by Steve Lehto
During the time leading up to Beausoleil’s conviction, the Cielo Drive and LaBianca murders had been assigned to an experienced prosecuting attorney named Vincent Bugliosi. Bugliosi would examine and investigate the cases and manage to paint a clear picture of the bizarre world of Charles Manson, a world where a little career criminal could persuade hippies to go out and commit brutal murders of strangers in the name of a half-baked cultish philosophy. Bugliosi would prosecute Manson and the rest and eventually write a bestselling book about it.
Manson and three others—Tex Watson successfully fought extradition until after the Manson trial started—were charged and put on trial for the Cielo Drive and LaBianca murders. The trials began on June 15, 1970, and were a convoluted affair. Watson was instrumental in the killings at the Cielo Drive house and the LaBianca home. Eventually, he would be brought to California for trial.
Manson and his co-defendants did everything they could to slow down and disrupt the trial. During one pretrial hearing, he insisted on sitting with his chair backward, facing away from the judge. When the judge threatened him with contempt, he ignored the warning. He was hauled out and placed in a room where he could hear the proceedings through a speaker system. Shortly after, the co-defendants—Susan Atkins, Leslie Van Houten, and Patricia Krenwinkel—all did the same thing. They, too, were sent to a room where they could listen to the trial without disrupting the proceedings. This was a low-key precursor for what was to follow. Manson filed a motion with the court requesting that the court release him forthwith since, as he put it, he was “Jesus Christ-Prisoner.” The judge denied the motion. Manson had a sense of humor, according to Bugliosi, as did the judge. At one point, Manson addressed the court:
“Well, I was going to ask him [the district attorney] if he would call the whole thing off. It would save a lot of trouble.”
To which the judge responded, “Disappoint all these people? Never, Mr. Manson.”
Not all of Manson’s Family was on trial, and many of the ones who had escaped being charged with crimes attended court every day. They would mill around outside the courthouse or sit in the gallery and watch. Before the trial started, three of them stood up and began yelling at the judge, who rewarded them with a finding of contempt and five days in jail. Bugliosi served subpoenas on many of them and then asked the court to sequester witnesses before they testified. He had no intention of calling them to the stand—although he could have if he wanted to; the maneuver just made them all stay out of the courtroom during the trial.
More worrisome was that some of the Family members who were not on trial were undoubtedly still under Manson’s spell. The judge received around-the-clock protection from the sheriff’s department, and the jury was sequestered. While juries are often sequestered to shield them from publicity about the trial while it is in progress, here there was a real concern that Family members might try to harm jurors before the trial ended. During the trial, Family members began menacing Bugliosi, and Manson told a bailiff he was going to have the prosecutor killed; Bugliosi was assigned a bodyguard as well. It degenerated to the point where the defense attorneys were hinting that they, too, had their lives threatened by their own clients.
On the first day of the trial, Manson was brought into court with a bloody X he had carved in his own forehead. His followers—the ones not on trial with him—handed out copies of a typewritten statement Manson had dictated, explaining: “I have X’d myself from your world.” The statement rambled on. The following weekend, the co-defendants all similarly carved up their own foreheads and soon, many of the Family members who loitered near the courthouse followed suit. These same Family members often slept in the bushes by the courthouse overnight.
The trial featured daily theatrics. At one point, Manson leaped over the counsel table and tried stabbing the judge with a pencil. After he was tackled by bailiffs he yelled, “In the name of Christian justice, someone should cut your head off!” On another occasion, he smuggled a newspaper into the court room and held it up so the jury could see a headline where Nixon had proclaimed Manson Guilty. His co-defendants stood up and started chanting in unison, sometimes in English, sometimes in Latin. At one point, a defense attorney told the court his client didn’t wish to testify. His client, and other defendants, jumped up and yelled that they did want to testify. An argument broke out, which showed that the attorney had no control of his client, and he told the court that the defendants were not following the advice of defense counsel. The lawyer failed to show up for court the next day. He was replaced and after the trial ended, his body was found dumped in Ventura County. He had been murdered by Manson followers.
