Los Angeles D.A. To ‘Reevaluate’ Menendez Brothers’ Convictions
A new court hearing for Erik and Lyle Menendez has been set for November 29, more than 28 years after they were convicted of murdering their parents and two weeks after their story was dramatized in the popular Netflix series “Monsters.”
Erik and Lyle were sentenced to… pic.twitter.com/c5HkI0kwgo
- Variety (@Variety) October 3, 2024
Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón addressed the public on Thursday amid calls for his office to reexamine the convictions of Erik and Lyle Menendez, who were found guilty of killing their parents in August 1989.
Gascón said his office plans to do just that. “I want to be very clear, we have not conceded one way or the other,” he said. “We’re not saying that there was anything wrong with the original trial. We have been given evidence.”
The new evidence in question involves a letter purportedly written by Erik Menendez months before the killings that details alleged sexual abuse committed by their father, Jose Menendez.
Although Gascón said he believed that the Menendez brothers had been proven to be responsible for the murders, the discovery of that new evidence, as well shifting public perception regarding sexual abuse, warranted a reevaluation of their sentences.
“We are not ready to say that we either believe or do not believe that information, but we’re here to tell you that we have a moral and an ethical obligation to review what is being presented to us and make a determination based on a resentencing side,” he said.
He added that his office will attempt to determine if the new evidence would have led to a different judgment had it been presented at the time, as well as whether or not the two men have “paid back their dues to society.”
The brothers’ attorney, Mark Geragos, filed a habeas petition last year seeking their release or resentencing on those grounds and arguing that they’ve been rehabilitated in prison. The two brothers have spent nearly 35 years in prison for killing their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez.
The new court hearing has been set for November 29.
Click to viewRyan Murphy says “The Menendez brothers should be sending me flowers. They haven’t had so much attention in 30 years”
“We had an obligation to so many people, not just to Erik and Lyle. But that’s what I find so fascinating; that they’re playing the victim card right now -… pic.twitter.com/6cy2S6FCDS
- DiscussingFilm (@DiscussingFilm) October 3, 2024
Ian [Brennan, co-creator] and I set out to do exactly what we wanted to do. And I’ll tell you my thoughts about the Menendez brothers. The Menendez brothers should be sending me flowers. They haven’t had so much attention in 30 years. And it’s gotten the attention of not only this country, but all over the world. There’s sort of an outpouring of interest in their lives and in the case. I know for a fact that many people have offered to help them because of the interest of my show and what we did. There is no world that we live in where the Menendez brothers or their wives or lawyers would say, “You know what, that was a wonderful, accurate depiction of our clients.” That was never going to happen, and I wasn’t interested in that happening.
[Read More]The thing that the Menendez brothers and their people neglect is that we were telling a story that was a very broad canvas. We were telling the story of Dominick Dunne [played by Nathan Lane], of Leslie Abramson [played by Ari Graynor]. We were also telling the story of the parents [José and Kitty Menendez, played by Javier Bardem and Chloë Sevigny], who they blew their heads off; we were also telling their story. We had an obligation to so many people, not just to Erik and Lyle. But that’s what I find so fascinating; that they’re playing the victim card right now - “poor, pitiful us” - which I find reprehensible and disgusting.
I also think that two things can be true at the same time. I think they could have killed their parents, and also had been abused. They could have been of ambiguous moral character as young people, and be rehabilitated now. So I think that story is complicated. I’m thrilled with the reaction to it. I’m really thrilled with how people are responding to the performances, particularly of Cooper [Koch] and Nicholas [Alexander Chavez], who really killed themselves to do justice to those boys. I think Cooper and Nicholas are much more empathetic toward the Menendez brothers than I am, but good. There’s room for all points of view.
🔗: https://t.co/qyK2vpFNTg
- Pop Base (@PopBase) October 3, 2024
We are all products of our experiences. They shape who we were, who we are, and who we will be. Physiologically and psychologically, time changes us, and I doubt anyone would claim to be the same person they were at 18. I know I’m not!
You think you know the story of Lyle and Erik Menendez. I certainly thought I did: In 1989, the brothers, aged 21 and 18, respectively, viciously shot and killed their parents in their Beverly Hills home. In 1996, after two trials, they were sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. As is often the case, this story is much more complex than it appears on the surface. Both brothers said they had been sexually, physically and emotionally abused for years by their parents. According to Lyle, the abuse started when he was just 6 years old, and Erik said he was raped by his father for more than a decade. Following years of abuse and a real fear for their lives, Erik and Lyle chose what they thought at the time was their only way out - an unimaginable way to escape their living nightmare.
Read Kim's full letter here.
Sources: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4