** FILE ** In this 1969 file photo, Susan Atkins, is shown. Atkins was convicted of the 1969 cult killings of seven people, including pregnant actress Sharon Tate. California parole officials on Tuesday, July 15, 2008 considered releasing Atkins, who is dying of brain cancer, from prison, but the governor and others said her decades-old crimes were too brutal for her to be shown such mercy. (AP Photo)