How Menendez brothers serving life for murdering parents could walk free from jail after new trial was rejected
Topics: Crime, Los Angeles, Menendez Brothers
Callum Jones
Featured Image Credit: Getty Images/Los Angeles Times
Topics: Crime, Los Angeles, Menendez Brothers
A new trial for the Menendez brothers has been rejected by the Los Angeles District Attorney - however, there's still a chance they could possibly be released.
In 1989, Lyle and Erik Menendez were convicted of first degree murder after being found guilty for the deaths of their parents, José and Kitty, at their family home in Beverly Hills, Los Angeles.
The two were sentenced to life without possibility of parole, and since then, Lyle and Erik's stories have been made their way onto our screens in the form of a Netflix TV show and documentary.
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Regarding their case, there have been a few updates as potential 'new evidence' that allegedly supports the claims of abuse from their parents has been discovered, leading to a call for a reconsideration of their sentences.
Both brothers claimed during their trial that they'd experienced physical, emotional and sexual abuse, especially at the hands of their father, José, which they said lead them to commit the killings.
A letter dated from December 1988 from Erik to one of the cousins about his father's alleged abuse months prior to the killings.
However, Nathan Hochman, the district attorney of the Los Angeles County has said that a decision on a resentencing bid is yet to be made, Sky News reports.
In another report from PEOPLE, the decision will ultimately be decided by a judge, and when asked if they should be freed, Hochman responded: "It will ultimately be a court question."
The brothers have repeatedly appealed against their convictions without much luck, and in May 2023, their lawyers filed a habeas corpus petition citing the alleged 'new evidence'.
However, Hochman feels it won't make much of a difference, adding: "Sexual abuse is abhorrent, and we will prosecute sexual abuse in any form it comes. While sexual abuse, in this situation, may have been a motivation for Erik and Lyle to do what they did, it does not constitute self-defense."
The attorney also claimed the brothers' version of events was untrustworthy as they had five different explanations for the reasoning behind murdering their parents, Sky News reports.
Following the verdict, the Menendez family said in a statement: "Abuse does not exist in a vacuum. It leaves lasting scars, rewires the brain, and traps victims in cycles of fear and trauma.
"To say it played no role in Erik and Lyle's action is to ignore decades of psychological research and basic human understanding."
According to PEOPLE, the resentencing hearing is scheduled for March 20, which would make them eligible for parole.