Dying Manson Follower To Stay In Prison

As Susan Atkins kneeled beside Sharon Tate, 8.5 pregnant and pleading for the life of her child, she slit Sharon's throat and said "I don't care anything about you, bitch." She took a moment to contemplate cutting the baby out of the womb when she saw the child moving. Then she tasted the mothers blood, and dipped a cloth in it to write the word "Pig" on the front door of the home. It doesn't bother me in the least to let her die a prisoner.

CORONA (CBS/AP) ― The state director of adult prisons is recommending that former Charles Manson follower and convicted murderer Susan Atkins be denied a compassionate release because of terminal illness.

A prison spokeswoman says director Suzan Hubbard made the decision Wednesday.

Officials at the California Institution for Women where the 60-year-old Atkins was held for decades before a recent move to the hospital to treat her brain cancer had recommended that she be released to die in the care of her family. Hubbard's recommendation is only advisory. The Board of Parole Hearings must decide whether to take up Atkins' case, and her original sentencing court in Los Angeles County would make the final decision on her release.

Atkins confessed to killing pregnant actress Sharon Tate during a murderous rampage with other Manson followers in 1969. Fascination with serial killers like Charles Manson is driving a market that some call sick and twisted -- a place where buying and selling serial killer merchandise is all the rage.

There are hundreds of auctions taking place on the internet for things like serial killer trading cards and merchandise from a little old lady in Sacramento.

Congress is thinking about trying to make it harder for "murderabilia" to hit the market. There's a proposal that would make it a felony for inmates to mail items for interstate commerce, but there would be no penalty for those who buy and sell the stuff.

There is also a law in California that prevents inmates from profiting off of their crimes called the "Son of Sam" law. However, not every state has similar laws.