Leslie Van Houten Parole Hearing Leslie Van Houten, once part of the notorious "family" of Charles Manson, will once again face California parole officials to ask for early release from her three life sentences. Leslie Van Houten was nineteen at the time of the La Bianca and Tate murders, some 29 years ago But should she be released from prison? Van Houten is no stranger to the process. She has faced parole hearings about once every two years, including hearings in 1992 and 1996. She has been denied every time. [Court TV report on previous hearings] Van Houten and her notorious crimes are hard to forget, especially the images of her with an X carved in her forehead, following Manson's lead. She was convicted for murders of Leno and Rosemary La Bianca and for conspiracy to murder actress Sharon Tate and four others. In a boisterous trial that lasted more than eight months, Van Houten and Manson, as well as Manson family members Susan Atkins and Patricia Krenwinkel, were tried and convicted for the same killings. Watch the background report. Download Realplayer At her original trial, she testified that she participated in the killings, but denied that Manson was involved. As the guilty verdicts for the Manson family defendants were read out on March 29, 1971, Van Houten shouted, "Your whole system is a game!" and had to be removed from the courtroom. She has been behind bars for most of the past 29 years, since the killings occurred in 1969. Originally sentenced to death, she was saved by California's revocation of the death penalty and given three life terms. After her original conviction was overturned on appeal (her lawyer died on the eve of closings), a hung jury snarled her second trial and a third trial brought a conviction and a reinstatement of her original sentence. She will represent herself at the current hearing, as she did in 1996, before a panel of two parole commissioners and a hearing officer. Arguing that she is not ready to be let out will be L.A. deputy district attorney Stephen Kay, part of the Manson prosecution team led by Vincent Bugliosi. Kay attends parole hearings for all the Manson family members -- this is his 53rd -- and while he says he will never support parole for the other members, he thinks Van Houten may one day be suitable for parole. Even if the board finds her suitable for parole, she is not likely to be set free anytime soon. The board would have to use a complex set of calculations to determine her remaining prison term. They would need to consider the sentence they believe she should serve, the time already served, time for good behavior (calculated at four months per year served) and a number of other factors. Even if the board determines she is ready for parole, she would likely spend several more years in prison. Van Houten has apparently been a model prisoner in the past two years. She has continued to participate in Alcoholics and Narcotics Anonymous and works as a clerk for a corrections lieutenant. Members of her victims' families are not expected to attend the hearing. Her hearing is scheduled for Thursday afternoon at the womens' prison in Corcoran, CA where she is incarcerated. [OUTCOME] top of page