Resentencing recommended for Menendez brothers for 1989 killings of their parents

The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office recommended resentencing for Lyle and Erik Menendez, who were sentenced to life in prison without parole in 1996 for the killings of their parents in 1989.

The case has garnered renewed attention in recent weeks with the release of a documentary and docuseries chronicling the case that received widespread national attention in the 1990s.

“I believe under the law, resentencing is appropriate,” Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón said.

Gascón added that he will make the recommendation to a court Friday.

The Menendez brothers will not be present during the court hearing Friday, according to Gascón.

Because the brothers were under the age of 26 when they murdered their parents, they would be immediately eligible for parole if a judge agrees with the recommendation of Gascón’s office.

“I believe they have paid their debt to society,” Gascón said, underlining the brothers’ claims that they were sexually abused by their father and comparing Lyle and Erik to women in abusive relationship.

“I understand how sometimes people get desperate. We often see women, for instance, that have been battered for years, and sometimes they murder their abuser out of desperation,” the district attorney said. “I do believe that the brother was subjected to a tremendous amount of dysfunction in the home.

Gascón also said the convicted brothers engaged in “the journey of redemption and rehabilitation,” leading prison groups for inmates who suffer from untreated trauma and physical disabilities.

“They are redeemed, they are remorseful, they had a good record in the penitentiary, plus there was all this evidence of abuse that was not allowed in. I think the prosecutors have a pretty good chance of having this motion granted,” Richard Kling, a clinical professor at Chicago-Kent College of Law said.

Gascón said he has yet to meet with the Menendez brothers.

Why is it happening?

Gascón said new pieces of evidence his office received supported the brothers’ claim that their biological father, Jose Menendez, sexually abused them since they were young. 

Among the evidence is a letter that Erik had written to a cousin about the sexual assault prior to committing the murders.

Gascón’s office also factored in a signed declaration by a member of the popular 1980s Puerto Rican boy band Menudo that he too was sexually assaulted by Jose Menendez. 

The district attorney also said he’s requesting the state to consider the early release of the brothers as they began serving their long sentences at a young age with no potential threat to society.

The DA had said a hearing was scheduled for Nov. 29, but he said in an interview that he decided to speed up the process given the heightened public attention on the Menendez brothers’ case, largely stemming from a Netflix series and social media movement.

What’s next?

The final decision to shorten the Menendez brothers’ sentences and release them out of prison rests with a judge, not the district attorney.

“No matter what the DA says, no matter what the family members say, the judge may say the heinous crime was premeditated, and the motive was money in the estate,” Manny Medrano, a former federal prosecutor said. 

But the DA’s request does help the defense, Medrano added.

KIing believes the judge will ultimately agree with the recommendation.

“The likelihood is the judge will go along with it. When a prosecutor is asking for resentencing, it’s unusual and the judge will likely go along with it,” Kling said.

Mark Geragos, the attorney for Erik and Lyle Menendez, said he was cautiously optimistic to get the brothers released.

“I’d like to get them home before the end of the year,” Geragos said.

If a judge agrees with the district attorney, the case will head to the parole board, which will decide whether to release the brothers on parole.

Pushback against possible resentencing

Critics said Gascón is trying to leverage media attention through the national case ahead of the November election.

A September poll showed Gascon was trailing his challenger, Nathan Hochman, by 24 points.

“By releasing (the resentencing recommendation now, Gascón has cast a cloud over the fairness and impartiality of his decision, allowing Angelenos to question whether the decision was correct and just or just another desperate political move by a DA running a losing campaign scrambling to grab headlines through a made-for-TV decision,” Hochman said in a statement.

The Los Angeles Association of Deputy District Attorney, which has been critical of their own boss, call Gascón”s latest move opportunistic.

“Throughout 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,” the group said in a statement.

The brother of Kitty Menendez, who was murdered by her sons, has also publicly denounced Gascón’s decision, claiming the new evidence the district attorney is using to shorten the brothers’ sentences is not justifiable.

The Beverly Hills Police Department (BHPD), which was the investigating agency at the time of the murders, said it has not been contacted by the DA’s Office regarding the new developments.

“The BHPD presented relevant facts and evidence to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office, which resulted in the filing of criminal charges at the time,” the police department said in a statement Thursday.