Menendez brothers could be released on parole after recommendation by top LA prosecutor

The Menendez brothers, who were convicted of murdering their parents, and were the subject of a controversial recent Netflix drama, could be released on parole.

Erik, now 53, and Lyle, 56, were jailed for the 1989 murder of their parents Kitty and Jose Menendez, who were shot numerous times while watching television at their Beverly Hills mansion.

During the sensational trial that followed, which gripped the US public, the Menendez brothers claimed the shootings were in self-defence after facing years of emotional, physical and sexual abuse at the hands of their father.

Prosecutors at the time, however, said the claims were fabricated and that the killings were revenge for being written out of their father’s multi-million-dollar will. The brothers were found guilty and sentenced to life imprisonment without chance of parole.

The pair’s story was told in Ryan Murphy’s Netflix series Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story, starring Nicholas Alexander Chavez and Erik Cooper Koch, which has brought renewed attention to the case.

Now, a top prosecutor has recommended the brothers be re-sentenced by a judge.

George Gascón, the district attorney of Los Angeles County, said on Thursday (24 October) that he believes the pair have “paid their debt to society” and “the system provides a vehicle for their case to be reviewed by a court of law”, adding: “I believe the brothers were subject to a tremendous amount of dysfunction in their home, and molestation.”

Speaking at a press conference, which was attended by some of Kitty Menendez’s relatives, Gascón said: “After careful review, I came to a place where I believe that re-sentencing is appropriate. I am going to recommend that to a court tomorrow.

“What that means is that we’re going to recommend that life without possibility of parole be removed, and they be sentenced for murder, which, because there were two murders, that’s 50 years to life. But, under the law, because they were under [the age of] 26 at the time these crimes occurred, they will be eligible for parole immediately.”

He went on to acknowledge that the case has been deeply divisive.

“We don’t have universal agreement,” Gascón admitted. “There are people in the office [who] strongly believe they should stay in prison the rest of their life, they do not believe they were molested, and there are people [who] strongly believe they should be released immediately.”

While many have welcomed the move, other have said Gascón is using the media attention to curry favour as part of his re-election bid, with voters going to the polls in less than two weeks’ time.

When asked about possible reasons behind his decision, Gascón said there was “nothing political about this”, adding: “We have re-sentenced over 300 people, including 28 for murder. We will continue re-sentencing people.”

The potential of parole apparently hinges on evidence which was not submitted at the original trials: a damning letter written by Erik to a cousin about the abuse, eight months before the murders, and allegations made by Puerto Rican singer Roy Rosselló, a former member of the teen boyband Menudo, who claimed Jose Menendez also sexual assaulted him.