Menendez Brothers Sentencing Changed to 50 Years to Life, Parole Board's Next
Erik and Lyle Menendez can celebrate a new court victory -- the judge gave them a new sentence, which allows for parole ... so now, they can get out of prison after facing the state parole board.
The brothers attended Tuesday's resentencing hearing by video, and they were emotional as the judge changed their sentence to 50 years to life ... instead of the life without possibility of parole sentence they originally got.
Menendez family members -- many of whom testified they wanted Erik and Lyle to be released from prison -- also erupted in joy, hugging each other in court as they celebrated their new sentences.
During the hearing, the Menendez brothers admitted their crime, and even confessed they'd gone back outside to reload their shotguns ... before returning to kill their mother.
As you know, the brothers' attorney, Mark Geragos -- who cohosts our "2 Angry Men" podcast -- has been pushing for the brothers to receive a reduced sentence for months, citing their rehabilitation efforts while behind bars for more than 3 decades.
Now, Tuesday's decision really doesn't move Erik and Lyle any closer to release than they already were ... due to the fact Gov. Gavin Newsom ordered the state parole board, back in February, to begin reviewing their case.
While former Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón supported Erik and Lyle's motion for resentencing, his successor -- D.A. Nathan Hochman -- has unequivocally stood against resentencing ... repeatedly calling on the brothers to take responsibility, acknowledge their lies, and apologize for killing their parents.
The D.A.'s office received a ton of flak from Menendez family members for showing graphic crime scene photos last month during a hearing.
Hochman apologized, with a few caveats, on "TMZ Live" ... but maintained it was done in the interest of sharing the full scope of the crime with the judge.
Geragos fired back later ... claiming the D.A.'s office neglected to discuss the rehabilitation efforts of Erik and Lyle in any way -- and, they used the crime scene photos for their sheer shock value.
The next stop for Erik and Lyle will be a June 13 date with the parole board, and if they're granted parole, and Gov. Newsom signs off on it ... they'll be released.
Even if the board refuses to grant parole, Newsom could grant them clemency.
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Elle
a day ago
- Elle
The ‘Dept. Q' Season 1 Finale Finally Reveals Merritt's Fate
Every item on this page was chosen by an ELLE editor. We may earn commission on some of the items you choose to buy. Spoilers ahead. Viewers were enraptured by the first season of crime drama Dept. Q, which followed irritable cold case detective Carl Morck (Matthew Goode) investigating a strange disappearance. Unsurprisingly, the season 1 finale of Dept. Q—which is based on a 10-book series by Danish crime writer Jussi Adler-Olsen—answered a ton of questions about what happened to missing lawyer Merritt Lingard, but it also brought a few more to light. Here's what you need to know about how the first season of gritty detective drama Dept. Q comes to an end. A flashback in episode 8 reveals that Merritt conspired with her high school boyfriend, Harry Jennings, to steal her mother's jewelry in order to raise money to start a new life. However, Merritt's younger brother, William, intervened during the robbery, which led him to become badly injured, causing a traumatic brain injury. In the present day, Merritt figures out she was kidnapped and held hostage by Harry's mom, Ailsa Jennings, and his younger brother, Lyle. Merritt refuses to apologize for Harry's death, despite Ailsa's insistence that her son would be alive if it weren't for the robbery scheme. 'Harry said she weren't right in the head,' Merritt tells Lyle, before calling him the 'psychotic brother.' After she proclaims, 'Harry Jennings deserved to die,' Lyle starts trying to break the glass of the hyperbaric chamber Merritt is locked in—if successful, the sudden change in pressure will likely kill her. As he's hitting the glass, Merritt sees Lyle's face and calls him Sam. In the same episode, the detectives at Dept. Q discover that Harry's brother Lyle had been posing as investigative journalist Sam Haig and having an affair with Merritt. The audience also discovers that Lyle and Ailsa were able to kidnap Merritt from the ferry as she'd told Sam—who was really Lyle in disguise—what time she would be traveling to Mhòr. In an old video shown at the start of the finale, a young Lyle shares that his mother used to lock him in the hyperbaric chamber as a form of torture or punishment. It's also revealed that Lyle would regularly hallucinate Harry following his death, and at one point believed Sam, who was incarcerated with him at the same 'institution for troubled boys,' was his dead brother, according to Tudum. Having been diagnosed with Enhanced Personality Disorder, Lyle remained in a mental health institution until six years ago, when he started working on the ferry to Mhòr. Lyle and Sam reconnected as adults, which led to an unfortunate series of events. While most believed Sam had died in a tragic climbing accident, it turns out that Lyle was responsible for his former acquaintance's death—as well as stealing his identity to get close to Merritt. Before his death, Sam also shared some details about his work as an investigative journalist, which Lyle later used to his advantage. A local police constable on Mhòr hears Merritt's mysterious 911 call, in which she only manages to scream, and travels to Ailsa's residence. He finds Merritt inside the hyperbaric chamber and is approached by Lyle. 'Boy, tell me I am not looking at what I'm looking at,' the officer tells Lyle. 'Tell me that is not Merritt fucking Lingard.' It's then revealed that Lyle told the police officer that Merritt fell overboard on the ferry, describing it as 'poetic justice' for what happened to Harry years earlier. 