Results 1 to 5 of 5

Thread: Former Manson cult member Atkins dies in U.S. prison

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Aug 2004
    Location
    Alberta, Canada
    Posts
    22,005

    Former Manson cult member Atkins dies in U.S. prison

    http://www.reuters.com/article/peopl...58O2NA20090925

    Former Manson cult member Atkins dies in U.S. prison
    Fri Sep 25, 2009 11:55am EDT


    Convicted murderer and former Charles Manson family member, Susan Atkins, lies on a moveable bed during her parole hearing at the Central California Women's Facility in Chowchilla, California in this file photo taken on September 2, 2009.

    LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Susan Atkins, one of the leading members of Charles Manson's notorious violent cult who carried out brutal murders at his behest in 1969, has died in a California prison, her husband said on Friday. She was 61.

    Atkins, imprisoned since 1971 for her part in eight Manson-related murders, had been suffering from a brain tumor. Earlier this month, state corrections officials rejected her request to be freed so she would not have to die in prison.

    "Susan passed away peacefully surrounded by friends and loved ones and the incredible staff at the Skilled Nursing Facility at the Central California Women's Facility," her husband, James Whitehouse, said by e-mail.

    "... Her last whispered word was 'Amen.' No one (on) the face of the Earth worked as hard as Susan did to right an unrightable wrong," Whitehouse said.

    As part of Manson's following of hippies, runaways, criminals and misfits, Atkins once said he could see and hear everything she did. But during her time in prison she denounced Manson, and in 1974 became a Christian in a conversion inspired by correspondence with another former "Manson family" member.

    At a 1993 parole hearing, Atkins described her time with Manson by saying, "It is almost impossible to understand insanity and that's what I was living with -- insanity."

    Atkins was 21 years old when the career criminal Manson dispatched her and other followers to the Beverly Hills home of actress Sharon Tate and film director Roman Polanski on August 9, 1969, with orders to kill. Polanski was out of town but the heavily pregnant Tate and four friends were brutally stabbed, beaten and shot to death. Atkins later said she personally stabbed Tate after ignoring her pleas for mercy.

    The next night Atkins and other cult members went to the home of grocery owner Leno and Rosemary LaBianca and killed them. Atkins did not actively participate in those slayings.

    MACABRE TRIAL

    The brutality and seemingly random nature of the murders terrorized much of Southern California and stunned the nation.

    Atkins was convicted in 1970 with her guru and two other "Manson girls" -- Leslie Van Houten and Patricia Krenwinkel.

    The trial took on a macabre air with graphic descriptions of bloody crime scenes, exploration of Manson's powerful grip on the women and their continued devotion to him. The women disrupted the proceedings with laughter, shaved their heads, carved X's on their foreheads and sang Manson-penned songs.

    All four were given death sentences, which were commuted to life when a state court ruling invalidated the death penalty.

    Atkins led a chaotic life before meeting Manson -- quitting high school, working as a stripper, using drugs and getting into trouble with the law at the dawn of the hippie era.

    In 1967, she fell under Manson's spell when he visited her housemates in San Francisco. She became known within the cult by nicknames Manson gave her: Sadie Mae Glutz and Sexy Sadie.

    Atkins' talkative nature implicated the Manson cult. She was being held as a suspect in another slaying and bragged about the Tate-LaBianca case to jailhouse acquaintances, even claiming she had tasted Tate's blood.

    Atkins agreed to testify against Manson and confessed to a grand jury but recanted before going to trial. She later pleaded guilty in the torture-murder of a musician who Manson said had cheated him on a drug deal.

    Atkins wrote a book, "Child of Satan, Child of God," about her experiences. In 1980, she married a man who said he would use his multimillion-dollar fortune to win her release. She divorced him when his claims proved false.

    Seven years later Atkins married Whitehouse, who became a lawyer and represented her at parole hearings.

    (Writing by Will Dunham and Bill Trott)
    "Do or do not. There is no try." -- Yoda

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Jun 2005
    Location
    Deep-N-Heart of Tx && My Babie's Hearts
    Posts
    15,555
    Well I really dont know what to say or not to say.. I guess if she had made peace with herself & God then good.. She & others did a Very Horrible thing with those Murders back then.. Took Innocent lives.. I myself dont have much pitty on her or any of the others.. I would say she was getting some payback from upstairs with the brain cancer she had & went thru..

    ~~~Thank You Very Much {Kim} kimlovescats for the Grand Siggy~~~

    [[ Furr Babies are Like Potato Chips **** No One Can Have Just One ]]
    ****** Kindness, Mercy & Justice to All Living Creatures ******
    {{{{{Everyday is a Gift = That's why it's Called the Present }}}}}
    ((( Each Day With Our Pets is a Surprise Package Waiting to be Opened )))
    <Sunsets are God's Reminder to Us That At The End of the Day We're All In This Together>

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Jan 2004
    Location
    SE USA
    Posts
    18,443
    I had heard she was trying to get released because she had cancer. I had no idea she was this close to dieing.

    Special Needs Pets just leave bigger imprints on your heart!

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Sep 2002
    Location
    Wyoming, USA
    Posts
    4,102
    Now she will be Judged.
    "We give dogs the time we can spare, the space we can spare and the love we can spare. And in return, dogs give us their all. It's the best deal man has ever made" - M. Facklam

    "We are raised to honor all the wrong explorers and discoverers - thieves planting flags, murderers carrying crosses. Let us at last praise the colonizers of dreams."- P.S. Beagle

    "All that is gold does not glitter, Not all those who wander are lost; The old that is strong does not wither, Deep roots are not reached by the frost. From the ashes a fire shall be woken, A light from the shadows shall spring; Renewed shall be blade that was broken, The crownless again shall be king." - J.R.R. Tolkien

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Jun 2001
    Location
    Glenside, pa
    Posts
    7,399
    Boo Hoo. Let me get some tissues.



    I've been Boooo'd!

Similar Threads

  1. Atkins
    By happylabs in forum General
    Replies: 6
    Last Post: 07-18-2010, 12:34 AM
  2. Elderly Charles Manson caught on film
    By Catty1 in forum Dog House
    Replies: 9
    Last Post: 03-25-2009, 11:20 PM
  3. Dr. Atkins died
    By wolfsoul in forum Dog House
    Replies: 16
    Last Post: 02-15-2004, 06:04 PM
  4. The bushtucker diet - the new Atkins?
    By ChrisH in forum General
    Replies: 1
    Last Post: 02-15-2004, 09:35 AM
  5. Marilyn Manson scares Nala!
    By Kfamr in forum General
    Replies: 22
    Last Post: 03-18-2003, 05:35 PM

Bookmarks

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •  

Copyright © 2001-2013 Pet of the Day.com