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Patricia Krenwinkel, a convicted murderer and former member of the Manson Family cult, has been approved for parole after serving 51 years in prison.
Along with other followers of cult leader, Charles Manson, Krenwinkel was convicted of the murders of 8 people. Victims included members of the Hollywood elite, such as the then-wife of Roman Polanski, pregnant actress Sharon Tate.
According to California prison officials, 74-year-old Krenwinkel has been approved for parole for the first time. The Daily Beast reported that the decision is pending review, a process that will take the Board of Parole Hearings 120 days. The Guardian reported that the decision will then be made by governor Gavin Newsom, who has denied parole to several other Manson followers in the past.
Patricia Krenwinkel, from aspiring nun to cult member
Born in 1947 to an insurance salesman father and homemaker mother, Krenwinkle had a difficult childhood and dysfunctional family life. After her parents divorced, she had to go through 3 different high schools, where she was regularly teased by other children. Bullies often targeted her as she was overweight and had excessive body hair growth due to an endocrine condition.
According to prosecutor Vincent Bugliosi in an interview with LA magazine, Krenwinkle had initially aspired to become a nun after graduating from Westchester High School in California. However, after dropping out of a Jesuit college in Alabama, she ended up moving to Manhattan Beach with her heroin-addicted step-sister. When she first met Charles Manson at a party, she was working as a secretary at an office.
At her 2011 parole hearing, Krenwinkel claimed that she thought Charles Manson could provide an escape from her troubled life.
She said:
“This seemed like a way out… he seemed like the answer…. He seemed like my salvation at the time.”
Charles Manson supported the claim, saying that 5 hours into their meeting, she allegedly told him:
“Charlie, you’ve given me a new world. Anything you do has to be right. Take me wherever you go.”
Buglioisi also spoke to LA magazine about the powerful sway Charles Manson had over Krenwinkel and other followers.
He said:
“Patricia Krenwinkel wanted to become a nun. These were normal American kids. But Manson got ahold of them.”
He further added:
“The case is a reaffirmation of the verity that whenever you turn over your mind to an authoritarian figure, the potential for madness exists. When you lose your will, you can’t turn back”
According to The Guardian, in 2016 Krenwinkel testified that she was under the impression she would have a relationship with Manson, however the cult leader allegedly beat her and forced her to have intimate relations with other men. She claimed that like the rest of the cult members, she was a regular user of drugs provided by Charles Manson and his associates.
Patricia Krenwinkel’s crime
In 1969, Manson ordered Krenwinkel and other cult members to murder members of the Hollywood elite. According to Vox, Manson told his followers that amidst the turbulent racial tensions the country was facing, they could provoke a race war by framing black Americans for the murders.
CNN reported that following her involvement in the killing spree, Krenwinkel and other Manson family members were convicted of seven counts of first-degree murder. Along with Sharon Tate, victims included celebrity hair stylist Jay Sebring, and coffee heiress Abigail Folger.
The Guardian reported that after the murders of two more victims, supermarket executive Leno LaBianca and his wife Rosemary, Krenwinkel used their blood to write “Helter Skelter”, “Death to Pigs”, and “Rise” on the walls of their home. She was initially sentenced to death along with Charles Manson and other followers, but this was later changed to life in prison.
Potential Parole for Patricia Krenwinkel:
After more than 5 decades in prison, Krenwinkel has been approved for parole for the first time. CBS reported that Krenwinkel’s attorney, Keith Wattley, stated that she deserved to be approved by the governor.
According to Wattley:
“She’s completely transformed from the person she was when she committed this crime, which is all it takes to be granted parole.”
However, CNN reported that several family members of the victims are planning to fight the parole recommendation. Sharon Tate’s sister, Deborah Tate, claimed that Patricia Krenwinkel made herself seem like a victim of Manson's to elicit sympathy from the parole board.
She told CNN:
“She could have cut and run any time. She did it because she enjoyed it.”
Netizens have also shared an online petition objecting to the release of Patricia Krenwinkel.
According to the LA Times, Patricia Krenwinkel is the longest serving woman in the California prison system, having been denied parole a record number of 14 times.
Throughout her parole hearings, it was revealed that she pursued her education while in prison, graduating from the University of La Verne with a Bachelor’s degree in Human Services. Patricia Krenwinkel is also known to teach classes to other inmates.
While Wattley suggests this is evidence of Krenwinkel's reformation, the decision ultimately rests upon governor Gavin Newsom, who is expected to make it by the end of the year.
