Lyle and Erik Menendez, currently serving life sentences for the murders of their parents in their Beverly Hills home 35 years ago, appeared in a Los Angeles courtroom via video for a significant hearing in their efforts to secure release from prison.
The defense attorneys are requesting a re-sentencing for the brothers, now 57 and 54, that could reduce their prison terms to time already served or make them eligible for parole consideration.
The outcome may rely on new defense evidence supporting the brothers’ claims, made since the outset of the sensational case, that they were sexually abused by their father, an executive in the record and entertainment industry.
In 1996, the brothers were found guilty of first-degree murder and sentenced to two consecutive life imprisonment terms without the possibility of parole for fatally shooting their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez, on August 20, 1989, while the couple was watching television at home.
Former Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascon filed a petition for re-sentencing last autumn, citing new evidence of sexual abuse and the brothers’ clean prison records.
Mr. Gascon asserted that the duo had fulfilled their debts to society and should qualify for parole under the state’s youthful offender statute, as they were younger than 26 at the time of the offences.
Lyle was 21 and Erik was 18 when the crimes occurred.
However, Mr. Gascon’s successor as DA, Nathan Hochman, opposed the re-sentencing after taking office this year, arguing that the brothers have not fully acknowledged or accepted responsibility for their actions.
Brought to the stand to testify on behalf of the brothers, their first cousin Anamaria Baralt, 54, claimed that the two “are universally forgiven” by everyone in both branches of their family.
“They are different men from the boys they were when they committed these crimes,” she testified.
Ms. Baralt has been a passionate advocate for the brothers’ release, stating they were like siblings to her during their upbringing.
Anamaria Baralt mentioned that growing up, Lyle and Erik were like brothers to her.
When questioned by defense lawyer Mark Geragos about her beliefs regarding the brothers potentially committing another violent crime, Ms. Baralt replied: “There’s no chance. I would bet my life on it. I would welcome them into my home with my children.”
However, under prosecutor Habib Balian’s cross-examination, she answered “Yes” when asked if she would have given the same assessment before the murders.
The brothers’ 1996 conviction concluded the second of two highly publicized trials—the first ended in a hung jury—shedding light on the darker aspects of wealth and privilege.
Prior to their arrest, the brothers claimed to have come home from the movies only to find their parents killed by intruders.
During the trial, they acknowledged committing the murders but maintained they acted out of fear that their parents were about to kill them, following years of sexual abuse from their father and emotional abuse from their mother.
Prosecutors contended that the murders were premeditated and driven by greed, particularly the brothers’ desire to inherit their parents’ multimillion-dollar fortune.
The outcome of the re-sentencing hearing, anticipated to last two days, may hinge on new defense evidence, including a letter Erik Menendez allegedly wrote to a cousin eight months before the murders, detailing the sexual abuse he endured at the hands of his father.
The defense also points to claims made by a member of the 1980s pop band Menudo, who alleged he was abused by Jose Menendez.
These allegations were featured in a 2023 Peacock documentary series about the case, while renewed public interest was sparked by a nine-part Netflix drama and a documentary film released last autumn.
