What Happened To Every Charles Manson Follower?

Like Barbara Hoyt and Linda Kasabian, Paul Watkins managed to get away from the Manson Family without participating in any violence and testified against them too. It's actually through Watkins' statements that police first heard what "Helter Skelter," Manson's term for his imagined end-of-the-world scenario, would entail. According to Manson's prophecy, poor Black people would rise up against affluent whites, starting a race war. The Black people would win but (in a horribly racist twist) be unable to govern themselves, turning leadership of society over to the last white man, Manson, who had been hidden in the desert the whole time.

When Watkins heard Manson describe his vision, it scared the crap out of him, because he knew exactly where Manson's words would lead — to violence, according to All That's Interesting. In fact, shortly after hearing Manson say that Helter Skelter was taking too long to get started, Watkins decided to get out, and after he found out about the Tate-LaBianca murders, he went to the police.

Paul Watkins began sleeping in his van after leaving the Family, according to The Guardian. One night, he awoke to his vehicle in flames, however, and Watkins suffered burns, including to his vocal cords. This led to Watkins deciding to testify in court. He served no jail time, and later in life, became a lecturer on cult psychology and substance abuse. He died in 1990 of leukemia.

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