Erik Menendez denied prison release: Parole board explains why
The first of the Menendez brothers to appear in front of a California parole panel was denied his request.
Convicted murderer Erik Menendez appeared in front of a parole board on Thursday, doing so for the first time since being found guilty with his brother Lyle of the murders of their parents in 1989.
Erik Menendez’s request for parole was rejected by the California Board of Parole. Lyle is set to appear in front of the board on Friday.
Erik, appearing for the hearings on a video feed from the Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility in San Diego, has argued that he no longer poses a threat to public safety. However the board took issue with claims that he had been a model prisoner during his time in prison.
More than a dozen violations were cited by the board, including drug use, cellphone possessions and a physical altercation.
“The phone, again, in the abstract, it’s easy for the people on the outside to look at that and go, ‘What’s the big deal?’” Parole Commissioner Robert Barton, who presided over Thursday’s hearing, said. “[That] doesn’t change the fact that you knew what you were doing and you knew why you were doing it.”
“The killing of your mother especially showed a lack of empathy and reason,” Commissioner Barton added.
Initially the two brothers had been sentenced to life in prison without parole. However a series of documentaries covering the case, focusing on allegations of abuse that the brothers made against their parents, helped to change the conversation and bring about a re-sentencing.
In May their sentence was brought down to 50 years to life, making them eligible for parole. However now that Erik’s plea for parole has been turned down, he will have to wait another three years before he is able to launch another attempt.
Lyle Menendez is set to discover his fate on Friday when he appears in from of the board.
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