Full Breakdown
Bruce Davis, Former Manson Family Lieutenant, Dies at 83
By Drooid · · How we work
Death and Immediate Details
Bruce Davis died at 11:03 p.m. on September 11 at the California Medical Facility in Vacaville, California. The Solano County Coroner’s Office confirmed the death; a cause of death has not been released.
Background & Context
Davis was a senior member of Charles Manson’s “family.” He was convicted in 1972 of two first-degree murders and conspiracy for the July 25 1969 stabbing death of aspiring musician Gary Hinman in Topanga Canyon and the killing of stuntman Donald “Shorty” Shea, last seen alive later that month. Court records show Davis held a gun while Manson slashed Hinman’s ear with a sword and that Davis cut Shea with a knife. He was never present at the Tate-LaBianca murders, which were carried out by other followers.
Parole History and Official Responses
State officials repeatedly denied Davis’s release. Governors Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jerry Brown and Gavin Newsom each reversed parole-board recommendations. In 2021, Gov.
Subsequent hearings in 2022, 2023 and 2024 again resulted in denial. In 2024, the hearing was postponed after Davis appeared on the podcast *The Lighter Side of Serial Killers*. Parole Board Commissioner Julie Garland questioned the “notoriety and glorification” that a public memoir or speaking tour might generate.
Data & Statistics
- Convicted of two murders in 1972; sentenced to life with parole eligibility.
- Found suitable for parole seven times since 2010, but each recommendation was overturned by the sitting governor.
- Age at death: 83.
Conflicting Reports & Gaps
All outlets agree on the time and place of death, but none have disclosed a medical cause. The lack of an official cause leaves the precise circumstances of Davis’s passing unconfirmed.
Verbatim Quotes
- “Your plan to reach out publicly about your story, which necessarily includes your involvement with the Manson family, would bring notoriety and glorification to that,” — Parole Board Commissioner Julie
- “I do not believe that Mr. Davis has a desire to glorify the story, and I think that were we to continue in this hearing, what would come out is that this is an attempt on his part, really, to examine the bad choices that he has made in his life and to talk about them,” — Ananda Hart. The Los