LOS ANGELES, CA — Former Charles Manson follower Patricia Krenwinkel, who is serving a life prison term for her role in the 1969 Tate-LaBianca murders, has again been recommended for parole, state officials confirmed Wednesday.
Krenwinkel, 78, was preliminarily granted parole Tuesday at her 18th subsequent suitability hearing, according to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.
"All grants of parole are proposed decisions and become final only after a thorough and comprehensive review by the Board of Parole Hearings and the Governor," CDCR officials said in a statement.
Krenwinkel was convicted of seven counts of first-degree murder in 1971 for participating with fellow Manson family members Charles "Tex" Watson and Leslie Van Houten in the Aug. 9, 1969, killings of the seven-months- pregnant actress Sharon Tate, Thomas Jay Sebring, Abigail Ann Folger, Wojciech Frykowski and Steven Earl Parent and the slayings of grocers Leno and Rosemary LaBianca the following day.
She originally received a death sentence, but it was reduced to life in prison under a California Supreme Court ruling that invalidated all death sentences before 1972.
Krenwinkel was most recently granted parole May 30, 2025, but Gov. Gavin Newsom reversed the decision Oct. 13, 2025.
In his decision, Newsom commended Krenwinkel for her "efforts to improve herself in prison," including earning multiple college degrees and maintaining "an excellent disciplinary history." But he concluded that those factors were outweighed by concerns about her potential danger to the public.
"When considered as a whole, I find the evidence shows that she currently poses an unreasonable danger to society if released from prison at this time. Therefore, I reverse the decision to parole Ms. Krenwinkel," Newsom wrote.
A parole board panel also recommended parole for Krenwinkel in May 2022, but Newsom reversed that decision later that year.
Under California law, parole commissioners must determine whether an incarcerated person currently poses an unreasonable risk to public safety, according to CDCR. The review includes risk-assessment tools, evaluations by forensic psychologists, the inmate's prison record, parole plans and impact statements.
The preliminary decision in Krenwinkel's case is subject to a 120-day review by the Board of Parole Hearings. Because she was convicted of murder, the governor then has an additional 30 days to review the decision and may allow it to stand or reverse it.
If the governor reverses the parole decision, Krenwinkel would be scheduled for another hearing within 18 months of Tuesday's hearing, according to CDCR.
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