"Squeaky" Fromme To Be Released From Prison
Charles Manson Follower Was Convicted For Attempted Assasination
Aug 6, 2009
Fromme received a life sentence in 1975 after she attempted to assassinate then president Gerald Ford during a political stop at Sacramento's Capitol Park. Armed with a semi-automatic .45 caliber pistol, Fromme pointed the weapon at Ford and was immediately taken down by Secret Service Agents. Ford was unharmed in the incident.
Fromme's History Rife With Disturbing EventsBefore her 1975 arrest, Fromme had been a close associate of Charles Manson and was one of the most vocal members of the "Manson Family", a group of young Californians who had been banded together under the watchful eye of Manson.
Nicknamed "Squeaky" by Manson himself, Fromme was never charged in connection with the 1969 Tate/La Bianca murders that were associated with the family, but did hold court as a proponent of Manson and his beliefs. Often stationed outside the courtroom where her friends were being tried for the slayings, she symbolically followed their leads of knifing an "X" on her forehead, shaving her hair and protesting agains the prosecution in myriad ways.
Fromme was also convicted in these years of various criminal offenses including contempt of court, trespassing, loitering and attempted murder after she laced food given to a friend with a lethal amount of LSD.
Years after Manson and other family members arrest and conviction for the 1969 murders, Fromme often contacted the media in order to restate Manson's philosophical outlooks and beliefs. In the years since Manson's imprisonment, Fromme has continued to identify herself as a Manson follower and maintained allegiance to his views.
Fromme Prison Record Far From Clean
Fromme's life-sentence for the assassination attempt on Ford automatically made her eligible for parole in 25 years according to California state law. Although Fromme's actions while incarcerted have been far from those of a model prisoner and have earned her additional time on the original sentence.
In 1979 Fromme was transferred from a women's prison in California for allegedly attacking another inmate with a hammer. On December 23, 1987 Fromme escaped from the Alderson Federal Prison Camp in West Virginia after reports that Manson, who was still jailed in California, had been diagnosed with testicular cancer. Fromme was recaptured two days later and taken to Texas to serve the remainder of her jail time.
Fromme first became eligible for parole in 1985 but was denied. Fromme was granted parole on the assassination charges in July 2008, but extra time was added to her sentence for the West Virginia jail break. Fromme is currently scheduled to be released on August 16 of this year according to the Federal Bureau of Prisons.
Sources used: www.cnn.com
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