Coming up on 40 years since the Sharon Tate murders in Benedict Canyon, any mention of the Charles Manson family still generates a predictable surge of traffic on this website and others. So here's another news item. Susan Atkins, the Manson follower who actually killed the actress and her unborn baby, has gotten a parole hearing date of Sept. 2. All of the family members get parole hearings from time to time, but this one has a little more suspense attached because Atkins has reportedly been told she has about six months to live. Last year, DA Steve Cooley opposed her release.

Noted: There is a senior counsel in the University of California office of general counsel in Oakland named Leslie Van Houten, also the name of one of the Manson followers serving a life setence.