Tex Watson's Real Name: Charles Watson
Tex Watson → Charles Watson
Quick answer: He is known as Tex Watson. BBC News and the Los Angeles Times independently identify him as Charles "Tex" Watson. The Los Angeles Times records later convictions connected to the August 1969 Tate-LaBianca murders and a death sentence later commuted to life in prison.
Real name and early life
Independent publishers support the documented name Charles Watson, used with the familiar form Tex. BBC News, in a November 20, 2017, report after Charles Manson's death, identifies him as Charles 'Tex' Watson and says he was originally from Dallas, later left college, and moved to California, where he lived with other Manson Family members at the Spahn ranch. The Los Angeles Times, in an October 27, 2016, report, independently identifies him as Charles "Tex" Watson, describes him as the self-described right-hand man of Charles Manson, and treats him as a key figure in the Manson family's 1969 crimes in the Los Angeles area. The 2016 article also gave his age as 70 at the time of that parole hearing.
Career highlights
Convictions
The Los Angeles Times says he was convicted of joining other Manson followers in the Aug. 9, 1969, killings of five people, including actress Sharon Tate, and that he was initially sentenced to die for his part in the murder of Tate and six others. In 1973, the same account says, his sentence was commuted to life in prison after the California Supreme Court ruled that the death penalty was unconstitutional. BBC News independently says he fled to Texas, resisted extradition for nine months, and therefore was not tried alongside Manson and three women, and that he was also sentenced to death before the sentence was revised to life imprisonment. As of the 2017 BBC report, he remained at Mule Creek State Prison near Sacramento after repeatedly being denied parole. The Los Angeles Times independently reported in October 2016 that a review board had denied parole for the 17th time, with eligibility in five years. NBC Los Angeles reported that on October 15, 2021, a Board of Parole Hearings panel denied him parole for the 18th time, again with eligibility for another hearing in five years.
Name notes for searchers
People looking up Tex Watson or Charles Watson are looking for the same person, including the later court record associated with his name. BBC News and the Los Angeles Times support the name used in the title. Search interest often uses the familiar form Tex alongside the given name Charles.
FAQ
What is Tex Watson's real name?
BBC News and the Los Angeles Times independently identify him as Charles "Tex" Watson.
Where was he from?
BBC News says he was originally from Dallas.
What later court outcome is recorded here?
The Los Angeles Times says he was convicted in connection with the August 1969 Tate-LaBianca killings and was sentenced to death, a sentence commuted to life in prison in 1973. BBC News independently records a death sentence later revised to life imprisonment.
Where was he held in later reports?
BBC News, in 2017, said he remained at Mule Creek State Prison near Sacramento after repeated parole denials. The Los Angeles Times independently reported a 2016 parole denial. NBC Los Angeles reported an 18th denial on October 15, 2021, at a hearing held at Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility in San Diego.