For decades, Charles Manson has been considered to be one of the most notorious criminals of the western world. The convicted mass
murderer and former cult leader was responsible for the murder of film director, Roman Polanski's pregnant wife, Valley of the Dolls actress, Sharon Tate, as well as six others during the late 1960's. Manson who believed in "Helter Skelter" - an impending race war - was the figurehead of the quasi-commune, the Manson Family, until he was found guilty of first-degree murder in 1971. While he was initially sentenced to death, the ruling was downgraded to life imprisonment when the state of California revoked the death penalty statute in 1972.
And now, the 83-year-old is allegedly on his death bed. Authorities confirmed on Wednesday evening that Manson was back in Bakersfield hospital. But details of his condition remain largely unknown.
Spokeswoman for the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, Vicky Waters, refused to issue a statement, stating that federal and state medical privacy laws prevented her "from commenting on protected health information for any inmate in our custody". She did affirm, however, that Manson is alive.
Manson was taken to Bakersfield Hospital three days ago to undergo emergency treatment, and he has remained there ever since.
Speaking to TMZ, sources asserted that Manson looked "ashen" and that they did not expect him to last much longer. "It's not going to get any better for him", they said. "It's just a matter of time".
Manson's health has been deteriorating for quite some time now. Back in January, the convict was rushed to Mercy Hospital in Bakersfield for severe intestinal bleeding and a sigmoid lesion. Speaking at the time, a insider source said, "He's not good. His health is failing".
The notorious former cult leader and members of his so-called "family" were convicted of killing the heavily pregnant actress, Sharon Tate, her unborn child and six others during a two-day rampage through Los Angeles, California in August 1969. The slain included, 35-year-old Jay Sebring, 32-year-old Voytek Frykowski, 25-year-old Abigail Folger and 18-year-old Steven Parent.
Prosecutors asserted that Manson, who has been in prison for 40 years, was attempting to incite an apocalyptic race war, and believed that the murders would help precipitate it. The race war, which he dubbed "Helter Skelter" was taken from the Beatles song of the same name.
Manson's cult included disaffected young recruits, who he manipulated into entering into the commune and killing on his behalf. Certainly, whilst Manson was not present at any of the killings, he was convicted of murder for them, alongside three of his loyal subjects, Susan Atkins, Patricia Krenwinkle and Leslie Van Houten.
And despite four decades of incarceration, it's clear that Manson has not left his old ways behind. Far from being a model prisoner, the 83-year-old has purportedly been reprimanded for assault, repeated possession of a weapon, being abusive to staff and for possessing a mobile phone. I guess some people never change, eh?
