A California judge on Tuesday resentenced the Menendez brothers, giving them a shot at freedom after the siblings served three decades in prison for the 1989 shotgun murder of their parents.
The sentences of Erik, 54, and Lyle, 57, were reduced from life without parole to 50 years to life, which will make them eligible for parole under California’s youthful offender law because they committed the crime under the age of 26. The state parole board must still decide whether to release them from prison.
The panel includes California Governor Gavin Newsom. The brothers had already been scheduled to appear before the parole board as part of clemency hearing June 13 scheduled earlier by Newsom.
The ruling by Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Michael Jesic was issued after an emotional day-long hearing as the brothers’ loved ones pleaded with the court, claiming the two were “different men” than who they were at the time of the killings, and that they had been “universally forgiven by the family.”
Jesic said he did not believe the brothers posed an “unreasonable risk” to the public if released.
“I’m not saying they should be released; it’s not for me to decide,” he said, the Associated Press reported. “I do believe they’ve done enough in the past 35 years, that they should get that chance.”
The brothers, who appeared via video from prison, gave statements to the court following the ruling, NBC News reported.
“I killed my mom and dad. I make no excuses and also no justification,” Lyle said. “The impact of my violent actions on my family … is unfathomable.”
He added: “I committed an atrocious act against two people who had the right to live, my mom and dad,” he said. “Today, 35 years later, I am deeply ashamed of who I was.”
He told the court that if released, he plans to work with the incarcerated community.
Erik Menendez said he he took “full responsibility” for the killings and expressed his “profound sorrow” at his actions.
“I fired all five rounds at my parents and went back to reload,” he said. “I lied to police. I lied to my family. I’m truly sorry.”
The brothers were all “tears and smiles” following the ruling, their attorneys said.
Erik and Lyle have spent 30 years behind bars after they were sentenced in 1996 to life in prison without the possibility of parole for killing their father, Jose Menendez, and mother, Kitty Menendez. The brothers were 18 and 21 at the time of the killings.
Defense attorneys argued the brothers acted out of self-defense after years of sexual abuse by their father, but prosecutors argued that they killed their parents for a multimillion-dollar inheritance.
At the hearing on Tuesday, Ana Maria Baralt, a cousin of Erik and Lyle, testified that the brothers have repeatedly expressed remorse for their actions.
“We all, on both sides of the family, believe that 35 years is enough,” Baralt said. “They are universally forgiven by our family.”
They are “very different men,” she explained through tears, adding that “their transformation is remarkable.”
The case has captured the public’s attention for decades — and the Netflix drama Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story and documentary The Menendez Brothers recently brought new attention to the case.
Last year, former Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón opened the door to possible freedom for the brothers by asking a judge to reduce their sentences.
But the newly elected district attorney Nathan Hochman had opposed the brothers’ resentencing, saying he did not believe they had taken responsibility for the murders.
Source: independent.co.uk
