Murder stints reduced with parole now a possibility; judge credits pair for ‘changing their lives’
Lyle and Erik Menendez in court in 1990.Credit: nnaadvidler
He said he was especially moved by a letter that was submitted by a prison official who wrote in support of the resentencing, something he had never done for any inmate in 25 years.
“I’m not saying they should be released, it’s not for me to decide,” Jesic said.
“I do believe they’ve done enough in the past 35 years that they should get that chance.”
They were sentenced in 1996 to life in prison without the possibility of parole for murdering their father, Jose Menendez, and mother, Kitty Menendez, in their Beverly Hills home in 1989. The brothers were 18 and 21 at the time of the killings.
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While defence attorneys argued the brothers acted out of self-defence after years of sexual abuse by their father, prosecutors said they killed their parents for a multimillion-dollar inheritance.
The case has captured the public’s attention for decades, and last year, the Netflix drama Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story and documentary The Menendez Brothers brought new attention to the case. Supporters of the brothers have flown in from across the country to attend rallies and hearings in the past few months.
AP
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