In 1996, Erik and Lyle Menendez were convicted of murdering their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez. A new documentary, and also Ryan Murphy‘s second season of “Monster” centering around the brothers has renewed international interest in their case.
According to several sources, and a planned Wednesday, October 15th press conference, it is possible they are heading towards a resentencing.
The Menendez Family
Erik and Lyle’s aunt, Joan VanderMolen, confirmed that LA County district attorney George Gascón invited several extended family members to a planned press conference. It will take place on October 15th at the Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center courthouse. VanderMolen will be joined by her children, Diane, Arnie, and Kathy VanderMolen; and her grandson Erik VanderMolen. Her and Kitty’s brothers, Milton Andersen and Brian Andersen will not be in attendance due to deeply held disagreements over these crimes.
The family hopes the conference may indicate Gascón’s possible recommending re-sentencing for pair, who have been serving consecutive life sentences in jail for 34 years. If this happens, a new hearing about the case is likely. The brothers were already scheduled to have a hearing on November 29th, 2024.
The Case
The Menedez brothers were sentenced in the late 1990s for killing their parents with shotguns in the den of their Beverly Hills home. Their trial was a national phenomenon with the prosecution arguing that they killed them due to greed. The brothers’ defense contended that the siblings were being sexually abused by their father and saw no other way out.
Renewed interest in the case spiked in 2020 when Court TV re-released all its episodes of the first trial during the Covid pandemic and resulting lockdown. Things became more frenzied in September of 2024 when Netflix released “Monsters: The Erik and Lyle Menendez Story.” Soon after, the streamer also premiered the documentary “The Menendez Brothers.”
Resentencing
It is believed a resentencing could be recommended under Penal Code 1172.1, which allows a District Attourney (DA) to consider whether the convicted suffered “pre-conviction psychological trauma or physical abuse” before committing a crime.
“The point of resentencing is to help us undo the crazy things that happened in the ’90s,” Menendez attorney Mark Geragos said. One of the biggest arguments being made by their defense is evidence of their alleged sexual abuse at the hand of their father was suppressed during their second trial. This evidence was presented at the first trial, but the case was dismissed due to a hung jury that could not come to a unanimous verdict after 30 days in diliberation.
In May of 2023, Geragos and Cliff Gardner alerted the DA to new evidence in the case. Namely, a letter written by Erik to his cousin Andy Cono, where Erik admitted to suffering abuse by his father. The letter was supposedly written eight months before the murder of their parents. Roy Roselló, a former member of Menudo, has also issued a statement saying he was drugged and raped by Jose when he was 13 or 14.
“We are reviewing the new information, but I think it’s also important that we recognize that both men and women can be the victims of sexual assault,” Gascón said. He continued, calling the brothers “model prisoners,” despite believing they would never be released.
“I think it’s time,” Geragos said. “The family thinks it’s time.”
We’ll keep you posted on updates about the Menendez brother’s case as they become available.
