Governor Newsom's KMO Problem: Leslie Van Houten Denied Parole... Again.

Greetings!

There is a brilliant scene in the original episode of Gene Wilder's version of Willy Wonka and Chocolate Factory, where he is racing to his next task and he says, "So much time and so little to do. Wait a minute. Strike that. Reverse it."

I feel him - so much to say and so little time. A newsletter beckoned.

The title, for those of you old enough to remember the beloved SNL skit based on a real humorist, Jack Handey, may sound something from days gone by. But, while I may occasionally tickle your funny bone, it isn't the purpose - no satire here.

In producing a weekly show, a weekly podcast, and being a weekly guest on great networks, like Court TV, no matter how many minutes I have, I want more. Minutes pass by so quickly. There aren't enough.

Newsletters are not bound by minutes. So, here is where I am going to jam the thoughts I couldn't fit into a soundbite or a show and about which I am thinking more deeply. I encourage your comments - tell me your thoughts, tell me I am full of horse pucky, tell me I am dead-on, but please engage. It's more fun that way.

I am settling into my weekly guest spot on Court TV and it is a lot of fun and challenging my thinking, which I love. One story covered this past week involved Leslie Van Houten, the convicted, incarcerated former Manson cult member who is unintentionally aiming for inclusion in the World's Book of Records for the most times being denied parole. Based on what I learned from Dr. Steve Hassan, the world's foremost expert on cults and mind control, the situation has entered what I term as "beyond ridiculous". If I were to take this analysis to a more nuanced and academic place, the problem triggers all three areas of what Clark and Estes (2008) would refer to as a knowledge, motivation, and organizational infrastructure problem. Governor Newsom lacks the knowledge to make the proper decision, he doesn't seem to be motivated to make the right decision, and the organizational infrastructure of the California Parole system is working against Leslie Van Houten.

Leslie Van Houten was a member of the infamous Manson Family cult. Manson died in 2017. At 19 years old, after a traumatic family life, Van Houten joined the cult. What followed was her participation in the heinous murder of a California couple. She was not involved with and did not commit the murder of Sharon Tate.

The legal history is often overlooked. Van Houten was tried three times. Her first conviction was overturned because her lawyer disappeared and was found dead mid-trial and a mistrial should have been declared. Her second trial resulted in a hung jury. By her third trial, the prosecution finally figured it out, and she was convicted of murder. She would be eligible for parole in seven years. During her incarceration, she worked with a social worker who opined that Van Houten was a victim (pretty consistent with cult members).

Van Houten's parents divorced when she was 14 years old. She testified that at 17 she was subjected to an unlawful abortion in 1966 (abortion only being legal in 1973), and that because of the advanced stage of the fetus her mother instructed her to bury the remains in the backyard. This experience damaged her relationship with her family - and she experimented with drug culture, including regular use of LSD. While using LSD, Van Houton described entering a stage of feeling nothing.

The first time Van Houton was reviewed for parole, the parole board denied her request. By 2013, the parole board denied her 13 times. The parole board couldn't understand and Van Houton couldn't explain how "someone of her good background and intelligence could have committed such "cruel and atrocious" murders." Are you kidding me? A forced illegal abortion compelled by her divorced mother and the subsequent burial in the backyard hardly counts as a positive childhood. By 2013, cults and their impact were not fringe ideas. The Jim Jones Cult mass death/murder occurred in 1978. The Waco Siege occurred in 1993.

But in 2016, the parole board recommended that she be released on parole. They found her to be a changed person. However, the governor (Brown) denied the request. The same thing happened in 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021. She has now been denied parole 24 times. Because Van Houten doesn't have an exit date, she will be reviewed for parole yearly.

Governor Gavin Newsom's position for denying parole is that Van Houten "currently poses an unreasonable danger to society if released from prison". At, now, 72 years old, having long renounced now-dead Manson, having earned both a bachelor's degree and master's degree, and leading self-help groups for incarcerated prisoners I question Governor Newsom's knowledge and judgment. What more does this woman have to do? Who is really driving the bus here? Just because you were a member of a cult doesn't mean you'll join another.

Parole is a highly politicized subject, and it shouldn't be. There is set criteria. Governor Newsom needs to wrestle with his motivation for denying her parole. His base will not decide their vote on whether he parole's this 72-year-old woman who was a victim of a psychopath. Leslie Van Houten has done what she can do behind bars to improve her image in his eyes.

The parole board has consistently recommended her release, but the Governor ignores it — and that is an infrastructure problem. Why have a board if you are simply going to ignore the people who have poured over the file, have interviewed the woman, and have the best data to make an evidence-based decision? So, Leslie Van Houten faces a classic KMO problem - what is impeding her ability to be paroled, unlike other former Manson Family members who have been paroled, is Governor Newsom's lack of knowledge, his questionable motivation, and a political infrastructure problem that ignores evidence-based decision-making.

Do you know who is an unreasonable danger to society? People who won't get vaccinated or who refuse to wear masks. But I don't see the Governor doing anything about these folks. And, that's a shame for all of us.

You can see my comments on the subject here:

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