Armed with shotguns, Erik and Lyle Menendez stormed into their family’s Beverly Hills home’s den in the summer of 1989 and started shooting, killing their father and mother.
The brothers claimed they shot their parents after years of horrifying sexual abuse at the hands of their father after being charged with the murders of Jose and Kitty Menendez. Prosecutors denied the accusations, claiming the siblings were driven by greed.
When the jury failed to return a verdict, their televised trial—which included the brothers narrating the alleged torture in gory and gruesome detail—came to an end. The siblings were found guilty of first-degree murder during a second trial and given a life sentence without the prospect of release.
In October, the top prosecutor for Los Angeles County stated that the brothers were model inmates and suggested that they be resentenced to 50 years to life in prison. They might be eligible for parole right away and possibly be released from prison if the court concurs.
Key dates in the case are as follows:
Aug. 20, 1989: A grisly murder in Beverly Hills
In their lair, Kitty and Jose were shot and killed. That night, Lyle called 911 in a panic, saying that his parents had been murdered.
Because their father was a wealthy executive at an entertainment firm whose founder had connections to the pornography industry, the brothers first informed investigators that the killings might have been related to his profession. However, officials discovered no evidence to substantiate this assertion and instead concentrated on the brothers.
Investigators found that the brothers had been spending extravagantly in the days following the double murder. They sought out their father’s will because they thought they might not inherit the family’s multimillion-dollar inheritance.
March 8, 1990: The brothers are arrested
Lyle’s arrest was publicized by Beverly Hills Police. Days later, Erik was arrested while attending a tennis tournament in Israel.
The boys claimed that their father had sexually abused them for years before their trial started three years later, citing a legal theory known as defective self-defense. Erik said that it was occurring at the time of the murders, but Lyle claimed that he had been molested since he was six or eight years old.
After Lyle confronted Jose about his brother’s abuse, the brothers testified that they shot their parents to death. Lyle stated that Jose seemed to threaten him and his brother when he threatened to reveal his father.
The prosecution claimed that the allegations of sex abuse were untrue and pointed to money as the driving force behind the murders.
Jan. 13, 1994: Sentenced to life without parole
When separate jurors for the brothers failed to agree on whether they should be found guilty of manslaughter, as the defense argued, or murder, as the prosecution sought, a mistrial was declared.
Following a decision by the state’s supreme court, the brothers were not permitted to claim flawed self-defense during a retrial the following year. Additionally, Lyle did not testify at the retrial when prosecutors learned that he had asked a friend and an ex-girlfriend to fabricate statements for the defense.
They were found guilty and given a life sentence without the chance of release.
Oct. 24, 2024: A chance for release
George Gasc, the district attorney for Los Angeles County, declared that he will attempt to resentence the brothers to 50 years to life, which would instantly qualify them for parole.
The brothers had been exemplary prisoners who assisted others inside bars, stayed out of trouble, and attended college classes, the prosecution claimed, despite the fact that their crimes were horrific and planned.
Nathan Hochman, the district attorney-elect of Los Angeles County, who defeated Gasc in November and will take office on December 2, has stated that he will consider the law, facts, and evidence before deciding whether to grant the brothers’ requests to be resentful.
In November, the Los Angeles County court presiding over the case decided Hochman should be given further time to consider the issue and postponed a hearing scheduled for December 11 until the end of January.
Gasc added that a petition from the brothers contesting their convictions was being examined by his office. A photocopy letter that Erik claimed to have sent to a cousin months prior to the killings is one of the two pieces of evidence included in the petition.
Erik seems to be informing the cousin about the abuse and stating that it is becoming worse in the letter.
This month, prosecutors are anticipated to comment on the petition.
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