The Menendez brothers might be going free soon. Lyle and Erik Menendez, who in 1996 were convicted of the 1989 murder of their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez, have been serving a life sentence without the possibility of parole for the murder. Now, LA District Attorney George Gascón has announced that he will recommend that a judge resentence the two.
News of this recommendation comes after the brothers’ case has gained notoriety, particularly due to two very different Netflix releases. Ryan Murphy’s Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story, a fictionalized account of their story aims to present multiple points of view of what could have happened. The Menendez Brothers documentary, meanwhile, tells the story of what the brothers did and why through interviews with people close to the case, including Lyle and Erik themselves.
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The Menendez brothers were tried twice, with the first trial resulting in a mistrial. In the second trial, with the evidence of sexual abuse at the hands of their father excluded, the brothers were sentenced to life without the possibility of parole.
“After very careful review of all arguments made from people on both sides of this equation, I came to a place where I believe under the law resentencing is appropriate and I am going to recommend that to a court tomorrow,” District Attorney George Gascón said at an October 24 news conference in Los Angeles. The decision comes after a review of new evidence presented by the brothers’ attorneys in 2023.
But what does the resentencing mean? Will the Menendez brothers go free? And if so, when will they be released?
What does the Menendez brothers’ resentencing hearing mean?
For now, the DA’s recommendation is just that, a recommendation. A Los Angeles Superior Court judge will ultimately get to decide whether they will be resentenced or not. Gascón was expected to file the recommendation to the court on Friday, October 25. A date for a hearing on the matter has still not been determined, though Nancy Theberge, deputy in charge of Gascón’s resentencing unit, said she hopes a hearing will be held in 30 to 45 days.
“I believe that they have paid their debt to society and the system provides a vehicle for their case to be reviewed by a parole board, and if the board concurs with my assessment … they will be released accordingly,” Gascón said in a press conference on October 24 in front of media outlets and some of the extended family of the Menendez brothers.
The DA also said he supports the resentencing from life without the possibility of parole to life with the possibility of parole, which would typically mean 50 years to life. The Menendez brothers have been in jail for almost 35 years. However, because Lyle and Erik Menendez’s crimes happened when they were under 26 years old, California law dictates they are eligible for what is called “youthful parole” and, if the recommendation is accepted, could be released soon.
The reason the Menendez brothers case was reviewed is not, as some might think, the recent media attention due to the Netflix releases focusing on their story. Instead, it can all be traced back to the fact that last year their attorneys filed a habeas corpus petition and presented new evidence, including a letter Erik Menendez wrote to a cousin detailing the abuses at the hands of his father, Jose Menendez, and a sworn statement by former Menudo boy band member Roy Rosselló, who alleges Jose Menendez sexually assaulted him in the 1980s at the same house where the murders were committed.