Proxy murder Charles Manson and the Manson Family Murders. Manson was the leader of the Manson Family cult that resided in California in the late 1960s. In 1969, the Manson Family committed nine murders across a five-week span. One of the more notable people murdered was actress Sharon Tate. Charles Manson did not commit any of the murders himself, but instructed the members of the Manson family to do it instead. In 1971, Manson was convicted on the charge of conspiracy. The court ruled that Manson had as much guilt tied to him with that of his followers. Manson had been sentenced
Charles Manson "Man of the Year". In June 1970, he was the subject of a "Rolling Stone" cover story, "Charles Manson: The Incredible Story of the Most Dangerous Man Alive". When a "Rolling Stone" writer visited the Los Angeles District Attorney's office in preparing that story, he was shocked by a photograph of the bloody "Healter Skelter" that would bind Manson to popular culture. Prosecutor Vincent Bugliosi pointed out the dispute in the underground press over whether Manson was "Christ returned" or "a sick symbol of our times" to his "Helter Skelter" co-author, Curt Gentry. Bernardine Dohrn, a leader of the Weather