US: What to know about new twist in Menendez brothers’ murder case

A California judge, on Tuesday, reopened a door many believed would remain closed in the case involving the two Menendez brothers, Erik and Lyle, nearly thirty years later. 

The Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge, Michael Jesic, in a stunning ruling, reduced the Menendez brothers’ sentences from life without parole to 50 years to life and, by implication, made them eligible for parole.

According to CNN, the latest twist in the case that has captivated America for decades came after a series of campaigns for the brothers’ freedom by an army of attorneys, family members, and online supporters in recent years.

The campaign was said to have been fueled in part by a wave of attention brought by a docuseries and a Netflix drama series recounting the case.

Lyle Menendez, who is now 57, and his brother Erik Menendez, 54 years old, were aged 21 and 18, respectively, when they carried out the fatal shootings of their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez, at the family’s Beverly Hills home in 1989.

The duo have spent most of their adult lives behind bars after they were convicted of first-degree murder in a 1996 trial, more than two years after separate juries had failed to reach a verdict in their original trials.

Though argued that the murder was done in self-defence following years of sexual abuse by their father, the Menendez brothers, however, admitted to the murders.

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Prosecutors claimed the killings were driven by the brothers’ desire for a multi-million-dollar inheritance.

CNN reports that with the new twist following Jesic’s ruling, the Menendez brothers are immediately eligible for parole under California law because they committed the murders while under the age of 26.

According to the judge, although the Menendez brothers had committed a horrific crime, they deserved “a lot of credit for changing their lives.”

The judge added that a letter from a prison official in support of resentencing was especially moving, and the previous court filings said that the brothers had launched numerous prison programs, including a support group for disabled and elderly inmates, and raised more than $250,000 for a prison beautification initiative.

“I’m not saying they should be released; it’s not for me to decide,” Jesic said, adding, “one day they should get that chance.”

“It’s now up to the parole board and the governor of California,” he said.

Following the ruling, a hearing with the California State Parole Board has already been scheduled for June 13 as part of a separate bid for freedom by the brothers, CNN reports.

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