Lyle and Erik Menendez have as soon as once more turn out to be a serious focal point as they proceed to serve life sentences with out parole for the 1989 homicide of their mother and father, José and Kitty Menendez.
Their case gained renewed consideration first by means of Ryan Murphy‘s Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story, adopted by a Netflix documentary that includes recorded telephone calls between the brothers and director Alejandro Hartmann from the Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility in San Diego, the place they’re incarcerated.
With this renewed focus, new proof, and an upcoming court docket listening to, Lyle and Erik, now 56 and 53, might have an opportunity at freedom. For readers to remain up to date on the Menendez brothers’ case, HollywoodLife has compiled all the important thing info under.
Is the Menendez Case Being Reopened?
The Menendez brothers have a court docket listening to set for November 29, 2024, in response to Variety. This follows the invention of proof suggesting that their father, Jose, sexually abused his kids.
“We have been given proof, together with a photocopy of a letter allegedly despatched by one of many brothers to a different member of the family, discussing being the sufferer of molestation,” Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascón shared, per the outlet. He additionally talked about, “We’ve acquired proof supplied by the protection, together with claims from a member of the Menudo band who alleged he was molested by the daddy.”
Roy Rosselló, a former member of the Puerto Rican boy band sensation Menudo, spoke out within the 2023 Peacock documentary Menendez + Menudo: Boys Betrayed, the place he alleged that he was abused by the music government when he was 14.
Will There Be a Menendez Retrial?
It is at present unclear if the brothers will face a retrial, because the court docket listening to has not but taken place and is barely a preliminary listening to.
But in a information convention on Tuesday night, Gascón responded to a immediate for an replace on the brothers’ potential resentencing by stating, “As I mentioned 10 days in the past, I might decide inside 10 days or so. I plan to make the choice by the top of this week.”
He concluded with a word of finality: “Yes, the top of this week.”
Why Did the Menendez Brothers Kill Their Parents?
The undeniable fact that the brothers—then 21 and 18—dedicated the crime was by no means doubtful throughout the trial, however their motivation has divided opinions over the many years.
During the proceedings, the brothers claimed they had been abused all through their childhood by their mother and father. At their first trial, their lawyer, Leslie Abramson, argued that they killed their mother and father in self-defense, fearing that their mother and father would kill them in the event that they disclosed the years of alleged molestation they’d suffered at their father’s palms. She informed The Washington Post in 1996, “These should not murderers. These are troubled youngsters in a really troublesome and grotesque residence setting, and so they cracked.” At the time, many believed the motive was their mother and father’ inheritance cash.
If you or anybody you understand has been sexually abused, name the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673). A educated workers member will present confidential, judgment-free help in addition to native sources to help in therapeutic, recovering and extra.
If you or somebody you understand is scuffling with substance abuse, contact the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).