Manson eventually spoke to the court and denied ordering any murders. He blamed everything on music. “Why blame it on me? I didn’t write the music.” He apparently wanted the jury to believe that Helter Skelter had started, and his actions had been the inevitable beginning of a much larger movement. No one else saw it that way.
The jury returned guilty verdicts on January 25, 1971. The five defendants, including Manson, were sentenced to death. However, California abolished the death penalty before any of them were executed. As a result, they were all sentenced to life in prison. During the trial, the members of the Family who were not directly involved in the murders made publicity by hanging around the courthouse, sitting on the sidewalk, shaving their heads, and talking about how Manson was a misunderstood visionary. A few years later, one of them, Lynette “Squeaky” Fromme, would gain notoriety by trying to assassinate Gerald Ford when he visited California. The story of Manson became even better known after the prosecutor on the case, Vincent Bugliosi, wrote the book Helter Skelter about the murders and the trials. The book sold more than seven million copies and was twice made into a movie by that name. And while Bugliosi did an amazing job unraveling the facts of each of these murders, a certain amount of uncertainty will probably always cloud these stories. Several members of the Manson Family who testified would later recant testimony. Some committed obvious perjury and later promoted different versions of events in attempts to get sympathy, parole, or media attention.
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Of the three Manson Family “Helter Skelter” murder houses, Hinman, Tate, and LaBianca, only Hinman and LaBianca remain. The Tate murder house, 10050 Cielo Drive, had a long and illustrious past before it became the site of a mass murder. It had been built in the early 1940s and was home to many celebrities and movie stars. Silent-film star Lillian Gish lived there, as did Cary Grant, Henry Fonda, Mark Lindsay, Olivia Hussey, Terry Melcher, and his mother, Doris Day—all before the Manson Family turned it into a crime scene. After the murders, Rudy Altobelli moved from the guest house back into the home he had been renting out to others, staying there for the next twenty years. When asked about the house by newspeople, he always said that he felt safe in the home. Altobelli eventually sold the property for $1.6 million.
A well-known figure in music named Trent Reznor rented the house shortly after Altobelli moved out and built a recording studio in it that he called the “Pig” studio. Several of his own albums were recorded there, as was Marilyn Manson’s Portrait of an American Family. In 1993, Reznor moved out of the house, saying he had a hard time handling the “history” of the house. Still, he reportedly took the front door with him and installed it at his new recording studio. It was the same door on which one of the Manson clan had written Pig in blood.
In 1994, the owner of the house knocked it down and built a sixteen-thousand-square-foot mansion in its place. He also changed the address from 10050 to 10066 Cielo Drive. There is nothing recognizable about the property today when compared to the configuration of the estate when Altobelli rented it to Polanski. The only thing remaining from that night is the telephone pole Tex Watson climbed to cut the phone line to the house.
The other two homes, Hinman and LaBianca, are still standing. In 2004, the Hinman house was listed for sale with a typical real estate salesperson’s flourish. The home is Mediterranean in style
and sits on approximately a third of an acre. Two stories tall, it has four bedrooms and two and a half baths. It was 2,600 square feet and had an asking price of $1.025 million. It is unclear why, but the home was simply taken off the market shortly after the listing appeared. From the narrative description, it is clear why a musician might be drawn to the property. A stream flowed through the yard, over a waterfall. There are “meandering rock walkways” and a gazebo. The house had been substantially updated in later years. Interior touches included marble, a gourmet kitchen, “many pairs of French doors,” and “numerous skylights.”
In 2012, it was listed for sale again. The asking price had been reduced to $949,000. The home is privately owned. It can be seen from the road, but there is extensive foliage that grants the home a good bit of privacy.
The LaBianca house was 3301 Waverly Drive, in the Los Feliz neighborhood of Los Angeles, south of Griffith Park. At one time, the home was called “Oak Terrace” by its owners. Leno’s father, Antonio LaBianca, had bought the house in 1940. Antonio was the founder of Gateway Markets and Leno was his only son. In 1968, Leno LaBianca purchased the Waverly home from his mother. Leno was married at that time to Rosemary, his second wife, and they moved into the home.
