A Manson Murder Investigation 20 Years In the Making: ‘There Are Still Secrets’
Over two decades of reporting, [[Tom O'Neill]] recounts how his book [[CHAOS]] reopens the settled story of [[Charles Manson]] and the [[Tate–LaBianca murders]], assembling interviews, previously unseen documents and archival files that suggest far more complex connections between the killers, Hollywood figures, and institutions like the [[CIA]] and its [[MKUltra]] experiments. In this interview O'Neill describes obsessive fact‑finding, the emotional toll of revisiting trauma endured by victims such as [[Sharon Tate]], his collaboration with [[Dan Piepenbring]], and the editorial choices required to shape sprawling research into a readable narrative. He critiques the calcification of accepted accounts, worries about feeding conspiracy thinking, and insists that many crucial records and unanswered questions remain, arguing that fifty years later the culture, cover‑ups and unanswered responsibilities around these crimes are still active and deserving of scrutiny.