Charles Manson Was a Puppeteer Who Convinced Others to Kill for Him — Did He Kill Anyone Himself?

When members of the Manson Family brutally killed at least nine people in the summer of 1969, that time period was later referred to as the death of the 1960s. The United States was involved in the Vietnam War, which resulted in protests erupting across America in 1965. The hippie movement was well underway and had created a counterculture that was the antithesis of the American Dream the country was spoonfed in the 1950s.

The individuals who were part of the Manson Family cult were led by Charles Manson, a diminutive man who was a career criminal. He used sex and drugs to bring people into his orbit, then later convinced his followers that an apocalyptic future was just around the corner. As such, they needed to shock the world in order to get them to "take notice," said Susan Atkins, a Manson Family member. They did his bidding, which included murder, but did Charles Manson kill anyone personally?

Media outlets have frequently referred to Manson as a serial killer, but by definition, he is not. According to the Department of Justice, a serial killer has "committed two or more murders separated in time and often in widely different geographic areas, and involving victims who are usually strangers." Not only has Manson not killed multiple people, he has never murdered anyone himself, period.

On the night of Aug. 8, 1969, four members of the Manson Family drove to Sharon Tate's home in Los Angeles. They broke into the house and killed her, along with Abigail Folger, Jay Sebring, Wojciech Frykowski, and Steven Parent. Manson was not there. The following evening those four Family members were joined by Manson and two more cult followers, who later testified that Manson instructed them to go to the home of Leno and Rosemary LaBianca in Los Feliz, a Los Angeles neighborhood.

Prosecutor Vincent Bugliosi wrote in his controversial book, Helter Skelter: The True Story of the Manson Murders, that Manson told Family members Linda Kasabian and Susan Atkins that he tied up the LaBiancas. He left them there, along with Tex Watson, who proceeded to kill Leno and Rosemary. Manson and three other Family members then drove to Venice Beach where he ordered them to kill actor Saladin Nader, which did not happen.

During Manson's trial, Bugliosi argued that the cult leader ordered the killings that occurred at the Tate and LaBianca houses, reported The Washington Post. A jury agreed and found Manson guilty of seven counts of first-degree murder. He was also found guilty of the murders of Gary Hinman, a musician and UCLA graduate student, and Donald “Shorty” Shea, a movie stuntman.

According to Rolling Stone, Manson sent an associate of his named Bobby Beausoleil to the home of Gary Hinman because he supposedly owed Manson money. When there was no money to be found, Manson ordered Beausoleil to kill Hinman. Before that happened, Manson slashed him across his ear and cheek using a sword but did not do the deed himself. The murder of Shea was similar and involved Manson telling Family members that he wanted him dead. He was beaten and stabbed to death on Aug. 28, 1969, per Vox.