In the years following the murders, the home has been modified a bit but is still recognizable. The driveway that climbs to the house from Waverly has been gated and much of the front yard has been turned into a parking area, a portion of which is covered. The house also has a separate garage out back and a swimming pool on its eastern side. The street number has been changed to 3311 Waverly. The house is 1,655 square feet with two bedrooms and two bathrooms and sits on almost three quarters of an acre. It was built in 1922. In 1998, the home sold for $375,000 and by 2012, some sources suggested the house would sell for a little over $800,000 if it were put up for sale. It is privately owned but can be seen from the street.
*Vincent Bugliosi and Curt Gentry, Helter Skelter (1974).
*Ed Sanders, The Family (2002).
The Murder House Where the Mass Murderer Was Killed
DEAN “THE CANDYMAN” CORLL
1973
2020 Lamar Drive
Pasadena, Texas 77502
On August 8, 1973, Elmer Wayne Henley called the police and told them, “Y’all better come here right now. I just killed a man.” The police soon arrived at 2020 Lamar Drive and found three teenagers in the front yard: Henley, along with another young man and a teenage girl. When they entered the house, the police found the bullet-riddled naked body of Dean Arnold Corll, the owner of the home. Searching further, they found that the bedroom of the house had been set up as a torture chamber. The floor was covered with plastic and there was a torture board: a sheet of plywood with handcuffs and cables attached to it that was clearly designed to restrain a person. Elsewhere in the room they found more items that made it clear that whoever had outfitted the room had planned on torturing and killing someone there. But who was it?
Dean Arnold Corll was an electrician, but at one time he had been vice president of a family-owned candy company near Houston, Texas. His mother had started the company and it became successful. In 1965, the company was relocated directly across the street from an elementary school. Corll worked at the company and often gave out free candy to schoolchildren, particularly young boys, and was soon nicknamed “The Candyman.” Corll had spent time in the military and was now in his late twenties. Even so, he seemed to spend an inordinate amount of time around male children. He hired teenagers and had a pool table in the back of his warehouse, where he encouraged the schoolchildren to hang out with him. And from time to time, schoolchildren from Houston would disappear. In a three-year period in the early 1970s, twenty-eight boys would disappear. This mass murder spree would be the worst of its kind for quite some time and would all come to light on August 8, 1973. Until then, though, very few people even suspected there was anything untoward about Dean Corll, the generous man who gave candy to strangers.
In May 1971, two boys, aged thirteen and sixteen, disappeared from near where Corll lived. When their parents reported them missing to the police, they were told that the children had probably simply run away from home. The police would not look for them unless there was evidence of foul play. Private investigators were hired and flyers were posted, but the children were never seen again. The trend of “runaways” in the area continued. Oddly, none of the runaways ever turned up anywhere. Still, the police seemed unconcerned.
A boy named Frank Aguirre disappeared in early 1972, baffling his family and his girlfriend, Rhonda Williams. Afterward, a boy she knew named Wayne Henley told her that Aguirre had gotten mixed up with some very bad people, organized crime, and would not be returning. He told her that he couldn’t tell her anything more because his own life was in danger. As more young boys from the neighborhood disappeared, parents began doing their own investigations. Some of them found out that Dean Corll had some sort of connection to the story. Some of the boys had spent time at Corll’s house, listening to music and watching television. The kids had also been given alcohol and drugs by Corll, but the children never would have told their parents that. One mother asked her son point-blank about the activities at Corll’s house and was shocked to hear that her son had seen Corll handcuff another boy and then not be able to undo the cuffs because he had “lost” the keys. Corll was questioned by parents but handled the situation coolly. He was polite and respectful.
Corll, Henley, and another teenager named David Brooks had worked as a team. Corll told the other boys he would pay them a bounty for each teenage boy they could procure for him. Working alone and sometimes together, the boys would find targets and promise them alcohol or drugs, which could be found at a party at Corll’s place. Corll used several different apartments and sometimes the house on Lamar, which had been owned by his father. Amazingly, the two teenage accomplices often targeted neighborhood friends and former classmates, boys they had known for years. The boys would go to Corll’s place for a “party.” There, they would be plied with alcohol and drugs and then Corll would overpower them. He would tie them up and often affix them to his torture board, a sheet of plywood to which he had attached handcuffs and cables. Once disabled, the victims would be raped, tortured, and killed. Corll’s victims were shot, beaten, strangled, or even kicked to death.
