A middle-class childhood in the suburbs around Los Angeles, a cheerleader in high school, Lynette Fromme (aka Squeaky, because of her voice) was your typical all-American girl-next-door... until she met Charles Manson on Venice Beach in 1967. She became his lead disciple - she believed (and still beleives) that Manson was the Messiah whose teachings could save mankind from Helter Skelter. After the Tate-La Bianca murders placed him in prison for life, Fromme became worried that the world would no longer listen to Charlie. With this in mind, she planned to commit a crime for which she would be arrested and put on trial, where He could appear as a witness and preach to the world. She attempted to assassinate President Gerald Ford, September 5, 1975 as he left the Senator Hotel in Sacramento. She failed to load the gun properly (there was no bullet in the chamber), so she was subdued by the Secret Service immediately.
Convicted for the attempt 1975, Lynette was sentenced to life in prison. She is currently housed in the Administrative Unit of the Federal Medical Facility at Carswell, Texas. Originally housed in a prison in San Diego, she was later transferred to the Federal Correctional Institution in Pleasanton, California which she escaped from, briefly. Since that time she has served time in the Federal Correctional Institution in Alderson, West Virginia, a maximum security prison in Lexington, Kentucky and a maximum security unit at Marianna, Florida.
For more information, read the History Channel Interview with Lynette "Red" "Squeaky" Fromme.
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