While the Menendez brothers, Erik and Lyle, continue to seek their resentencing in hopes of getting out of jail for the murders of their parents back in 1989, it has been announced that they will go before the parole board in June. Depending on the outcome, this could impact their chances of eventually leaving prison.
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The news of their parole board appearance was shared by California Governor Gavin Newson in the Tuesday, March 11 episode of his podcast, This is Gavin Newsom. He confirmed that Erik and Lyle will go before the parole board on June 13. The parole board will carry out a risk assessment that Newsom will review. He will then determine if the Menendez brothers will be granted clemency, as per PEOPLE.
"On June 13th, both Lyle and Erik Menendez independently will have their final hearing, a report will then be submitted to me on the 13th of June for consideration," Newsom said. "We will submit that report to the judge for the resentencing and that will weigh into our independent analysis on whether to move forward with the clemency application to support a commutation of this case."
Newsom also talked about Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story. This is the Ryan Murphy Netflix series that sparked a renewed interest in the case. He said he hadn't watched the series, stating that he didn't want to be influenced by it. "I just want to be influenced by the facts," he said, as per ABC News.
"I'm obviously familiar with the Menendez brothers, just through the news over the course of many decades," Newsom added. "But not to the degree that many others are because of all of these documentaries and all of the attention they've received. So that won't bias my independent and objective review."
DA Opposes Resentencing
Most recently, during a press conference, Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman said that the Menendez brothers fabricated their self-defense claim. He opposes their resentencing. To him, neither Erik nor Lyle has accepted responsibility for killing their parents back in 1989.
"In looking at whether they have exhibited full insight and complete responsibility for their crimes, they have not," Hochman said, as per PEOPLE. "Our position is that they shouldn't get out of jail."
Attorneys representing Erik and Lyle filed a habeas corpus petition back in 2023 in an attempt to overturn their convictions. They have asked for two new pieces of evidence to be reviewed. This includes a letter written by Erik Menendez sent to a cousin months before the murders. In the letter, Erik describes the alleged abuse he suffered from his father, Jose Menendez. The other piece of evidence is allegations from a boy band member who claims that Jose Menendez raped him.
In February, however, Hochman asked the court to deny the habeas corpus petition filed by the Menendez brothers' attorneys. The Menendez family shared a statement with PEOPLE saying that Hochman took them "right back to 1996 today."
"He opened the wounds we have spent decades trying to heal. He didn't listen to us," the family said. They stated that Hochman "effectively tore up new evidence and discredited the trauma they experienced."