As Corll killed more children, he became increasingly more violent and unpredictable. It was this change in his behavior that frightened Henley to the point where he would shoot Corll. On August 7, 1973, Henley planned on going back to Corll’s place with a boy named Tim Kerley. If Corll made Kerley a victim, Henley would collect his fee from Corll. But Rhonda Williams lived nearby, and she had told Henley that she had been having problems with her alcoholic father. Henley said he would come by and take her someplace where she could spend the night. He brought her to Corll’s place. Corll was not happy that Henley had brought a female to his house and became angry with Henley. Corll let the teens drink and do drugs, though, as if all were forgiven. As the next day approached, the teens either fell asleep or became intoxicated. Henley awoke to find himself bound, with handcuffs on his wrists. Kerley was naked, strapped to the torture board, and Williams was restrained as well.
Corll spoke with Henley and told him that his only choice was to rape Williams while Corll would rape Kerley. Henley told Corll he would, and Corll undid his handcuffs. Kerley and Williams were now both awake and in shock. Williams asked Henley, “Is this for real?” When he said it was, she asked, “Are you going to do anything about it?”
Henley found a gun that Corll owned and shot Corll with it. Corll staggered from the room while Henley shot him a few more times. As Corll died in the hallway, Henley released Kerley and Williams. Henley then called the police and the three went and sat in front of the house, waiting for them to arrive.
At first, the police were unsure of what to make of the story told them by the three. Henley was claiming he killed Corll in self-defense, but it
was clear that Henley was also involved on some level. Could he have simply made up the whole story? Perhaps Corll was a victim? Henley began telling them everything he knew about Corll. Perhaps they should start with the boat shed. Henley told the police that Corll took the bodies of his victims to a couple of places he had found where he could dispose of bodies discreetly. One place was a boat storage facility where the sheds had dirt floors. Corll buried the bodies under the shed floor after covering them with lime. When Henley brought the police to the shed, they unearthed seventeen bodies.
He then took them to a few other places he knew of where more bodies were recovered.
As police unraveled the story of the missing boys, it became clear that Henley and Brooks were also culpable. The two were tried for murder. Henley received six life terms for his role in the deaths of six boys. Brooks was found guilty of one murder and also received a life term.
The house on Lamar Drive had been owned by Corll’s father and was built in 1952. It was small, with only a little over 1,200 square feet of living space on a 7,000-square-foot lot. It last sold in a traditional transaction in 1999. It suffered a bank foreclosure in 2001 and its foreclosure price was reported to be $56,123.
Real Murders in a Fake Haunted House
THE AMITYVILLE HORROR HOUSE
1974
108 Ocean Avenue (formerly 112 Ocean Avenue)
Amityville, New York 11701
Ronald DeFeo and his wife, Louise, lived in a large house in Amityville, New York. They had five children, the oldest of whom was Ronald Jr., known as “Butch.” On November 14, 1974, around 3:00 A.M., twenty-three-year-old Butch took a hunting rifle and crept into his parents’ bedroom. He shot his father twice and quickly shot his mother twice as well. They would each die rather quickly. Butch then went to the room shared by his two brothers. He shot each of them once, killing them both. He then went to the bedroom shared by his sisters and shot each of them in the head as they lay sleeping. He had managed to kill all six family members without waking them, and the neighbors did not hear any of the gunfire. Butch showered and dressed for work. He drove into Brooklyn and disposed of the gun and the clothes he had been wearing by throwing them down a storm drain. He then went to work and acted as if nothing had happened. After he returned home from work, he ran into a local bar and called out for help, saying, “You got to help me! I think my mother and father are shot.” Soon thereafter, the police were called to the scene and confirmed that six people were dead. The horrific murders in Amityville would soon be overshadowed by a fictional account of what supposedly happened in the house after Butch DeFeo’s murder spree.