By JAIMIE DING, Related Press
LOS ANGELES (AP) — The 1989 shotgun murders of Jose and Kitty Menendez in Los Angeles gripped the nation.
The killings of the leisure govt and his spouse of their rich Beverly Hills neighborhood have been brutal. Their son Lyle Menendez was the one who referred to as 911, with the brothers initially claiming the killing was Mafia-related or linked to their father’s enterprise dealings.
Lyle Menendez was attending Princeton College, and his youthful brother Erik Menendez was a tennis star.
FILE – This mix of two reserving pictures supplied by the California Division of Corrections reveals Erik Menendez, left, and Lyle Menendez. (California Dept. of Corrections by way of AP, File)
The brothers have been later arrested, charged and convicted for his or her mother and father’ deaths.
The brothers have argued that they dedicated the crimes in self-defense after years of abuse by their father.
On Tuesday, the brothers have been granted their first likelihood at freedom in a long time. A Los Angeles choose decreased the brothers’ sentences from life in jail with out parole to 50 years to life, making them instantly eligible for parole.
Lawyer Mark Geragos, middle, representing Erik and Lyle Menendez, will get a hug as leaves the courthouse after the brothers’ resentencing listening to Tuesday, Might 13, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Picture/Damian Dovarganes)
Right here’s what to know:
Why is the case well-known?
Approaching the heels of the O.J. Simpson trial, the nation was hungry for true crime TV. The brothers’ first trial was one of many first to be virtually solely televised on Courtroom TV. It spawned documentaries, tv specials and dramatizations.
The Netflix drama “ Monsters: Lyle and Erik Menendez Story ” and the documentary “The Menendez Brothers,” launched within the fall of 2024, have been credited for bringing new consideration to the case.
What occurred at resentencing?
The brothers’ legal professionals turned to members of the family and people who knew the brothers since their conviction to talk to their character and rehabilitation in jail in entrance of Los Angeles County Superior Courtroom Choose Michael Jesic.
The Menendez household have supported the brothers and referred to as for his or her launch since their resentencing effort started final fall.
Prosecutors, who’ve opposed the brothers’ resentencing, didn’t name any witnesses. They’ve argued the brothers haven’t taken full duty for his or her crimes.
Erik and Lyle Menendez appeared just about to learn their statements to the court docket.
“You did not deserve what I did to you, but you inspire me to do better,” Erik Menendez mentioned, addressing his household.
Jesic issued his resolution instantly after the brothers spoke, granting them a brand new sentence of fifty years to life.
How quickly might they go earlier than the parole board?
The brothers are instantly eligible for parole underneath California’s youthful offender legislation as a result of they dedicated the crime at ages 18 and 21, each underneath the age of 26.
Parole suitability hearings are carried out by a state board to find out if an individual ought to be launched. An inmate will probably be scheduled for his or her first listening to no later than six months following their eligibility date, in line with board coverage.
Anne Bremner, a trial lawyer in Seattle, mentioned the brothers may have some stress on them to arrange for the parole board and impress upon them that they need to be let loose.
“My guess is the parole board has been watching this and of course they’ve done these risk assessments already,” she mentioned. They know “who these two are, what their alleged crimes were and what they’ve done since the time that they were incarcerated until today.”
What occurs if parole is denied or granted?
If they’re denied at their first parole listening to, they may proceed to obtain subsequent hearings till they’re granted launch.
What different avenues have they got for launch?
In Might 2023, the brothers’ attorneys additionally filed a petition for habeas corpus to the court docket, asking for a brand new trial in mild of recent proof of their sexual abuse. LA prosecutors have filed a movement opposing that petition, however its standing is unclear.
Related Press author Hallie Golden in Seattle contributed.
Initially Printed: Might 14, 2025 at 7:40 AM EDT
