Latest news with #Monsters:theLyleandErikMenendezStory
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Cooper Koch Spoke With Erik Menendez After His Resentencing
Earlier this month, brothers Lyle and Erik Menendez were resentenced to life with parole, paving the way for their possible release from prison. The Menendez brothers are currently serving life sentences for the 1989 murders of their parents—the case garnered newfound attention last year thanks to Monsters: the Lyle and Erik Menendez Story. In Monsters, Erik is played by Cooper Koch, who revealed yesterday he spoke with Erik after the resentencing news. 'I'm so grateful that that happened,' Koch told Variety of the resentencing. 'And so is Erik, I spoke to him yesterday and he is so excited.' The actor continued that Erik plans to work towards 'a lot of change in the prison system' if he is released. 'He is going to be an advocate for other people who have L.W.O.P, which is life without parole,' Koch said. 'His life is going to surround making change in the prison system, and I just think that is so beautiful.' Koch continued that Erik told him that he and his brother hope that in '10 years, people look back and they say, 'We really made the right decision. Thank God we let them out.'' Erik and Lyle's parole hearing dates were pushed back to Aug. 21 and Aug. 22, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation announced earlier this week. This isn't Koch's first time speaking about the brothers; after Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascón initially recommended the Menendez brothers for resentencing, the actor posted on Instagram, 'I am overwhelmed with gratitude and hope for the progress we've seen today…[the] recommendation has ignited a renewed sense of possibility that Lyle and Erik could finally be released after decades behind bars. But, this journey is not over.' He added, 'There are still critical steps ahead: the judge must endorse the resentencing, and, if that happens, the parole board must recognize the time they have served as fitting for the crime. Our voices, our unwavering support, remain crucial—not just for the brothers to ensure their release, but also for every victim of sexual abuse fighting to be heard. I hope to see Erik and Lyle soon. Free from all of this.'You Might Also Like 12 Weekend Getaway Spas For Every Type of Occasion 13 Beauty Tools to Up Your At-Home Facial Game
Buzz Feed
14-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Buzz Feed
Rosie O'Donnell Revealed Her "Safe" Friendship With Convicted Murderer Lyle Menendez
This story contains discussion of sexual abuse and child abuse. This is comedian and actor Rosie O'Donnell. And this is Lyle Menendez, who was convicted in 1996 alongside his brother Erik Menendez of murdering his parents in 1989. If you watched last year's Netflix hit Monsters: the Lyle and Erik Menendez Story, you probably know that Lyle and Erik have alleged that their murders followed years of sexual, physical, and emotional abuse at the hands of their parents. In a new interview with the New York Times, Rosie revealed that she became in contact with Lyle in 1996, after she expressed support for the Menendez brothers' abuse claims during an episode of Larry King Live and Lyle wrote a letter from jail thanking her for the sentiment. In the NYT interview, Rosie also alleged that she'd been molested by her father along with her siblings, and that Lyle — without knowing her own personal history — said she "knew" that he was telling the truth. 'At that point, I had not ventured anywhere near this in my family or in my therapy,' she said. Rosie specified that she initially did not respond to him — but after discussing the Menendez brothers' case on TikTok in 2022, Lyle's wife Rebecca Sneed reached out to her to see if Rosie would be interested in talking to him. Their first conversation, Rosie revealed, lasted two or three hours. "Then he started calling me on a regular basis from the tablet phone thing they have," Rosie said. "He would tell me about his life, what he's been doing in prison and, for the first time in my life, I felt safe enough to trust and be vulnerable and love a straight man." Rosie also said that her friends expressed trepidation about her speaking with Lyle — "They were like, 'Ro, he's a murderer," she recalls — but she eventually visited him in prison anyway, which led her to learn about the Guide Dogs for America program, in which prisoners train dogs to be companions for blind, disabled veterans and autistic children. After applying for the program, Rosie was eventually approved for a dog for her child Clay, who is autistic. "I noticed the difference in Clay immediately," Rosie said about bringing the dog home with her. "I was shocked to find out that all the stories I heard from other mothers of autistic children were true."
