Menendez brothers’ parole hearing delayed for unknown reasons
Menendez brothers’ parole hearing delayed for unknown reasons
A parole hearing for Erik and Lyle Menendez, who have served about 35 years behind bars for the 1989 shotgun slayings of their parents, was delayed this week until late August.
The hearing for the brothers had been originally set for June 13, but it was rescheduled for unknown reasons to Aug. 21, according to California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation records.
The brothers had been serving prison sentences of life in prison without the possibility of parole, but last week, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Michael Jesic re-sentenced them to 50 years to life in prison, making them immediately eligible for parole consideration because they were younger than 26 when the crime occurred.
If the parole board recommends the brothers for parole, the issue will then be forwarded to Gov. Gavin Newsom, who will have 90 days to review the matter and could reject the parole grant. Attorneys for the brothers have also submitted a request for Newsom to consider granting the pair clemency.
Lyle Menendez, 57, and Erik Menendez, 54, have spent about 35 years behind bars without the possibility of parole for the Aug. 20, 1989, killings of Jose and Mary Louise “Kitty” Menendez in their Beverly Hills home. The Menendez brothers claim the killings were committed after years of abuse, including alleged sexual abuse by their father.
District Attorney Nathan Hochman, however, has opposed efforts to secure their release, saying they have repeatedly lied about the motivation for the killings. He said the brothers most notably contended earlier that they carried out the crime because they believed their parents were planning to kill them.
However, Jesic said during a hearing last week he was convinced the brothers deserved a new sentence due to all the work they did in prison on behalf of the inmate population. The judge also noted unexpected letters he received in favor of the Menendez brothers from correction officers, including a lieutenant.
In a 2023 court petition, attorneys for the brothers pointed to two new pieces of evidence they contend corroborate the brothers’ allegations of long-term sexual abuse at the hands of their father — a letter allegedly written by Erik Menendez to his cousin Andy Cano in early 1989 or late 1988, and recent allegations by Roy Rosselló, a former member of the boy band Menudo, that he too was sexually abused by Jose Menendez as a teenager.
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