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California parole board denies release of Erik Menendez Erik Menendez denied parole by California board
(32 minutes later)
Panel declines to grant parole to Menendez, convicted over parents’ deaths, while brother Lyle faces hearing on FridayPanel declines to grant parole to Menendez, convicted over parents’ deaths, while brother Lyle faces hearing on Friday
The California board of parole hearings denied the release of Erik Menendez, on Thursday who has spent nearly 30 years in prison since he was convicted with his brother in the shooting deaths of their parents.The California board of parole hearings denied the release of Erik Menendez, on Thursday who has spent nearly 30 years in prison since he was convicted with his brother in the shooting deaths of their parents.
Erik and Lyle Menendez were sentenced in 1996 to life in prison for fatally shooting their father, Jose Menendez, and mother, Kitty Menendez, in their Beverly Hills mansion in 1989. They were 18 and 21 at the time. While defense attorneys argued the brothers acted out of self-defense after years of sexual abuse by their father, prosecutors said the brothers killed their parents for a multimillion-dollar inheritance.Erik and Lyle Menendez were sentenced in 1996 to life in prison for fatally shooting their father, Jose Menendez, and mother, Kitty Menendez, in their Beverly Hills mansion in 1989. They were 18 and 21 at the time. While defense attorneys argued the brothers acted out of self-defense after years of sexual abuse by their father, prosecutors said the brothers killed their parents for a multimillion-dollar inheritance.
A panel of California commissioners denied Menendez parole for three years, after which he will be eligible again, in a case that continues to fascinate the public. A parole hearing for his brother Lyle Menendez, who is being held at the same prison in San Diego, is scheduled for Friday morning. A panel of California commissioners denied Erik Menendez parole for three years, after which he will be eligible again, in a case that continues to fascinate the public. A parole hearing for his brother Lyle Menendez, who is being held at the same prison in San Diego, is scheduled for Friday morning.
The two commissioners determined that Menendez should not be freed after an all-day hearing during which they questioned him about why he committed the crime and violated prison rules. The two commissioners determined that Erik Menendez should not be freed after an all-day hearing during which they questioned him about why he committed the crime and violated prison rules.
The brothers became eligible for parole after a Los Angeles judge in May reduced their sentences from life in prison without the possibility of parole to 50 years to life, making them immediately eligible for parole under California law because they were under the ages of 26 when they committed their crimes. “Two things can be true. They can love and forgive you, and you can still be found unsuitable for parole,” commissioner Robert Barton said.
Erik Menendez made his case to two parole commissioners, offering his most detailed account in years of how he was raised, why he made the choices he did, and how he transformed in prison. He noted the hearing fell almost exactly 36 years after he killed his parents – on 20 August 1989. Barton said the primary reason for the decision was not the seriousness of the crime but Menendez’s behavior in prison.
“Today is August 21st. Today is the day that all of my victims learned my parents were dead. So today is the anniversary of their trauma journey,” he said, referring to his family members. The parole hearings marked the closest they have come to winning freedom since their convictions almost 30 years ago for murdering their parents.
The state corrections department chose a single reporter to watch the videoconference and share details with the rest of the press.The state corrections department chose a single reporter to watch the videoconference and share details with the rest of the press.
Menendez, gray-haired and spectacled, sat in front of a computer screen wearing a blue T-shirt over a white long-sleeve shirt in a photo shared by officials. The brothers became eligible for parole after a Los Angeles judge in May reduced their sentences from life in prison without the possibility of parole to 50 years to life, making them immediately eligible for parole under California law because they were under the ages of 26 when they committed their crimes.
During his hearing, Erik Menendez offered his most detailed account in years of how he was raised and why he made the choices he did – both at the time of his parents’ killings and during his decades in prison.
“I was not raised with a moral foundation,” he said. “I was raised to lie, to cheat, to steal in the sense, an abstract way.”
The panel asked about details such as why he used a fake ID to purchase the guns he and Lyle Menendez used to kill their parents; who acted first; and why they killed their mother if their father was the main abuser.
Barton asked: “You do see that there were other choices at that point?”
“When I look back at the person I was then and what I believed about the world and my parents, running away was inconceivable,” Menendez said. “Running away meant death.”Menendez, gray-haired and spectacled, sat in front of a computer screen wearing a blue T-shirt over a white long-sleeve shirt in a photo shared by officials.
The panel of commissioners scrutinized every rules violation and fight on his lengthy prison record, including allegations that he worked with a prison gang, bought drugs, used cellphones and helped with a tax scam.The panel of commissioners scrutinized every rules violation and fight on his lengthy prison record, including allegations that he worked with a prison gang, bought drugs, used cellphones and helped with a tax scam.
He told commissioners that since he had no hope of ever getting out then, he prioritized protecting himself over following the rules. Then last fall, LA prosecutors asked a judge to resentence him and his brother — opening the door to parole. He told commissioners that since he had no hope of ever getting out then, he prioritized protecting himself over following the rules. Then last fall, LA prosecutors asked a judge to resentence him and his brother – opening the door to parole.
“In November of 2024, now the consequences mattered,” Menendez said. “Now the consequences meant I was destroying my life.”“In November of 2024, now the consequences mattered,” Menendez said. “Now the consequences meant I was destroying my life.”
A particular sticking point for the commissioners was his use of cellphones.A particular sticking point for the commissioners was his use of cellphones.
“What I got in terms of the phone and my connection with the outside world was far greater than the consequences of me getting caught with the phone,” Menendez said.“What I got in terms of the phone and my connection with the outside world was far greater than the consequences of me getting caught with the phone,” Menendez said.