assassins...lynette squeaky fromme

Fromme was born in Santa Monica, California, to Helen Benziger Fromme, a homemaker, and William Millar Fromme, an aeronautical engineer. In 1963, the family moved to Redondo Beach, a suburb of Los Angeles, and Fromme began drinking and taking drugs. Her grades in high school dropped, but she managed to graduate with her in 1966. She moved out of her parents' house for a few months before her father convinced her to consider El Camino Junior College. Her attendance there only lasted about two months, however, before an argument with her father rendered her homeless. In 1967, Fromme went to Venice beach, suffering from depression. Charles Manson, who had been recently released from federal prison at Terminal Island near Long Beach, saw her and struck up a conversation with her. Fromme found Manson's philosophies and attitudes appealing, and the two became friends, travelling together and with other young people such as Mary Brunner and Susan Atkins. She lived in southern California at Spahn Ranch, and in the desert near Death Valley. After Manson and some of his followers were arrested for committing what would become known as the Tate-LaBianca murders in 1969, Fromme and the remaining "Manson family" camped outside of the trial. When Manson and his fellow defendants, Patricia Krenwinkel, Leslie Van Houten and Atkins carved Xs into their foreheads, so did Fromme and her compatriots. They proclaimed Manson's innocence and preached his apocalyptic philosophy to the news media, as well as to anyone else who would listen. She was never charged with involvement in the murders, but was convicted of attempting to prevent Manson's imprisoned followers from testifying, as well as contempt of court when she herself refused to testify. She was given short jail sentences for both offenses. On the morning of September 5, 1975, Fromme went to Sacramento's Capitol Park (reportedly to plead with President Gerald Ford about the plight of the California redwoods) dressed in a nun-like red robe and armed with a .45 Colt automatic pistol, that she pointed at Ford. The pistol's magazine was loaded with four rounds, but none were in the firing chamber. She was immediately restrained by Secret Service agents, and while she was being further restrained and handcuffed, managed to say a few sentences to the on-scene cameras, emphasizing that the gun did not "go off. Fromme subsequently told The Sacramento Bee that she had deliberately ejected the cartridge in her weapon's chamber before leaving home that morning, and investigators later found a .45 ACP cartridge in her bathroom.