Married to Murder: The Bizarre and True Accounts of People Who Married Murderers by William Webb
Authors: William Webb
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Conversion and Two Marriages
Like Tex Watson, Susan Atkins claimed to have found God and reformed while in prison. Atkins announced that she had become a born-again Christian in 1974. She later formed a prison ministry and did charitable work behind bars. In 1977, she wrote a memoir called Child of Satan, Child of God with author Bob Slosser.
Atkins attracted a lot of attention in 1981 by marrying a con man named Donald Lee Laisure in the prison chapel. Laisure claimed to be a multimillionaire that had been married 29 times. Among other things, Laisure had bragged that he could bribe the Governor of California into releasing her. Newspaper reports indicate that Laisure really spelled his name with a dollar sign instead of an S. The marriage quickly fell apart when Laisure was revealed to have no money and been married 35 times.
Laisure wasn’t the first man she had been linked to; Atkins had been engaged to at least two other men in prison, John Daiberl and Michael Holbrook. She ended both of the engagements before marriage.
James Whitehouse started writing to Atkins in 1985 after reading Child of Satan, Child of God and Vincent Bugliosi’s account of the Manson family’s activities Helter Skelter. They married in 1987 when Whitehouse was an honors student at the University of California in Irvine. The two enjoyed a honeymoon in the prison family living apartments at the state prison. In those days, California allowed conjugal (sex with prisoners) visits for those on life sentences. Such visits were ended after the public outrage at Tex Watson’s ability to father four children while in prison.
After the marriage and his graduation from Harvard Law School, Whitehouse represented Atkins in numerous appeals and attempts to win parole. The last of these occurred within a month of her death.
James W. Whitehouse is currently a respected attorney in private practice in Orange County, Calif. He specializes in criminal law, the appeals of sentences, and prisoners’ rights issues.
Stepfather of the Son of Charles Manson
Interestingly enough, Whitehouse apparently has a stepson with an infamous father. In 1968, Susan Atkins gave birth to Charles Manson’s son, whom she called Zezozse Zadfrack Glutz. Atkins was using the alias Sadie Mae Glutz at the time of her life in the Manson family. Fortunately for the boy, he was taken away by authorities and put up for adoption. It is not known if the son, who would now be a middle-aged man, knows who his parents are or if he met his mother or stepfather. Hopefully, the son hasn’t followed in his birth parents’ footsteps.
Bibliography
Fox, Margalit. "Susan Atkins, Manson Follower, Dies at 61." 25 September 2009. www.nytimes.com . NY Times Newspaper Article. 28 January 2013.
Mathis, CJ. "You Hear the News and You Ask Yourself - Suan Atkins is Married ." 17 July 2008. voices.yahoo.com . Yahoo News Blog. 28 January 2013.
Middlecamp, David. "Charles "Tex" Watson Wedding, the Manson murders 40 years later ." 2009. sblogs.thetribunenews.com/slovault. News Blog Entry. 27 January 2013.
Montaldo, Charles. "Charles "Tex" Watson - Charle Manson's Right-Hand Man." n.d. crime.about.com. About.com Article . 27 January 2013.
Whitehouse, James W. "The Law Offices of James W. Whitehouse." n.d. jameswhitehouselawoffices.com. Online Business Business Description. 28 January 2013.
Wikipedia . "Charles "Tex" Watson." n.d. en.wikipedia.org . Online Encyclopedia Entry. 27 January 2013.
Love from an Advertisement: The Dagmar Polzin Story
Love at first sight has always been a popular fantasy for romantics. Unfortunately, some people take it too far; Dagmar Polzin, a waitress from Hamburg, Germany, fell in love with a man whose pictures she saw on a bus stop advertisement. She even crossed the Atlantic to be near the man and eventually married him.
The man was Bobby Lee Harris, a murderer with an IQ of 75, who was on death row in North Carolina. Harris had robbed his employer,
Like Tex Watson, Susan Atkins claimed to have found God and reformed while in prison. Atkins announced that she had become a born-again Christian in 1974. She later formed a prison ministry and did charitable work behind bars. In 1977, she wrote a memoir called Child of Satan, Child of God with author Bob Slosser.
Atkins attracted a lot of attention in 1981 by marrying a con man named Donald Lee Laisure in the prison chapel. Laisure claimed to be a multimillionaire that had been married 29 times. Among other things, Laisure had bragged that he could bribe the Governor of California into releasing her. Newspaper reports indicate that Laisure really spelled his name with a dollar sign instead of an S. The marriage quickly fell apart when Laisure was revealed to have no money and been married 35 times.
Laisure wasn’t the first man she had been linked to; Atkins had been engaged to at least two other men in prison, John Daiberl and Michael Holbrook. She ended both of the engagements before marriage.
James Whitehouse started writing to Atkins in 1985 after reading Child of Satan, Child of God and Vincent Bugliosi’s account of the Manson family’s activities Helter Skelter. They married in 1987 when Whitehouse was an honors student at the University of California in Irvine. The two enjoyed a honeymoon in the prison family living apartments at the state prison. In those days, California allowed conjugal (sex with prisoners) visits for those on life sentences. Such visits were ended after the public outrage at Tex Watson’s ability to father four children while in prison.
After the marriage and his graduation from Harvard Law School, Whitehouse represented Atkins in numerous appeals and attempts to win parole. The last of these occurred within a month of her death.
James W. Whitehouse is currently a respected attorney in private practice in Orange County, Calif. He specializes in criminal law, the appeals of sentences, and prisoners’ rights issues.
Stepfather of the Son of Charles Manson
Interestingly enough, Whitehouse apparently has a stepson with an infamous father. In 1968, Susan Atkins gave birth to Charles Manson’s son, whom she called Zezozse Zadfrack Glutz. Atkins was using the alias Sadie Mae Glutz at the time of her life in the Manson family. Fortunately for the boy, he was taken away by authorities and put up for adoption. It is not known if the son, who would now be a middle-aged man, knows who his parents are or if he met his mother or stepfather. Hopefully, the son hasn’t followed in his birth parents’ footsteps.
Bibliography
Fox, Margalit. "Susan Atkins, Manson Follower, Dies at 61." 25 September 2009. www.nytimes.com . NY Times Newspaper Article. 28 January 2013.
Mathis, CJ. "You Hear the News and You Ask Yourself - Suan Atkins is Married ." 17 July 2008. voices.yahoo.com . Yahoo News Blog. 28 January 2013.
Middlecamp, David. "Charles "Tex" Watson Wedding, the Manson murders 40 years later ." 2009. sblogs.thetribunenews.com/slovault. News Blog Entry. 27 January 2013.
Montaldo, Charles. "Charles "Tex" Watson - Charle Manson's Right-Hand Man." n.d. crime.about.com. About.com Article . 27 January 2013.
Whitehouse, James W. "The Law Offices of James W. Whitehouse." n.d. jameswhitehouselawoffices.com. Online Business Business Description. 28 January 2013.
Wikipedia . "Charles "Tex" Watson." n.d. en.wikipedia.org . Online Encyclopedia Entry. 27 January 2013.
Love from an Advertisement: The Dagmar Polzin Story
Love at first sight has always been a popular fantasy for romantics. Unfortunately, some people take it too far; Dagmar Polzin, a waitress from Hamburg, Germany, fell in love with a man whose pictures she saw on a bus stop advertisement. She even crossed the Atlantic to be near the man and eventually married him.
The man was Bobby Lee Harris, a murderer with an IQ of 75, who was on death row in North Carolina. Harris had robbed his employer,
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