After more than 30 years behind bars, Erik and Lyle Menendez are headed back to court, this time with a chance to reduce their sentences or even be released from prison completely.
Last week, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Michael Jesic granted the brothers a long-awaited resentencing hearing, scheduled to begin Tuesday.
The hearing, expected to last about two days – according to The New York Times, could reshape the fate of one of America’s most notorious murder cases.
The Menendez brothers were convicted in 1996 of the 1989 shotgun murders of their parents, José and Kitty Menendez inside the family’s shared Beverly Hills mansion. The duo’s defense at the time, and still today, stands by the plea that they acted in self-defense after years of sexual and psychological abuse at the hands of their father, as previously covered in a past report by DX.
While the brothers have never denied committing the murders, their defense argues that the abuse they suffered was ignored or minimized during their trials and following sentencing periods.
If the presiding court now accepts the brother’s claims as considerable factors in the murder of Kitty and José Melendez, the brothers could face much lesser charges or be made eligible for immediate parole.
The Mendez brother’s case has regained some viral attention in the past few years, especially after the 2024 Netflix drama series that introduced a new generation to their story.
Initially convicted during an absolute media circus, the Menendez brothers’ trials were some of the first to be nationally televised, and gain national viral attention. The brother’s court battles trial ended in a mistrial in 1994. A retrial in 1995, held under a more strict set of judicial demands (and less media accessibility), led to Lyle and Erik’s conviction, with matching life sentences for both without parole.
Former District Attorney George Gascón previously recommended resentencing the brothers to 50 years to life, a move that would have made them immediately eligible for parole. But after Gascón lost his re-election bid, his successor Hochman tried to reverse course on their eligibility, arguing the brothers had not been honest about their motives during the murders.
Judge Jesic denied Hochman’s latest attempt to pull the resentencing petition, stating that the DA’s office had not presented new, compelling reasons to cancel the hearing. Hochman referred to a state report claiming the brothers’ alleged misconduct in prison, including illegal cellphone use by both, but the judge dismissed any significance in the case, per The NYT.
The outcome of this week’s hearing could have life-changing impacts, not only for Erik, now 54, or Lyle, 57, but for how the legal system recognizes family trauma and potential justice after decades behind bars.