The Trial

 Charles Manson and his family may never have been connected to the Tate-LaBianca murders if it had not been for Susan Atkins.  While in prison for the murder of Gary Hinman, Atkins confessed her part in the Tate-LaBianca murders to another inmate.  While describing how she killed Tate, Atkins’s expression was completely vacant.  It was as if she was talking about what she had eaten for breakfast, not of cold-blooded murder.  The inmate who heard this account, being both shocked and disgusted, told authorities what she had heard.  Once her confession reached authorities, the trial was set in motion. 
The first person to take the stand was Susan Atkins in front of a grand jury.  During her testimony, she had the same uninhibited reaction as she did when talking to the inmate.  She was almost pleased at what she had done to Sharon Tate stating how she even tasted her blood.  She even said that she wanted to cut out Tate’s unborn child (Tate was eight months pregnant when she was murdered) and give it to Manson as a present showing her devotion.  Her description was so gruesome that a member of the grand jury had to leave to room.  After her testimony, the case was brought to the courtroom.  This case proved quite the challenge regardless of Atkins testimony, however.  Since Charles Manson was not even at the house the night the murders took place, it would prove difficult to show his direct involvement. 
As each court case dragged on, Manson tried to convince the jury more and more of his innocence.  His influence over the family remained strong in the courtroom as well.  Three of the women, Patricia Krenwickle, Leslie Van Houten, and Susan Atkins, behaved abominably while on trial.  They chanted “Kill every white mother, every white pig” repeatedly.  They also shaved their heads and carved X’s into their foreheads just like Charles Manson.  These women laughed and squealed when describing their roles in the murders as if it were a fun game.  Linda Kasabian, another family member present during the murders, was the only one who showed any remorse while on trial.  She was also the only one who did not have a direct hand in killing somebody.  During her testimony she cried and showed genuine emotion which for a family member was unheard of at the time.  Her testimony not only gave her immunity but it sealed the fate of the other family members.  They were all convicted of murder and conspiracy of murder.  Charles Manson was sentenced to death on January 25, 1971.  The death penalty was shortly abolished in California after this sentence, so Manson was allowed to live.  To this day he is still incarcerated and shows no remorse.