These are the two people who could decide the fate of the Menendez Brothers
Lyle and Erik Menendez have been behind bars for 30 years but could be free once their case has been reviewed for resentencing by the new district attorney.
The Menendez Brothers will have to wait a little longer for their resentencing trial, which was scheduled for December 11, after a California judge ruled to give the new district attorney time to review the case. The current Los Angeles County District Attorney, George Gascón had recommended in October that Lyle and Erik Menendez be resentenced, telling CNN that he believes “they have served enough time.”
The two brothers were both sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole after they were convicted of first-degree murder in 1996 for fatally shooting their parents. While the murder of their parents took place in 1989, earlier separate trials for the brothers both ended with deadlocked juries.
These are the two people who could decide the fate of the Menendez Brothers
Gascón was voted out of office this year, and his replacement, Nathan Hochman, will take his place next week. He has said that he needs time to “become thoroughly familiar with the relevant facts, the evidence and the law,” before he can make a decision about the case. The current district attorney has recommended that the sentence be reduced to life with the possibility of parole.
Under California law, this would mean that Lyle and Erik Menendez, who were 21 and 18, respectively when the murders were committed, could be released if Hochman carries through with that recommendation at the next hearing scheduled for January 30.
Another option would be Governor Gavin Newsom granting them clemency as Gascón has supported. However, Newsom office says that he will wait for Hochman to review the case before making any decision on clemency.
The case of the Menendez Brothers has drawn renewed attention and scrutiny since last year with a Peacock docuseries. ‘Mendez + Menudo: Boys Betrayed’ featured Roy Roselló, a member of the Puerto Rican boy band Menudo who claims that at 13 or 14 years old, he was raped by the Mendez Brothers’ father Jose, who was head of RCA Records at the time.
Lyle and Erik have said that they suffered years of the emotional, physical and sexual abuse, primarily at the hands of their father, which lead them to kill their parents in self-defense. They were not allowed to use much of the defense evidence of the sexual abuse they claim during the second trial in which they were convicted.
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