Patricia Krenwinkel, a former follower of cult leader Charles Manson, has been recommended for parole by a California parole board panel. Ms. Krenwinkel, 77, was convicted for her role in the murders of seven people in Los Angeles in 1969. The panel concluded that she now poses little risk of reoffending after spending 54 years at the California Institution for Women in Chino.
This was her 16th appearance before the parole suitability panel since becoming eligible for parole in 1976.
Parole recommendation for Manson follower
The provisional decision must now be reviewed by the legal division of the Board of Parole Hearings, which can take up to 120 days.
If the full board agrees with the panel’s recommendation, Governor Gavin Newsom will have 30 days to approve, reject, or send it back for further review. Ms. Krenwinkel was originally sentenced to death in 1971, but her sentence was commuted to life in prison with the possibility of parole after the California Supreme Court ruled the death penalty unconstitutional in 1972.
Her case continues to draw significant attention, reflecting the enduring public interest in the Manson family’s crimes and the long legal processes that have followed.
