Menendez Brothers’ Resentencing & Potential Release In Question With New DA

Erik and Lyle Menendez’s bid for freedom has been called into question after Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascón failed to win re-election on Nov. 5.

Taking his place in December is the U.S. Assistant Attorney General Nathan Hochman.

The Menendez brothers first made headlines in 1996 when they shot and killed their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez. The brothers were sentenced to life in prison without parole.

However, a recent docuseries about the brothers, Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story, created by Ryan Murphy, drew attention to the case and prompted a re-examination of the sentences.

Although in their initial trials, both brothers attested that they had experienced traumatic abuse at the hands of their parents, this evidence was excluded from their second trial, in which they were sentenced. However, recent evidence that Jose had assaulted a member of a Puerto Rican boy band provided further reason to re-examine the results of the trial.

Gascón recently shared his office’s decision to recommend the Menendez brothers be resentenced, but now Hochman may very well withdraw this recommendation.

Although Hochman has not revealed his stance on the Menedez brothers’ case he had previously condemned Gascón’s decision to re-open the case after the release of the Netflix series, saying, “The timing is incredibly suspicious,” and stated that were he elected, he would be sure to get “deep, deep into the facts.” He added, “You would certainly not have me hold a press conference to tell you I’m just thinking about it.” 

In a statement, Hochman made clear his intentions to thoroughly investigate all aspects of the case. “Before I can make any decision about the Menendez brothers’ case, I will need to become thoroughly familiar with the relevant facts, the evidence and the law,” he said. “I will have to review the confidential prison files for each brother, the transcripts from both trials, and speak to the prosecutors, law enforcement, defense counsel, and the victims’ family members.”

Lyle and Erik’s resentencing hearing is scheduled for Dec. 11. Hochman is expected to take office on Dec. 2, which will leave him just a little over a week to review all the data he can.