Bobby Beausoleil has been in jail for nearly 50 years after killing Gary Hinman on Charles Manson’s orders, which set off the series of infamous “Helter Skelter” Manson murders. Now, he has been recommended for parole by the California parole panel, after name-dropping his connection to Lady Gaga in his hearing.
When Beausoleil was asked questions about his music’s connection to the Manson murders, he responded, “The Lady Gaga documentary used a portion of it...and it has been used in other films. It is respected on its own merits as art...I think it is important to try to see it as something that is not representative of something that is related to Manson,” according to transcripts obtained by TMZ.
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Indeed, two tracks from Beausoleil’s album “Lucifer Rising” — which he recorded while in prison — appear on the soundtrack for the 2017 documentary of Lady Gaga’s life, Gaga: Five Foot Two.
Beausoleil’s attorney says the music has been crucial to his improvement. He told Rolling Stone, “Everything he has produced so far was done with the full permission of the warden of his prior institutions. His art and music are the most consistently positive rehabilitative aspects of his life.”
But, not everyone sees it that way. Rolling Stone reports that Debra Tate, the sister of Manson murder victim Sharon Tate, plans to fight the parole recommendation, in part claiming that Beausoleil broke prison rules by recording and profiting from “Lucifer Rising” while incarcerated.
The Board of Parole Hearings still has to review the panel’s recommendation that Beausoleil be let out on parole, and if it approves, the final decision will be up to California Gov. Gavin Newsom.