Bruce Davis, a prominent follower and associate of cult leader Charles Manson, died Friday at the California Medical Facility in Vacaville. He was 83 years old. Davis had been serving a life sentence for his role in the 1970 murders of musician Gary Hinman and stuntman Donald "Shorty" Shea.
A spokesperson for the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation confirmed Davis's passing to the Los Angeles Times. The cause of death was not immediately clear.
Davis was convicted in 1972 and was denied parole eight times during his incarceration. In 2021, a parole board had recommended him for release, citing a religious awakening and a doctoral degree in philosophy earned while in custody. However, Governor Gavin Newsom repeatedly blocked his release, stating that Davis continued to minimize his crimes and showed insufficient empathy for his victims.
"Davis does not understand that it was his agreement to participate in Mr. Manson’s plans that resulted in the torture and murder of his victims, regardless of whether he ultimately inflicted the fatal blows," Newsom wrote in a previous parole rejection. This stance echoed decisions by former governors Arnold Schwarzenegger and Jerry Brown.
During his last parole hearing in 2024, Davis was reportedly questioned about his intentions to write a memoir, speak publicly, and his appearance on a podcast titled "The Lighter Side of Serial Killers."
Parole records indicate that Gary Hinman became a victim after refusing to assist Manson's group in relocating to the desert. Davis held Hinman at gunpoint while Manson inflicted a severe facial wound. Davis was also convicted of attacking Donald Shea with a knife after Manson accused the stuntman of being a police informant. Following these events, Manson's followers used Hinman's blood to write "political piggy" on his home's wall.
Davis had previously expressed a desire to be "Charlie's favorite guy" in a 2014 parole hearing, according to the Times.
Charles Manson, who died in 2017 at age 83, led a cult known as the Manson Family. He was convicted in 1971 for the murders of nine people, including pregnant actress Sharon Tate and her four guests in August 1969, and grocer Leno LaBianca and his wife Rosemary the following night. Manson manipulated his followers, many of whom were young women, through drug use and apocalyptic prophecies. Several members of the Manson Family were convicted in connection with the Tate-LaBianca murders, with some initially receiving death sentences that were later commuted.
Of the convicted Manson followers still alive, Patricia Krenwinkel, Charles "Tex" Watson, and Bobby Beausoleil remain incarcerated.