-LaBianca murder spree stemmed from Hinman’s death.

Which Manson family members were convicted?

Susan Atkins is escorted to the courtroom on December 10, 1969 in Los Angeles.AP Photo

Manson and 25 of his followers were first arrested on Aug. 16, 1969, on auto theft charges, perHelter Skelter. Though the group was later released, just the suspected killers were arrested again in December.

After a six-month trial in 1970, Manson, Atkins, Krenwinkel and Van Houten were found guilty of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder, perHelter Skelter.

Manson was sentenced to death but was spared executionafter the death penalty was abolished in California.His sentence, along with the death sentences his convicted followers received, were all commuted to life in prison.

Kasabian, the lookout during the murder spree, was the key witness in the 1970 Manson family trial. She was granted immunity for her testimony, which led to the conviction of Manson and several of his accomplices.

Lead prosecutor Vincent Bugliosi told media in 2009 that without Kasabian’s testimony, “it would have been extremely difficult for me to convict Manson and his co-defendants.”

Atkins confessed to killing Tate and provided testimony about what happened in the actress' house on the night of the murders. At the time, she said it was Kasabian’s idea to kill.TheNew York Timesreported that the “testimony [was] apparently designed to clear Charles M. Manson of any responsibility for the slayings.”

Van Houten was convicted in the LaBianca slaying but was granted a retrial in 1976. Two years later she was again convicted of two counts of murder and one count of conspiracy and sentenced to seven years to life in prison, per theL.A. Times.

Watson was found guilty of murder in a separate trial,The Washington Postreported, and was sentenced to life in prison. In 1970, Beausoleil was convicted of first-degree murder in the killing of Hinman, perThe San Bernardino Sun-Telegram.

What happened to Charles Manson?

Charles Manson.PA Images via Getty

PA Images via Getty

Manson spent the rest of his life behind bars. He was denied parole 12 times and died of natural causes on Nov. 19, 2017, at age 83.

After his death, a California prison official shared that Manson was “not a model prisoner.”

​​“He has had over 100 violations since he was incarcerated, which has been a very long time,” Kristina Khokhobashvili, a spokeswoman for the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, told PEOPLE in 2017.

Manson served time at San Quentin, Vacaville and Corcoran prisons. He had been at the latter since 1989.

What happened to the family members?

Susan Atkins, Patricia Krenwinkel and Leslie Van Houten walk to court for sentencing on March 29, 1971 in Los Angeles.AP Photo

Some Manson family members have lived most of their lives behind bars, while others have continued to commit crimes.

Brunner, along with other Manson family members robbed a gun store in 1971 with alleged plans to hijack a plane in order to break Manson out of prison, per the 2002 bookThe Family. She received a sentence of 20 years to life but was released on parole in 1977, perNBC News.

Fromme was charged and convicted for the 1975attempted assassination of President Gerald R. Ford. She received a life sentence but was released on parole in 2009, perNBC News. She published a book about her life,Reflexion, in 2018.

Krenwinkel, Watson and Beausoleil have all been denied parole multiple times each. Atkins was denied parole 13 times before dying in prison at age 61 from brain cancer on Sept. 24, 2009, per CNN.

After Atkins’ death, Krenwinkel became the longest-serving female inmate in California, according to theL.A. Times. While incarcerated, Watson married, fathered four children, divorced, earned a business degree and became an ordained minister, perhis website.

Beausoleil, on the other hand, has sold prison-made artwork and music online, perRolling Stone. Kasabian was living in Washington state when she died in 2023 at age 73. She had changed her surname to Chiochios to protect her identity, perThe Guardian.

Van Houten spent 53 years behind bars before beingreleased from prison on July 11, 2023. According to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, she still had a “three-year maximum parole term with a parole discharge review occurring after one year.”

Grogan was released on parole in 1985 after he revealed where Shea’s body was buried.

“The girls with the Xs on their foreheads? That part always blew me away,” Lake told PEOPLE. “They continued to hang on, be groupies.”

source: people.com