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A California panel recommended parole Thursday for former Charles Manson follower Leslie Van Houten more than four decades after she and other cult members went to prison for the notorious killings of a wealthy grocer and his wife. The killings took place a day after other so-called "Manson family" members murdered pregnant actress Sharon Tate and four others in 1969. The now-66-year-old Van Houten was "numb" after the panel announced its decision following a five-hour hearing at the California Institution for Women in Chino. Her attorney Rich Pfeiffer said outside the prison, "She's been ready for this for a long time." He added that those who signed an online petition opposed to her release don't know the woman she is today.