'What am I supposed to do?' the officer asks Lyle, who tells him to get in his car and drive away as if nothing has happened. When the officer refuses to leave, Lyle viciously murders him with a hammer, then returns to slowly killing Merritt by altering the pressure in the hyperbaric chamber. A flashback in episode 9 shows Merritt's brother William hitting Harry over the head with a hockey stick, thinking he's an intruder. While Harry is lying on the floor, William questions why he's there, not realizing Lyle is standing behind him. Lyle proceeds to repeatedly beat William, whose serious head injuries cause lifelong damage. The detectives in Dept. Q deduce it was Lyle who grievously injured William, not Harry. Just before Merritt disappeared on the boat, William had violently lashed out at his sister, but it wasn't because he was angry. 'You were afraid because you saw Lyle on the boat,' Akram says, showing him a picture of Lyle. William confirms the man he saw wearing a baseball cap with a picture of a cormorant on it was also Lyle. The team at Dept. Q later find out that, when Lyle was a teenager, he kidnapped another kid and locked them in the hyperbaric chamber for several days. As a result, Carl and Akram decide to visit Lyle's mom, Ailsa. Receiving no response from Ailsa's trailer, they enter an industrial building on her land and discover the police constable who was murdered by Lyle. Nearby, they find the hyperbaric chamber and rush to the control room to try to stop the pressure from increasing and killing Merritt. Detective James Hardy provides information about hyperbaric chambers to Carl and Akram over the phone. Before they can attempt to help Merritt, Lyle enters the control room with a gun and shoots Carl. Unbeknownst to Lyle, Akram is pretending to be dead. When Lyle approaches them, Akram stabs him, grabs the gun, and shoots, killing the kidnapper. Luckily, Carl survives the gunshot, and the pair are able to rescue Merritt from the chamber in time. Merritt is carried out of building by paramedics and is greeted by her brother William, who is delighted to see her again. Lyle's mom, Ailsa, attempts to escape Mhòr, but is apprehended as she exits the ferry. Before she can be arrested, Ailsa reaches for a gun inside her car and shoots herself in the head. Upon returning home, Carl is greeted by his stepson Jasper, lodger Martin, and therapist Rachel, who has stopped by to leave a gift for him. Three months later, Merritt visits the police station where she thanks Carl's boss, Moira, for reopening the investigation into her disappearance. Merritt also reveals she's yet to meet Carl, whom she wants to thank in person. Moira says Carl is taking an indeterminate amount of time off from work, and Merritt shares her plans to return to Mhòr to spend time with brother William and their estranged father. Carl surprises Merritt's boss, Lord Advocate Stephen Burns, and asks him to officially allow Akram, a refugee from Syria, to become a police detective. In return, Carl promises he won't tell anyone about Stephen's involvement in the witness tampering that took place in Merritt's final case before she was kidnapped. Before the episode ends, Merritt enters the basement in which Dept. Q operates, but finds the room empty. She almost bumps into Carl when exiting the elevator, but he doesn't reveal his identity. In the final scene, Carl is shown carrying a box of cold case files to his desk and is joined by fellow investigators Akram, Rose, and Hardy.
New York Post
5 days ago
- New York Post
True crime expert Ana Garcia on the ‘one thing' that has always bothered her about Lyle and Erik Menendez
Ana Garcia has some discovery of her own. After deep diving into the case of Lyle and Erik Menendez, who were sentenced to life without parole for the 1989 murder of their parents, Kitty and José Menendez, the 'True Crime News' podcast host is bringing a piece of evidence that doesn't sit right with her into the forefront. 'The one thing that has always bothered me about Erik and Lyle,' Garcia exclusively told The Post, 'is that how many more Erik and Lyles are there behind bars with similar circumstances? They are not getting the support and attention and maybe the compassion that they are getting. And that goes to fairness for me, and that's what I think about a lot. They are so high profile it's all about them. What about the others?' 7 Erik Menendez (C) and his brother Lyle (L) are pictured, on August 12, 1991 in Beverly Hills. AFP via Getty Images After two trials, Lyle, 57, and Erik, 54, were convicted in 1996 and sentenced to two consecutive terms of life without parole. However, all that changed after the judge reduced their sentence to 50 years to life in May. Now, the brothers are eligible for parole. Although Lyle and Erik have served over 30 years behind bars, Garcia posed the question weighing on everyone's mind: 'Have they served enough time for their murders?' 7 The Menendez brothers circa 1989. Los Angeles Times via Getty Images 'I have also seen other convicted killers spend a fraction of the time behind bars that these two have. Is that fair?' The Emmy award-winning journalist continued. 'I mean, there is a case in Texas that I covered where this man killed an 11-year-old girl. He sexually abused her. He killed her, and he threw her in a trash bin. He served only 11 years for that murder. That's not right. That's not fair. So where is the fairness in our justice system?' Garcia also wanted to remind the public that a hearing doesn't necessarily equal freedom. 'Let's keep in mind, they are still in prison,' the true crime expert stated. 'They haven't been released. What has happened is now, they are eligible for parole. Well, in the state of California, the parole rate of inmates who go before the board and are actually released is 14%. That's the last statistic we have in California. A lot of people view California as being a very liberal state, but if you look at the parole rate of 14%, that's not a parole board that lets people out easily.' 