Defendant Claims Manson Stabbed, Killed Musician Gary Hinman
Tuesday, April 14th, 1970
LOS ANGELES, Apr. 14 – It was Charles Manson who stabbed a Topanga Canyon musician to death last summer, murder defendant, Robert Kenneth Beausoleil claimed yesterday.
Beausoleil, testifying in his own defense at his murder retrial, said the entire blame on the death of Gary Hinman, 34, on Manson, leader of a nomadic “family.”
Manson, 35, is accused of masterminding the August killings of actress Sharon Tate and six others, who died about three weeks after Hinman was slain July 27 at his home.
Manson has not been charged in the Hinman murder.
The story told to the seven-woman, five-man Superior Court jury by Beausoleil, 22, differed sharply from one given last Friday by Mary Brunner, 26.
Miss Brunner, another member of the family, claimed she was at the Hinman home and it was Beausoleil who killed the musician.
She testified, as did Beausoleil earlier yesterday, that Manson had visited the home on July 24. But Miss Brunner said Manson left more than 21 hours before Hinman was killed.
Beausoleil also claimed it was Manson who slashed Hinman’s left ear with a sword because the musician refused to give the cult leader $20,000 which he reportedly had just inherited.
Miss Brunner never mentioned that Manson returned later, but Beausoleil claimed he did.
When Manson came back, Beausoleil said, he appeared “very cheerful,” as contrasted to his “very fierce” appearance the first time he was at the house at 946 Old Topanga Canyon Road.
On his second trip, Manson talked to Hinman about the latter moving into the Spahn Ranch near Chatsworth and becoming a member of the “family,” Beausoleil said.
The ranch is the stronghold of Manson’s “family.”
Beausoleil said Manson told Hinman he could “live like a king” and even said the “family” would provide a dune buggy for him.
“Charlie kept telling him how good it would be,” Beausoleil claimed.
At this time, Hinman also seemed to be cheerful, he said.
”It seemed like the worst was over and there wasn’t going to be any more violence,’ Beausoleil told the jury.
The defendant, said Manson asked Hinman, if he were made a part of the “family” would he leave it if he had the chance.
Beausoleil said Hinman replied he would leave the “family” because he liked all of his friends, because he didn’t want to leave the Buddhist sect he had joined and because he didn’t want to give up teaching at a West Los Angeles music studio.
“That’s kind of what I figured,” Beausoleil quoted Manson as replying.
He said Manson pulled a knife and stabbed Hinman.
Hinman, according to Beausoleil, said, “Oh, Charlie, you didn’t, have to stab me.”
“Charlie stabbed him again ..Gary fell dead,” Beausoleil claimed.
He testified Hinman “started wheezing…like spasms.”
He said Manson “grabbed a pillow and put it over Gary’s face.”
The defendant testified he was “scared, sick to my stomach. shocked and numb” after Manson stabbed Hinman.
He said Manson told Miss Brunner to hold the pillow for him and walked into the kitchen to speak to Beausoleil.
Beausoleil claimed he told Manson he felt Hinman should not have been stabbed.
Manson’s alleged reply was that he could not take a chance on Hinman “ruining all he had worked for for years.”
Manson then ordered clan member Susan Denise Atkins, 21, to write “political piggy” in Hinman’s blood on the wall, Beausoleil testified.
He said Manson explained that he wanted to make it look like “an assassination.”
Miss Atkins is a co-defendant in both the Hinman and the Tate killings.
Beausoleil told the jury that Manson broke the legs off a kitchen table and started throwing items around the house.
After the stabbing, Manson told Beausoleil, “Gary’s body is the only thing that’s dead, Gary’s soul is still there,” the defendant testified.
He said Manson told him to act as a lookout at a window.
Beausoleil said he obeyed because “I didn’t want to be — I was pretty passive at that time.”
Beausoleil said Miss Atkins also had drawn a panther paw print, in blood on the wall, but Manson told her that was “overdoing it.”
The paw print reportedly was to signify the Black Panther Party.
Beausoleil said Manson accused him of becoming discontented with staying at the Spahn Ranch. Manson, the defendant testified, said he should not allow Beausoleil to leave the ranch.
The conversation took place the first time Manson was at Hinman’s home, he testified.
The defendant said he was living at the Spahn Ranch in order to rehearse musical numbers with Manson. He said he had been told Terry Melcher, son of Doris Day, was interested in producing the recordings.
During the discussion about leaving the ranch, Manson threatened him, Beausoleil said, by stating, “what I ought to do is cut your…throat.”
Later that day, Beausoleil said, Manson spotted an old water tank and said “it would be a good place to hide a body.”
The defendant claimed Manson “seemed to be joking.”
Beausoleil is scheduled to resume his testimony today. His attorney is Dep. Public Defender Leon Salter.
The defendant testified Manson, during the conversation about his leaving the ranch, said Beausoleil “knew too much” about underage girls staying there, about allegations that Manson had killed a Black Panther and about stolen dune buggies.
Beausoleil testified the “family” had to stand guard duty at the ranch because there was “talk that Black Panthers had come to the ranch, threatened to blow up the ranch and kill people.”
Beausoleil was first tried for the Hinman murder last year, but that jury deadlocked on a verdict in November.
He did not testify at the first trial.
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