The Menendez brothers' different possible paths to release
Lyle Menendez Erik Menendez prison reunited

An image provided by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation on October 31, 2016, displays Erik Menendez on the left, while another picture from February 22, 2018, shows Lyle Menendez (California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation).

In August 1989, the Menendez brothers entered their family’s den in their Beverly Hills estate, where their parents Jose and Kitty Menendez were seated, watching television. They proceeded to shoot over fifteen rounds, resulting in the tragic deaths of both parents. This marked a sorrowful conclusion to a childhood marred by alleged abuse of various kinds, including sexual abuse.

A little over half a year later, the siblings were apprehended and indicted on charges of first-degree murder. A trial was scheduled for July 1993, with each brother facing a separate jury. At that time, the prosecution sought to demonstrate that the brothers had carried out the murders to gain financially. They highlighted the brothers’ extravagant expenditures totaling more than $700,000 post-murders, which included purchasing luxury items such as jewelry, houses, and vehicles. The district attorney’s office contended that the brothers murdered their parents with the intention of inheriting their estate, insurance policies, and any other monetary assets designated in their father’s will. However, the unfolding defense narrative took everyone by surprise.

The brothers’ defense team, led by Leslie Abramson and Jill Lansing, walked the two separate juries — one for each brother — through agonizing and detailed testimony from the two boys about the sexual, physical, and mental abuse they allege they said they suffered from their father Jose Menendez. By January 1994, the trial concluded and the juries were hopelessly deadlocked, unable to reach a conclusion. Days later, it was revealed the disagreement was marked largely by gender, with many female members of the jury arguing the brothers acted in self-defense, while a large portion of the men believed the requirements of premeditated murder were met. In the end, six women voted for manslaughter and six men voted for first-degree murder.

Specifically, many of the women believed the boys were abused, whereas the male jurors seemed more preoccupied with Erik Menendez’s sexual orientation — a narrative the prosecution attempted to weave into its arguments at the trial. The case was ultimately retried in 1995, yet this second trial was vastly different from its predecessor: the judge, Stanley Weisberg, prevented any evidence regarding sexual abuse from being discussed, no cameras were allowed in the courtroom, and the defense claims of “imperfect self-defense” — which would require a showing that the brothers believed they were in imminent danger — was taken off the table, essentially eliminating the possibility of manslaughter and leaving only murder, with its heavy potential sentence.

By 1996, the two were found guilty of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. By 2005, the brothers had exhausted all options for an appeal, and have been serving the nearly past 20 years with virtually no hope of ever getting out.

By 2023, however, that began to change.

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