Lynette Alice 'Squeaky' Fromme

Lynette 'Squeaky' Fromme became the voice of cult leader, Charlie Manson when he was sent to prison. After Manson was sentenced to life in prison, Fromme continued to devote her life to him. To prove her devotion to Charlie, she aimed a gun at President Ford, which she is now serving a life sentence for.

In September 2005, she is up for parole. Unlike most other former Manson family members, it is said that she has remained loyal to Charlie.

Lynette Alice "Squeaky" Fromme was born in Santa Monica, California on October 22, 1948 to Helen and William Fromme. Her mother was a homemaker and her father worked as an aeronautical engineer.

Lynette was the oldest of three children and was one of the star performers in a children's dance troop called the Westchester Lariats. The troop was so talented that they performed around the country and appeared on the Lawrence Welk show and at the White House.

During Lyn's junior high school years she was a member of the Athenian Honor Society and the Girls Athletic Club. Her home life however, was miserable. Her tyrannical father often berated her for minor things.

In high school Lyn became rebellious and began drinking and taking drugs. After barely graduating, she left home and moved in and out with different people. Her father put a halt to her gypsy lifestyle and insisted she return home. She moved back and attended El Camino Junior College.

After a ferocious argument with her father over the definition of a word, Lyn packed her bags and left home for the final time.

She ended up at Venice Beach where she soon met Charlie Manson. The two talked at length and Lyn found Charlie captivating as he spoke of his beliefs and his feelings about life.

The intellectual connection between the two was strong and when Manson invited Lyn to join him and Mary Brunner to travel the country, Lyn quickly agreed.

As the Manson family grew, Lyn seemed to hold an elite spot in the Manson hierarchy.

When the family moved onto the Spahn ranch, Charlie assigned Lyn to the job of caring for 80-year-old, George Spahn who was blind and also the caretaker of the property. Lyn's name eventually changed to "Squeaky" because of the sound she would make when George Spahn would run his fingers up her legs.

It was rumored that Squeaky took care of all of Spahn's needs including those of a sexual nature.

In October 1969, the Manson family was arrested for auto theft and Squeaky was rounded up with the rest of the gang. By this time, some of the group members had participated in the infamous murders at the home of actress Sharon Tate and the murders of the LaBianca couple. Squeaky had no direct involvement in the murders and was released from prison.

With Manson in jail, Squeaky became the head of the family. She remained dedicated to Manson, branding her forehead with the infamous "X".

The authorities did not like Squeaky or any of the Manson family for that matter. Squeaky and others she directed were placed under arrest numerous times, often because of their actions during the Tate-LaBianca trial.

Fromme was arrested on charges including contempt of court, trespassing, loitering, attempted murder, and lacing a hamburger given to ex-family member Barbara Hoyt with an overdose of LSD.

In March of 1971, Manson and his co-defendants were sentenced to death, later changed to a life sentence.

Squeaky moved to San Francisco when Manson was transferred to San Quentin, but prison officials never allowed her to visit him. When Manson was moved to Folsom Prison, Squeaky followed and lived in a home in Stockton, CA with Nancy Pitman, two ex-cons, and James and Lauren Willett.

Prosecutor Bugliosi believed the Willetts were responsible for the death of defense lawyer, Ronald Hughes.

On Nov. 1972, James and Lauren Willett were found dead and Squeaky and four others were arrested for the murders. After the four confessed to the crime, Squeaky was released and she moved to Sacramento.

She and family member Sandra Good moved in together and began the International People's Court of Retribution, a fictitious organization used to scare corporate executives into believing that they were on a large terrorist organizations hit list because they polluted the environment.

Manson recruited the girls as nuns for his new religion called the Order of the Rainbow. As nuns, Squeaky and Good were forbidden to have sex, watch violent movies, or smoke and were required to dress in long hooded robes. Manson renamed Squeaky "Red" and her job was to save the Redwoods. Good was renamed "Blue" because of her blue eyes.

Assassination Attempt:

"Red" was committed to making Manson proud of her environmental work, and when she found out that President Gerald Ford was coming to town, she stuck a .45 Colt automatic into a leg holster and headed out to Capital Park.

As Ford came through the crowd, Squeaky "Red" Lynette Fromme pointed the gun at Ford and was immediately taken down by the Secret Service. She was charged for attempting to assassinate the President, although it was later disclosed that the gun she carried did not have bullets in the firing chamber.

Sentenced to Life in Prison:

As was the Manson way, Fromme represented herself at her trial but refused to present testimony that was relevant to the case and instead used it as a platform to speak about the environment.

Judge Thomas McBride ultimately removed her from the courtroom. At the end of the trial, Fromme hurled an apple at U.S. Attorney Dwayne Keyes head because he had not turned over exculpatory evidence. Lynette Fromme was found guilty and sentenced to life in prison.

A Less Than Model Prisoner:

Fromme's prison days have not been without incident. At a prison in Pleasanton California, it was reported that she brought the claw end of a hammer down on the head of Julienne Busic, a Croatian Nationalist who was imprisoned for her involvement in a 1976 airline hijacking.

In December 1987, she escaped from prison in order to see Manson who she heard was dying of cancer. She was quickly caught and returned to prison.

The Present:

Currently Fromme is at the Federal Medical Center Carswell, near Fort Worth, Texas. She has remained a devoted follower of Charlie Manson. She is scheduled to be released in August 2009.

See Also: The Manson Family Photo Album

^{Source:
Desert Shadows by Bob Murphy
Helter Skelter by Vincent Bugliosi and Curt Gentry
The Trial of Charles Manson by Bradley Steffens}