- The Menendez Brothers’ path to freedom just hit a roadblock
- Erik and Lyle Menendez were convicted of killing their parents in 1989
- They were featured in the Netflix show Monsters in 2024
The Menendez Brothers may have just had their road to freedom blocked.
Erik and Lyle were convicted of killing their parents Kitty and José Menendez at their Los Angeles home in 1989.
Read more: Menendez brothers ‘to be resentenced’
After a mistrial, the pair were ultimately sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole in 1996.
Their story became the focus of Netflix mini-series Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story from Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan.
Read more: All we know about Monster season 3 The Ed Gein Story
In the series, Murphy and Brennan presented multiple reasons that could have led the Menendez brothers to commit these crimes. In real life, the siblings claimed the act was self defence following years of alleged emotional and sexual abuse.
This ambiguity led some viewers to believed their case should be reassessed. However, cut to March 2025 and their road to freedom just hit a snag.
Here’s why…
The Menendez Brothers release update
On Monday 10 March, a new Los Angeles District Attorney publicly opposed the idea of resentencing the Menendez brothers, something which could have opened a path to their release.
District Attorney Nathan Hochman said that he believed the brothers’ claim that their crimes were an act of self defence were “lies”. This decision stands in contrast to his predecessor George Gascón who had suggested the brothers’ sentences could be reduced.
By changing their prison time from life sentences to 50 years to life, the Menendez brothers could have been eligible for parole straight away.
Hochman continued to suggest that the siblings had not taken full accountability for their actions. “They have not shown full insight into their crimes,” he told a crowd, suggesting that their version of events was “fabricated.”
Elsewhere, Hochman claimed that Erik and Lyle have only “acknowledged” four of the 20 lies they allegedly told regarding their case. Eventually, their admission of guilt was revealed via a series of audio tapes between Erik and his therapist.
“They convinced, not just the media, not just the police, but their family and their friends that they were 100% innocent of these crimes, until eventually these tapes came out,” explained Hochman.
Could they still be released?
While this potential route to freedom seems to have been blocked, the brothers have been working on other options.
These include requesting a new trial that takes into consideration their claims of sexual abuse at the hands of their father. With this in mind, their attorneys have argued that the brothers might receive a lesser sentence.
Their third route comes via California Governor Gavin Newsom. He’s instructed a parole board to look into whether or not the Mendendez brothers pose a threat to the public.
If this assessment has a positive outcome, it could lead to their early release.
If you or someone you know has experienced relationship abuse, information and resources are available at wannatalkaboutit.com.
