Erik and Lyle Menendez: Brothers still have a long way to go before they leave prison

LOS ANGELES (AP) – Erik and Lyle Menendez There is still a long way to go before they can be released from prison, although the Los Angeles County district attorney has recommended that their life without parole sentences be overturned and that the brothers be resentenced and immediately eligible for parole.

The brothers, convicted of killing their parents in the family's Beverly Hills mansion in 1989, must get a judge to follow Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascón's recommendation Thursday, and then a parole board will face their release to permit. The final stop is Gov. Gavin Newsom, who could reject the board's decision.

It is an uncertain process that will likely take months.

Lyle Menendezthen 21, and Erik Menendez, then 18, admitted that they fatally shot their father, entertainment executive Jose Menendez, and their mother, Kitty Menendez. The brothers said they feared their parents would kill them to prevent people from finding out that Jose Menendez had sexually abused Erik Menendez for years.

Prosecutors at the time claimed there was no evidence of harassment. The brothers' first trial ended in a hung jury, and prosecutors secured a conviction in the second case after much of the evidence of abuse was excluded from the trial. Prosecutors also said at the time that the brothers were after their parents' multi-million dollar estate.

Now the prosecutor and his family say the world better understands the role of trauma in sexual abuse cases.

Critics accuse DA of playing politics

Gascón, meanwhile, faces controversy over his resentencing recommendation: His opponent in his re-election campaign next month, as well as some of his own prosecutors, have described the latest development in the case as politically motivated and the result of a recent Netflix documentary about the infamous crime.

Michele Hanisee, president of the Association of Los Angeles Deputy District Attorneys, said Wednesday that Gascón's decision smacks of “opportunism” to grab headlines.

“During his disastrous tenure as prosecutor, Gascón has consistently prioritized celebrity cases over the rights of crime victims and shown more interest in being in the spotlight than in upholding justice,” Hanisee said in a statement.

But the district attorney said he made the final decision only an hour before Thursday's news conference and that it was independent of politics.

Since their conviction in 1996, the brothers have been model prisoners, Gascón and their lawyer say, and have worked for rehabilitation and reparations.

“I have come to the point where I believe that resentencing is appropriate under the law,” Gascón said during the press conference.

What's next?

Gascón's office filed documents Thursday recommending that the brothers – now ages 54 and 56 – receive a new sentence of 50 years to life in prison. Since they were under 26 years old at the time of the crime, they would be immediately eligible for parole.

“I believe they have paid their debt to society,” the prosecutor said.

A hearing before a judge could take place within the next month or so. If the judge agrees to resentence them, the state parole board will conduct its own process to decide whether they should be released. If the board recommends probation, Newsom would have 150 days to review the case. The governor could green light parole or overrule the board and deny her release.

Despite Gascón's goal of freeing the brothers, Laurie Levenson, a criminal law professor at Loyola Law School in Los Angeles, warned that the judge was unlikely to be a “rubber stamp” because of disagreements within the DA's office.

“It actually puts the judge in a very challenging position,” Levenson said, noting that until recently she had not heard of a case in which the office manager disagreed with other attorneys involved in the case. Ultimately, Gascón chose the “safest path” to make his decision — leaving it up to the court and the parole board, she said.

Mark Geragos, an attorney for the brothers, said he was confident the brothers could be released by Thanksgiving. Levenson called that deadline “terribly hopeful.”

The family largely comes together and demands the brothers' freedom

The extended family of brothers has pleaded for her release. Several family members said that in today's world, where the impact of sexual abuse is more widely recognized, the brothers would not have been convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison without parole.

Anamaria Baralt, a niece of Jose Menendez, said the district attorney's “brave and necessary” decision means that “Lyle and Erik can finally begin to heal from the trauma of their past.”

Not all members of the Menendez family support resentencing. Attorneys for Milton Andersen, the 90-year-old brother of Kitty Menendez, filed a motion to keep the brothers' original sentence.

“They shot her mother, Kitty, while reloading to ensure her death,” Andersen’s lawyers said in a statement Thursday. “The evidence remains overwhelmingly clear: the jury’s verdict was fair and the sentence fits the heinous crime.”

The prosecutor's challenger speaks out

The L.A. district attorney is in the middle of a tough re-election campaign against former federal prosecutor Nathan Hochman, who blames recent high-profile murders and rising retail crime on Gascón's progressive reform policies.

Gascón said Thursday that his office has recommended resentencing about 300 offenders, including people behind bars for murder.

Hochman questioned the timing of Gascón's announcement, which came less than two weeks before the election, calling it a “desperate political move.”

Without access to confidential documents and relevant witnesses, he said he could not form his own opinion on the case.

“If I become prosecutor and the case is still pending at that point, I will conduct a review consistent with the way I would review any case,” Hochman said.

Geragos said the prosecutor took the case seriously before there was even any talk that he would lose re-election.

New attention to the case

The case has gained traction in recent weeks after Netflix began airing the true crime drama. Monsters: The Story of Lyle and Erik Menendez.”

Roy Rossello, a former member of the Latin pop group Menudo, also recently came forward and said he was drugged and raped by Jose Menendez as a teenager in the 1980s.

Rossello spoke about his abuse in the 2023 Peacock docuseries “Menendez + Menudo: Boys Betrayed.” His claims are part of the evidence detailed in the petition filed last year by the Menendez brothers' attorney to request a review of their case.

Menudo was signed by RCA Records, which was then managed by Jose Menendez.

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Associated Press journalist Thomas Peipert in Denver contributed to this report.