Serial killer Charles Manson dead after 46 years in prison

     

Notorious serial killer, Charles Manson, who masterminded one of the most heinous murder sprees in American history is finally dead at age 83. He was behind the grisly 1969 killing spree that took the life of young actress Sharon Tate and six others.

According to TMZ, the sister of his famous victim, Debra Tate said she received a call from the prison telling her Manson died at 8:13 PM on Sunday night.

Manson died at a Bakersfield hospital in California. He had been serving multiple life sentences in Corcoran State Prison in Corcoran, Calif., after being convicted in January 1971 of conspiracy to commit the murders.

Manson was a former cult leader who led what became known as the Manson Family, a quasi-commune that arose in California in the late 1960s. Manson's followers committed a series of nine murders at four locations in July and August 1969.

In 1971 he was found guilty of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder for the deaths of seven people – including the actress Sharon Tate – all of which were carried out by members of the group at his instruction. Manson also received first-degree murder convictions for two other deaths.

Manson was originally sentenced to death, but his sentence was commuted to life imprisonment when California invalidated the state's death penalty statute in 1972.