THE Los Angeles County district attorney who will choose if the Menendez Brothers could be resentenced has shared a major clue to his decision as it’s expected to be revealed in just days,
Erik and Lyle Menendez could be released from prison after serving decades of their life sentences behind bars for shooting their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez, to death in 1989.
Lyle Menendez, left, Erik, and attorney Leslie Abramson in court in August 1991[/caption]
Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón[/caption]
Lyle, Kitty, Jose, and Erik Menendez in a family photo[/caption]
Lyle, left, and Erik Menendez in their 2023 mugshots[/caption]
Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón is expected to make a decision this week about whether he’ll recommend the brothers for resentencing after they filed for prosecutors to take a second look at the case citing new evidence.
Gascón said on Monday that he doesn’t consider the brothers to be a danger to society.
“Based on everything that I know, I don’t believe that they are,” the DA told People.
“Quite frankly, they probably haven’t been for a very long time, if they ever were.
“I think this is not like they were going around killing people or robbing people on the street.”
Ryan Murphy’s Netflix drama Monsters and the documentary The Menendez Brothers have renewed interest in the pair’s case.
The brothers were both found guilty of first-degree murders and were sentenced to life in prison without parole.
While prosecutors throughout the highly publicized trial insisted that the notorious duo were motivated by greed, the defense argued that Lyle and Erik, respectively 21 and 18 at the time, were both victims of sexual abuse from their dad.
Gascón told People that he believes the brothers’ accounts of abuse.
“There are some people in my office that believe that there is no evidence of molestation,” he said.
“I don’t agree with that, but that’s certainly the position that some people have taken, and they believe that they should stay in prison the rest of their life.
“There are other people in the office that believe that there’s probably some evidence of molestation and there is additionally evidence of rehabilitation. So, I mean, certainly we have some issues.”
The DA could recommend a reduced sentence to the judge if he believes it’s in the interest of justice.
Timeline of the Menendez brothers case
Erik and Lyle Menendez have been serving a life imprisonment sentence without the possibility of parole since July 1996 after being convicted of shooting their parents to death in their Beverly Hills home in August 1989
Timeline:
August 20, 1989 – José and Kitty Menendez are found dead from multiple shotgun wounds.
March 8, 1990 – Lyle is arrested for the murders
March 11, 1990 – Erik turns himself in
July 20, 1993 – Highly publicized trial begins and ends weeks later in a mistrial
October 11, 1995 – Second trial begins
March 20, 1996 – Menendez brothers are convicted of two counts of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder
July 2, 1996 – Menendez brothers are sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole and sent to separate prisons
February 2018 – Lyle is transferred to the San Diego prison where Erik is held
April 4, 2018 – Erik and Lyle are reunited
May 2023 – Attorney representing the Menendez brothers files a habeas petition
September 19, 2024 – Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story comes out on Netflix
October 3, 2024: Los Angeles authorities reviewing new evidence in connection with the brothers’ convictions
October 7, 2024 – The Menendez Brothers documentary film comes out on Netflix
“If in fact they have rehabilitated as is being alleged, and we’re reviewing all of that, they have been in prison for almost 35 years,” he said.
“Thirty-five years is a long time to be in prison. And especially when you look at the circumstances behind this case, it just seems to me that at some point there has to be a place for redemption and rehabilitation.
“But again, whether I believe that they should or shouldn’t be in prison the rest of their life, it’s not necessarily what is going to alter my final decision.
“My final decision is going to be really evaluating the law.”
Gascón plans to make a decision about the resentencing by the end of the week.
“I’ll be listening to not only the briefing, but recommendations from both teams,” he said.
“That also plays a role. Because they’re not just sort of an agnostic presenter. They’re going to be presenting what they think should be the outcome.
“I expect one will be saying, ‘No relief,’ one will be saying, ‘Yes, provide relief,’ and I’ll evaluate both of them.”
NEW EVIDENCE
In May of 2023, the brothers filed a habeas corpus petition with Gascón’s office.
The petition cited new evidence, including a bombshell letter from Erik to his cousin eight months before the murders that appears to back up his allegations against his dad.
Erik Menendez’s letter to his cousin
A hand written letter Erik Menendez wrote to his cousin about his dad’s alleged abuse has sparked a review of the case that could set him and his brother free from jail.
Erik’s letter was written in December 1988, eight months before the double murders in August 1989.
The letter reads in full:
“I’ve been trying to avoid dad. It’s still happening, Andy, but it’s worse for me now. I can’t explain it. He so overweight that I can’t stand to see him.
“I never know when it’s going to happen and it’s driving me crazy. Every night I stay up thinking he might come in.
“I need to put it out of my mind. I know what you said before but I’m afraid. You just don’t know dad like I do. He’s crazy!
“He’s warned me a hundred times about telling anyone, especially Lyle.
“Am I a serious whimpus? I don’t know I’ll make it through this. I can handle it, Andy. I need to stop thinking about it.”
The new evidence also includes allegations from Roy Rossello, a member of the boy band Menudo, who said that Jose Menendez raped him in 1984.
FAMILY’S ‘NIGHTMARE’
At a press conference last week, multiple family members of the brothers insisted that Erik and Lyle are victims, not monsters, and asked for the DA’s office to free the siblings.
Kitty’s sister, Joan Anderson VanderMolen, shared an emotional statement at the briefing.
The 85-year-old said she struggled for years with the “nightmare” of her sister and brother-in-law’s murder, but that she came to believe the violence was a “desperate response of two boys trying to survive the unspeakable cruelty of their father.”
She said the brothers have already paid a “heavy price” and that they’ve become better men “despite everything that they’ve been through.”
While Gascón’s recommendation on resentencing is set to be announced this week, a judge will make the final call on the matter.
If you or someone you know is affected by any of the issues raised in this story, call RAINN (Rape, Abuse, & Incest National Network) at 800-656-HOPE (4673).
Lyle, left, and Erik Menendez in Beverly Hills Municipal Court in March 1990[/caption]
Joan Andersen VanderMolen, Kitty Menendez’s sister, speaking at the family’s press conference in Los Angeles on October 16[/caption]
Erik and Lyle Menendez in front of their Beverly Hills home where they murdered their parents[/caption]
