Tate murders

The Tate murders were a mass murder conducted by members of Charles Manson’s “Manson Family” cult. The murders took place on August 8–9, 1969, in Los Angeles. On the night of August 8, a small group of Manson Family members, including Susan Atkins, Linda Kasabian, Patricia Krenwinkel, and Charles (“Tex”) Watson, drove to the house where film director Roman Polanski lived with his wife, actress Sharon Tate. Kasabian acted as a lookout while Atkins, Krenwinkel, and Watson broke into the house and brutally murdered five people: Tate, who was eight months pregnant; coffee heiress Abigail Folger; Polish writer Wojciech Frykowski; celebrity hairstylist Jay Sebring; and Steven Parent, a friend of the property’s caretaker. (Polanski was in Europe.) Although he ordered the mass murder, Manson himself was not present at the scene of the crime.

Charles Manson was released from federal prison two years before the Tate murders. After his release, he moved to San Francisco, where he met Gary Hinman, a local music teacher. Hinman introduced Manson—then an aspiring musician—to Dennis Wilson, the drummer for the American rock band the Beach Boys. It was at this time that Manson began attracting followers. In mid-1967, Manson founded the Manson Family, a communal religious cult dedicated to studying and implementing his religious teachings, which were drawn from science fiction, the occult, and fringe psychology. The Manson Family eventually moved to Spahn Ranch, a remote location outside of Chatsworth, California. While living at the ranch, Manson continued to associate with Hinman and Wilson. Through Wilson, Manson met music producer Terry Melcher. Melcher showed some initial interest in Manson’s music. Ultimately, however, he decided not to work with him. When Melcher moved to Malibu, California, in early 1969, he leased his Los Angeles home to Roman Polanski and Sharon Tate. They moved in in February 1969. In July, just a month before the Tate murders, Manson Family member Bobby Beausoleil murdered Hinman (supposedly at Manson’s request).

It is possible that Sharon Tate and her friends were not Charles Manson’s intended target. Manson was familiar with the house at which she and others were murdered because its previous tenant, music producer Terry Melcher, had earlier considered and then decided against giving Manson a recording contract. When Manson ordered Charles (“Tex”) Watson to go there with several other cult members and kill everyone there “as gruesome[ly] as you can,” he may not have been aware that Tate and her husband, Roman Polanski, were the occupants.

However, there is some evidence to the contrary. In late 1969 Manson Family member Susan Atkins—a participant in the Tate murders—claimed that the cult murdered Tate “because we wanted to do a crime that would shock the world, that the world would have to stand up and take notice.” Watson made similar claims. He indicated that Manson knew Melcher was no longer living on Cielo Drive. Some have suggested that Manson targeted the house itself, a symbol of his rejection by the musical establishment.

On August 9–10, 1969, Charles Manson accompanied a group of his followers—including Susan Atkins, Patricia Krenwinkel, and Charles (“Tex”) Watson, who had murdered Sharon Tate and four others—on a search for more victims. After several hours of searching, the group arrived at the Los Angeles home of grocery store executive Leno LaBianca and his wife, Rosemary. Manson had Watson tie the couple up. Manson then robbed them and left. Manson Family members Watson, Krenwinkel, and Leslie Van Houten remained and, acting on orders from Manson, stabbed the couple to death. The LaBianca murders were followed by a period of inactivity. Then, in October, Manson and a few of his followers were arrested at Barker Ranch in Death Valley on suspicion of automobile theft. Soon after, Atkins, who was already serving time for the murder of Gary Hinman, a music teacher and former friend of Manson, began boasting about her role in the Tate murders to fellow inmates. Between October and December, all of the alleged murderers were arrested and indicted.

The criminal trial, which combined the Tate and LaBianca murders, began in June 1970 with Kasabian, who had been granted immunity in exchange for her testimony against Manson and the Family, as the main witness for the prosecution. Despite frequent disruptions, Manson, Atkins, Krenwinkel, and Van Houten were found guilty on January 25, 1971. Watson was tried and convicted later that year.