50 Years of the Manson "Family" Murders 1:23

(CNN) -- A California appeals court has paved the way for Leslie Van Houten, a former Charles Manson follower and convicted murderer, to get parole, overturning a 2022 decision by Gov. Gavin Newsom that denied her release even after the California Board of Parole Hearings recommended it. according to an opinion presented on Tuesday.

Van Houten is serving concurrent sentences of seven years to life in prison after being convicted in 1971 for her role in the murders of supermarket executive Leno LaBianca and his wife, Rosemary, at their home.

While this ruling overturns Newsom's decision to overturn the Parole Hearings' decision, a lengthy legal battle is likely to be raised, Nancy Tetreault, Van Houten's attorney, told CNN.

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Tetreault hopes California's attorney general's office will file a petition for review with the state Supreme Court, which can decide how to move forward, he said. He also hopes the attorney general's office will file a motion to stay so Van Houten is not released while the case is under review, which he said he would strongly oppose.

"There is no evidence to support the governor's conclusions," Superior Court Justice Ronald S. Coen said in the ruling, referring to earlier comments explaining why he denied his parole, including conflicting statements by Van Houten and "historical factors" that affect his dangerousness to the community.

"Van Houten provided extensive explanations about the causal factors that led to his involvement with Manson and the commission of the murders, and the record does not support the conclusion that there are hidden factors that Van Houten did not account for. The governor's refusal to accept Van Houten's explanation amounts to baseless intuition," Judge Coen said in the ruling.

When the attorney general's opinion was requested, it was referred to Newsom's office. Newsom's office said it had no additional information to share at this time.

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Mary Xjimenez, information officer for the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, told CNN, "Appellate court decisions become final after 30 days, and then there are 10 days in which review can be sought before the California Supreme Court.

"If an appeals court's decision becomes final, the case will be returned to the Parole Hearing Board to consider any recent developments that may warrant revoking the granting of parole. If there is no such change or new information, the Board will issue a release memorandum and CDCR will process the individual for release."

Newsom's decision in 2022 was the fourth time a California governor reversed the Parole Hearings Board's decision to grant Van Houten parole, which was recommended in 2016, 2017, 2019 and 2020, according to the ruling.

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