Leslie Van Houten, a former Charles Manson follower, and convicted murderer, was released from a California prison on Tuesday, a prison spokesperson reported.
Van Houten, 73, took part in the murder of a Los Angeles grocer and his wife in 1969. Houten had been serving a life sentence. She was 19 years old when the crime was committed.
Gov. Gavin Newsom denied Van Houtens parole three times, and his predecessor, Gov. Jerry Brown, also denied Van Houtens parole while in office.
A California appeals court overruled Gov. Newsom. The Governor said he would not challenge the court’s decision. Newsom was disappointed with the court’s decision, his Communication Director, ‘Erin Mellon’ said.
A former homecoming prom queen from Monrovia, Van Houten became involved with the Manson family in the 1960s.
She was involved in the killings of LaBianca and his wife at their Los Feliz home.
Van Houten and another woman held down Rosemary LaBianca as Charles “Tex” Watson stabbed Leno LaBianca. Van Houten testified in court that she stabbed the victim at least 14 times.
“And I took one of the knives, and Patricia had one a knife — and we started stabbing and cutting up the lady,” Van Houten testified in 1971.
California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation spokesperson Mary Xjimenez said that Van Houten will have a three-year maximum parole term with a review occurring after one year.