Erik and Lyle Menendez are a step closer to leaving prison, but freedom won't come quickly
Erik and Lyle Menendez still have a long way to go before they can walk out of prison, even though the Los Angeles County district attorney has recommended their life-without-parole sentences be thrown out and the brothers be resentenced and immediately eligible for parole.
The brothers, convicted in the 1989 killings of their parents at the family맥스카지노s Beverly Hills mansion, will need to get a judge to go along with the recommendation Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascón made Thursday and then a parole board must approve their release. The final stop is with Gov. Gavin Newsom, who could reject the board맥스카지노s decision.
It맥스카지노s an uncertain process likely to stretch out over months.
Lyle Menendez, then 21, and Erik Menendez, then 18, admitted they fatally shot their entertainment executive father, Jose Menendez, and their mother, Kitty Menendez. The brothers said they feared their parents were about to kill them to stop people from finding out that Jose Menendez had sexually abused Erik Menendez for years.
Prosecutors at the time contended that there was no evidence of molestation. The brothers맥스카지노 first trial ended in a hung jury, and prosecutors secured a conviction in the second after much of the evidence of abuse was disallowed from the trial. The district attorney맥스카지노s office also said back then that the brothers were after their parents맥스카지노 multimillion-dollar estate.
Now, the DA and relatives say the world better understands the role of trauma in sexual abuse cases.
Critics accuse DA of playing politics
Meanwhile, Gascón faces fights over his resentencing recommendation: His opponent in his bid for reelection next month, as well as some of his own prosecutors, have called the latest development in the case politically motivated and the result of a recent Netflix documentary about the notorious crime.
Michele Hanisee, president of the Association of Los Angeles Deputy District Attorneys, on Wednesday said Gascón's decision smacks of 맥스카지노opportunism맥스카지노 to get headlines.
맥스카지노Throughout his disastrous tenure as DA, Gascón has consistently prioritized celebrity cases over the rights of crime victims, showing more interest in being in the spotlight than in upholding justice,맥스카지노 Hanisee said in a statement.
But the district attorney said he made the final decision only an hour before Thursday's news conference and it was separate from politics.
Since their sentencing in 1996, the brothers have been model prisoners, Gascón and their attorney say, and committed themselves to rehabilitation and redemption.
맥스카지노I came to a place where I believe, under the law, resentencing is appropriate,맥스카지노 Gascón said during the news conference.
What comes next?
Gascón's office filed paperwork Thursday that recommends the brothers 맥스카지노 now 54 and 56 years old 맥스카지노 receive a new sentence of 50 years to life. Because they were under 26 years old at the time of the crimes, they would be eligible for parole immediately.
맥스카지노I believe that they have paid their debt to society,맥스카지노 the DA said.
A hearing before a judge could come within the next month or so. If the judge agrees to the resentencing, the state parole board will hold its own proceeding to determine whether they should go free. If the board recommends parole, Newsom would have 150 days to review the case. The governor could green-light parole, or overrule the board and deny their release.
Despite Gascón맥스카지노s goal of freeing the brothers, Laurie Levenson, a professor of criminal law at Loyola Law School in Los Angeles, warned that the judge would not likely be a 맥스카지노rubber stamp맥스카지노 due to dissent within the DA's office.
맥스카지노That puts the judge actually in a very challenging position,맥스카지노 Levenson said, noting she had not heard of any cases until recently where the head of the office disagreed with other lawyers involved in the case. Ultimately, Gascón chose the 맥스카지노safest route맥스카지노 for his decision 맥스카지노 leaving it up to the court and parole board, she said.
Mark Geragos, an attorney for the brothers, has said he맥스카지노s hopeful the brothers could be freed by Thanksgiving. Levenson called that deadline 맥스카지노awfully hopeful.맥스카지노
Family largely unites to call for brothers' freedom
The brothers맥스카지노 extended family . Several family members have said that in today맥스카지노s world 맥스카지노 which is more aware of the impact of sexual abuse 맥스카지노 the brothers would not have been convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life without parole.
Anamaria Baralt, a niece of Jose Menendez, said the district attorney's 맥스카지노brave and necessary" decision means 맥스카지노Lyle and Erik can finally begin to heal from the trauma of their past.맥스카지노
Not all Menendez family members support resentencing. Attorneys for Milton Andersen, the 90-year-old brother of Kitty Menendez, filed a legal brief seeking to keep the brothers맥스카지노 original punishment.
맥스카지노They shot their mother, Kitty, reloading to ensure her death,맥스카지노 Andersen맥스카지노s attorneys said in a statement Thursday. 맥스카지노The evidence remains overwhelmingly clear: the jury맥스카지노s verdict was just, and the punishment fits the heinous crime.맥스카지노
DA맥스카지노s challenger weighs in
The LA district attorney is in the middle of a tough reelection fight against former federal prosecutor Nathan Hochman, who has blamed Gascón맥스카지노s progressive reform policies for recent high-profile killings and increased retail crime.
Gascón said Thursday that his office has recommended resentencing for some 300 offenders, including people behind bars for murder.
Hochman questioned the timing of the Gascón's announcement, coming less than two weeks before the election and calling it a 맥스카지노desperate political move.맥스카지노
He said he is unable to form his own opinion on the case without access to confidential records and relevant witnesses.
맥스카지노If I become DA and the case is still pending at that time, I will conduct a review consistent with how I would review any case,맥스카지노 Hochman said.
Geragos said the DA took the case seriously before there was any talk of him losing reelection.
New attention to case
The case has gained new traction in recent weeks after Netflix began streaming the true-crime drama 맥스카지노 Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story.맥스카지노
Roy Rossello, a former member of the Latin pop group Menudo, also recently came forward saying he was drugged and raped by Jose Menendez when he was a teen in the 1980s.
Rossello spoke about his abuse in the 2023 Peacock docuseries 맥스카지노Menendez + Menudo: Boys Betrayed.맥스카지노 His allegations are part of the evidence listed in the petition filed last year by the Menendez brothers맥스카지노 attorney in seeking a review of their case.
Menudo was signed under RCA Records, which Jose Menendez headed at the time.