7 'True Crime News' host Ana Garcia. Instagram/@anagnews Lyle and Erik's parole board hearing was originally scheduled for June 13 but has been pushed back to August 21 and August 22. 'One of the brothers actually said on Facebook that they thought it was a good idea,' Garcia added, 'because it gives them more time to prepare, more time for the defense, their attorneys to present because a lot is going to happen at this parole hearing.' The pair getting the chance to be heard in front of the board is also thanks to those online who brought their case back into the limelight decades later. In 2024, Ryan Murphy aired the limited series 'Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story,' starring Cooper Koch as Erik and Nicholas Alexander Chavez as Lyle. Koch also supported the brothers at their resentencing hearing. 7 'True Crime News' podcast host Ana Garcia. Instagram/@anagnews 'I do believe that the show had an impact,' Garcia explained. 'I also believe the documentary did. I also believe that Kim Kardashian writing her essay about why she believed that we should judge them based on how we all now view the kind of sexual abuse they say that they experienced. I think there has been a groundswell of support to have their case re-examined based on how we now understand victims of crime. Meaning they were victims here.' 'But as I've said before to you, if every child who was abused killed their parents, we'd have a lot of dead parents. What I ask myself over and over again – this was clearly premeditated. They had so many opportunities not to kill their parents. Yet they went through with this plan, and then it was the cover-up afterwards.' Along with a strong support system from around the country, Lyle and Erik also have their family members standing by them. Joan VanderMolen, Kitty's sister, has fought for their freedom along with Terry Baralt, José's only living sister. 7 Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman. Getty Images 'I hear the Menendez family speaking loudly and clearly to every judge who will listen to them, every prosecutor who will listen to them,' Garcia shared, 'that they believe Lyle and Erik have already served enough time. Is that enough for a murder? For some cases, it is.' Which might increase Lyle and Erik's chances of being released. The siblings will also get a chance to write a statement of personal change, which is 'their explanation to the board of what they were thinking at the time, why they did it, what they now know, and how they've been rehabilitated.' 7 Emmy award-winning journalist Ana Garcia. Instagram/@anagnews 'What I see a lot of is if you deny your crime, if you're still saying that you're innocent, that you're still saying you didn't kill him or her, that the parole board doesn't like that,' Garcia expressed. 'They want to hear you admit to your crime. They want to see that you've been rehabilitated, and they really want you to take responsibility, so that's going to be really important.' 'The question is, the violence,' she noted. 'The level of violence in this crime and complete disregard for human life. How are you going to explain this?' Their crime is one that Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman can't reconcile. 'He has tried to block everything,' Garcia confessed. 'He does not believe they are rehabilitated. He didn't want them to be resentenced. In fact, it was so interesting – you rarely have the actual DA arguing a case in court, but this time, he stood with the other prosecutor assigned to the case and argued the case in front of the judge. That's how strongly the DA feels about this. Is he happy with the resentencing? No.' 7 Erik Menendez (L) and his brother Lyle (R) listen during a pre-trial hearing, on December 29, 1992 in Los Angeles. AFP via Getty Images Hochman, 61, who was elected late last year, isn't looking to back down. 'He has said he will or his prosecutors will be attending the parole board hearing, and I think he's going to make his case as to what he believes,' Garcia said. 'He described them in that hearing as being a moderate risk to society. That's one of the biggest hurdles that the parole board has to figure out. Are you a risk to society? No matter how much everyone has screamed, we need to see some change we have. Their sentence has been reduced, but they are still not free.'
Yahoo
26-05-2025
- Yahoo
Menendez brothers seen on old NBA card that's now collector's item
An old NBA basketball card is becoming a big hit with collectors thanks to a pair of courtside spectators featured on it. Erik and Lyle Menendez, the infamous brothers convicted in the grisly double murder of their parents in the 1990s, are seen on a 1990 Hoops card of one-time Raptor Mark Jackson, then of the New York Knicks. According to a TMZ report, some people are sending the card to the brothers in prison so it can be autographed. eBay even removed some cards that listed them as the reason for the value of the card, citing polices against items associated with violent crimes, according to FOX News. They have become relevant again thanks to documentaries about their saga and possible abuse by their father. They were convicted in 1996. The Menendez brothers bought courtside seats often for the Knicks during the 1989-90 NBA season as part of their spending spree after the August 1989 murders of their parents Kitty and Jose Menendez. In their 1995 trial, jewelry sales representative Mary Ellen Mahar testified that the brothers had come to her store just four days after the killings and spent about $15,000 on three Rolex watches. Lyle rented upscale properties and lived in expensive hotels like the Beverly Hills Hotel, according to FOX. They are now eligible for parole after their recent resentencing. They will appear before the parole board via video on June 13, 2025.
