Erik and Lyle Menendez’s re-sentencing hearings can continue despite opposition from the Los Angeles County district attorney, a judge ruled Friday.
The brothers were sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole at ages 18 and 21 after being convicted of murdering their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez, in their Beverly Hills home.
Former Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascón asked a judge last year to change the brothers’ sentence from life without the possibility of parole to 50 years to life. That would made them immediately eligible for parole because they committed the crime when they were younger than 26.
But Gascón’s successor reversed course. Nathan Hochman submitted a motion last month to withdraw the re-sentencing request.
Hochman’s office said it could not support the brothers’ re-sentencing because they had not admitted to lies told during their trial about why they killed their parents and did not “fully recognize, acknowledge and accept complete responsibility” for their crime.
Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Michael Jesic said prosecutors can make that argument during the re-sentencing hearing.
“Everything you argued today is absolutely fair game for the re-sentencing hearing next Thursday,” he said.
No statements from brothers
The brothers appeared in court over Zoom but didn’t make any public statements.
“They’ve waited a long time to get some justice, today is actually probably the biggest day since they’ve been incarcerated,” the brothers’ attorney, Mark Geragos, said of the family.
While the defence argued they acted out of self-defence after years of sexual abuse by their father, prosecutors said the brothers killed their parents for a multimillion-dollar inheritance.
Deputy District Attorney Habib Balian said the key issue with Gascón’s re-sentencing petition was that it did not fully address rehabilitation and missed key elements of the original crime committed.
“What does it mean? To learn from your mistakes and truly understand that you were wrong,” Balian said.
He presented evidence and video clips of the brothers’ testimony from the first trial to demonstrate instances where they “hunkered down in their bunker of deceit, lies, and deception.”
He said the brothers killed their parents out of greed when they learned they would be taken out of the will, citing psychiatrist’s notes that he said showed “this was not self-defence.”
Geragos called the presentation a “dog and pony show” and said it was “nothing more than political cover” as a result of Hochman defeating Gascón in the district attorney’s race.
“They have authorized the denial of sexual abuse,” Geragos said of the prosecution’s presentation.
Defence criticizes use of photo
Geragos argued the judge had full authority to proceed with re-sentencing under a California law passed in 2023 that allows a court to recall a sentence and initiate re-sentencing at any point in time.
Geragos also objected to Balian including a photo of the deceased and bloody Menendez parents in his presentation, which he said “re-traumatized” family members and victims.
The brothers’ cousin Anamaria Baralt and aunt Terry Baralt were among the family members who were in the courtroom. The family’s relationship with Hochman has soured.
Most of the brothers’ extended family supports their re-sentencing. Tamara Goodall, a cousin, submitted a complaint with the state asking that Hochman be removed from the case, citing his alleged bias against the brothers and alleging he violated a law meant to protect victims’ rights.
Hochman had a “hostile, dismissive and patronizing tone” in meetings with the family and created an “intimidating and bullying atmosphere,” Goodall wrote.
In their response to the district attorney’s motion to withdraw the re-sentencing request, attorneys for the Menendez brothers questioned whether Hochman had legitimate reasons for doing so or was influenced by “a change of political winds.”
Without re-sentencing, the brothers would still have two other pathways to freedom. They have submitted a clemency plea to California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who has ordered the state parole board to investigate whether the brothers would pose a risk to the public if they are released. The parole board is scheduled to hold its final hearings June 13.
The brothers also submitted a petition for habeas corpus in May 2023 asking the court to grant them a new trial in light of new evidence presented. Hochman’s office also filed a motion opposing that petition.
