The Los Angeles district attorney emphasized on Tuesday that the decision would probably be made by the end of the week, following last week’s announcement that Erik and Lyle Menendez’s case would be reevaluated due to the discovery of new evidence.
When asked about the brothers’ possible resentencing during an unrelated press conference on Tuesday night, LA District Attorney George Gascon responded, “As I stated ten days ago, I would make a decision within ten days or so.” By the end of this week, I intend to make a decision.”
Finally, he said, somewhat definitively, “Yes, the end of this week.”
In 1989, the Menendez brothers shot and killed José and Kitty Menendez in their Beverly Hills home, earning them more than 30 years in prison.
After the first trial was ruled a mistrial, the brothers were given life sentences at their second trial.
There is no question that they committed the crime; what has caused disagreement throughout the years is their motivation.
At the time of the killings, Lyle was 21 and Erik was 18. Their lawyer claimed that they killed their parents in self-defense during their initial trial.
She maintained that the boys were afraid of being killed by their parents if they told them about the years of alleged abuse they had endured at the hands of their father.
The most recent court document goes into further detail about the alleged mistreatment the brothers suffered at the hands of José Menedez.
According to the brothers’ lawyers, new evidence includes a letter Erik wrote to his cousin before the killings, explaining what his father was doing to him.
Roy Rosselló, a former member of the Puerto Rican boy band Menudo, has also come forward as a possible victim. He claims that José Menendez mistreated him when he was fourteen.
Furthermore, time has contributed to a deeper understanding of their motivation. Many who support the Menendez brothers contend that they are also victims and that their actions, which were the result of a traumatic reaction, should be reexamined from a 21st-century perspective on the psychology of male sexual assault.
The Menendez brothers’ next court date is now set for November 26, 2024.3
