After All These Years, Karma Finally Caught Up To Charles Manson

Update: Charles Manson has died. 

Original Story:

Convicted mass murderer Charles Manson is reportedly gravely ill and being held at a California hospital.

Manson, one of the most infamous mass killers in the U.S., is said to be in poor condition. According to TMZ, a source familiar with the situation said that “it’s not going to get any better for him.”

Manson was rushed to a Bakersfield hospital, where he has since been receiving treatment while guarded by five uniformed officers, reported TMZ.

A source said that Manson’s health has been declining and that “it’s just a matter of time.”

Manson, 83, was hospitalized in January after experiencing severe intestinal bleeding. Doctors said that he needed surgery to repair a lesion, but was too weak for the procedure, so he was sent back to prison. He was described by officials at the time as “seriously ill,” according to USA Today.

Manson infamously led his “family” of followers to commit a number of brutal killings in the summer of 1969. He and his followers were responsible for killing nine people at four different locations that August.

Prosecutors said Manson intended to incite a race war, which he called “Helter Skelter,” named after the Beatles song of the same name, reports the Los Angeles Times.

Among those killed was actress Sharon Tate, who was eight months pregnant when she was killed at her Benedict Canyon home on Aug.  9, 1969. Also stabbed or shot to death that night were Jay Sebring, Voytek Frykowski, Abigail Folger and Steven Parent. Members of Manson’s “family” wrote the word “Pig” on the front door of the home in blood.

The following night, Manson and his followers went to the home of Leno and Rosemary LaBianca in Los Feliz, California, where three of his followers killed the couple.

Manson was sentenced to death initially, but in 1972, the death penalty was ruled unconstitutional by the California Supreme Court. He was then sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole. He has since been denied parole 12 times.

During his time in prison, Manson, who has a swastika carved into his forehead, has been cited for assaulting other inmates, possessing weapons, threatening staff and possessing a cellphone.

It is unclear at which Bakersfield hospital Manson was being treated. A local reporter shared a photo of a prison van outside of Mercy Hospital and questioned whether he was being treated there. A representative for Mercy Hospital declined to comment.

Sources: TMZ, Los Angeles Times, USA Today / Featured Image: California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation/Wikimedia Commons / Embedded Images: Mitch Hell/Flickr, California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation/Wikimedia Commons