Menendez brothers: Family members ‘unite’ to call for their release

Relatives of Lyle and Erik Menendez have come together to call for the pair’s release from prison.

Up to two dozen extended family members gathered for a news conference in Los Angeles on Wednesday, which was organised after prosecutors announced they were reviewing new evidence in their case.

Erik Menendez, now 53, and Lyle Menendez, 56, are currently serving life sentences without the possibility of parole after being convicted of murdering their parents at their mansion in Beverly Hills more than 35 years ago.

The killings have been in the spotlight in recent weeks following the release of Monsters, a Netflix dramatisation of their story, as well as a documentary.

In August 1989, the brothers shot their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez, multiple times at close range. They were aged 18 and 21 at the time.

They admitted the shootings – but maintain they killed their mother and father in self-defence after enduring physical, emotional and sexual abuse over many years.

Speaking at the news conference, Jose Menendez’s niece Anamaria Baralt announced that relatives had formed a “new coalition” called Justice for Erik and Lyle.

She told reporters: “Both sides of the family are united, sharing a new bond of hope…

“This is about truth, justice and healing… Their continued incarceration serves no rehabilitative purpose.”

Ms Baralt said the brothers were victims of a “culture that was not ready to listen”, as she called on the district attorney’s office to “take into account the full picture”.

She added: “Lyle and Erik deserve a chance to heal, and our family deserves a chance to heal with them.”

The news conference was the largest gathering of the extended family since the brothers were found guilty of first-degree murder and conspiracy to murder in 1996, seven years after the killings and following a second trial.

However, their lawyers argue that because of society’s changing views on sexual abuse, the outcome of a trial today might be different.

Joan Andersen VanderMolen, Kitty Menendez’s sister, also told reporters: “I had no idea the extent of the abuse they suffered at the hands of my brother-in-law. None of us did.

“We know that abuse has long effects, and victims of trauma sometimes act in ways that are very difficult to understand.”

However, not all relatives agree.

Kitty Menendez’s brother, Milton Andersen, 90, has said “the appropriate sentence” for the pair was life in prison without parole.

His lawyer said: “He believes that there was no molestation that occurred. He believes that the motive was pure greed, because they had just learned that they were going to be taken out of the will.”

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Earlier this month, district attorney George Gascon said there was no question the brothers committed the murders, but his office would be reviewing new evidence and will make a decision on whether a resentencing is warranted.

The brothers’ attorneys say they should have been charged with manslaughter rather than murder, but this was not an option for the jury during the second trial. At the time, jurors rejected a death sentence in favour of life without parole.

Prosecutors had argued there was no evidence of any molestation and said the murders were committed so the brothers could inherit their parents’ multimillion-dollar estate.

New evidence includes a letter written by Erik Menendez that his lawyers say corroborates allegations he was sexually abused by his father.

A hearing is scheduled for 29 November.