Tex Watson

Tex Watson
Watson in an undated prison photograph
Born
Charles Denton Watson

(1945-12-02) December 2, 1945 (age 78)
Dallas, Texas, U.S.
Other names
  • Charles Montgomery
  • Texas Charlie ("Tex")[2]: xvii 
Criminal statusIncarcerated
Spouse
Kristin Joan Svege
(m. 1979; div. 2003)
Children4
AllegianceManson Family
Conviction(s)First degree murder
Conspiracy to commit murder
Criminal penaltyDeath; commuted to life imprisonment
Details
DateAugust 9–10, 1969
Date apprehended
November 30, 1969
Imprisoned atRichard J. Donovan Correctional Facility[1]

Charles Denton "Tex" Watson (born December 2, 1945) is an American murderer who was a central member of the "Manson Family" led by Charles Manson.[3] On August 9, 1969, Watson, Patricia Krenwinkel, and Susan Atkins murdered pregnant actress Sharon Tate, Jay Sebring, Wojciech Frykowski, Abigail Folger, and Steven Parent at 10050 Cielo Drive in Benedict Canyon, Los Angeles. The next night, Watson traveled to Los Feliz, Los Angeles, and participated in the murders of Leno and Rosemary LaBianca. Watson was convicted of murder in 1971 and sentenced to death. As a result of a 1972 California Supreme Court decision on the constitutionality in the state of the death penalty, he avoided execution but has remained incarcerated ever since.

  1. ^ (CDCR), California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. "State of California Inmate Locator". inmatelocator.cdcr.ca.gov. Archived from the original on December 4, 2020. Retrieved March 15, 2024.
  2. ^ Bugliosi, Vincent; Gentry, Curt (1994) [1st pub. 1974]. Helter Skelter: The True Story of the Manson Murders. New York: W. W. Norton. ISBN 978-0-393-08700-0. LCCN 94-20957. OCLC 30624822. OL 1096365M. Archived from the original on December 15, 2019. Retrieved April 4, 2016.
  3. ^ Linder, Doug (2014). "The Charles Manson (Tate–LaBianca Murder) Trial". University of Missouri–Kansas City School of Law. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016.