A superior court judge resentenced Erik and Lyle Menendez to 50 years to life with the possibility of parole on May 13, bringing them closer to freedom. Judge Michael Jesic removed a special circumstance allegation from their original conviction, which grants them eligibility for parole. It is now up to a parole board to recommend whether parole should be granted. Gov. Gavin Newsom then takes up the recommendation and has the power to reject it.
A state parole board hearing will take place on June 13 to consider whether to recommend parole for the brothers, according to a statement on May 15 from a spokesperson for the state Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.
The brothers were originally scheduled to appear before state parole officials on that date even before the restentencing hearing took place. Originally, the board was to consider a previously-filed petition for clemency filed on behalf of the brothers, representing an additional possible path for release.
However, Scott Wyckoff, executive officer of the Board of Parole Hearings, wrote in letter to attorneys this week that “Since the [resentencing] ruling makes them immediately eligible for parole consideration as youth offenders, it is the board’s intent to convert the June 13, 2025 clemency hearings to initial parole suitability hearings.”
If the parole board recommends that the Menendez brothers be granted parole, the matter is then forwarded to Newsom, who will have 90 days to review the decision.
During the May 13 resentencing hearing, Judge Jesic noted the standard for resentencing is whether the defendants pose an unreasonable risk to commit a “super strike”—or any “serious or violent felony punishable in California by life imprisonment or death,” according to the California Penal Code.
During a day of emotional testimony from the brothers’ family members and others who came in contact with them while in prison, Jesic said he believed Erik and Lyle committed an “absolutely horrific crime” but was “almost equally shocked” by the letters that prison guards wrote in support of the brothers’ freedom. Jesic also said he did not want to make the ultimate decision to free the brothers but believed “one day they should get that chance.”
After Jesic announced his ruling, both brothers made statements.
“I take full responsibility for my choices,” said Lyle Menendez, who with his brother appeared virtually from the Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility in San Diego. “I believed I was a 21-year-old who could fix what could not be fixed.”
During his statement, Lyle also took responsibility for “making a mockery” of the criminal justice system by soliciting perjury during his original trial. He added that he found purpose in prison by building strong relationships with inmates and correctional staff and that if released, he hopes to continue working with survivors of sexual abuse and other inmates. He also said that he is grateful to his family members for their support and forgiveness, adding that he hopes to live a life that “offers amends for the harm I have caused.”
Erik Menendez then spoke and apologized for taking the lives of his parents. “My actions were criminal,” he said. “They were also selfish, cruel and cowardly.”
Erik said he has spent significant time imagining what his parents experienced during their murders and the pain it caused his extended family members, including having their family secrets exposed in the national spotlight. Erik said he spent most of his life believing he would die in prison, but also found purpose in service to other inmates.
Erik also apologized to the community of Beverly Hills, claiming that the murders, in addition to lying that they were tied to organized crime, instilled a sense of fear in the previously peaceful city.
Earlier in the hearing, Deputy District Attorney Habib Balian argued that the original sentencing for the brothers should remain in place. He said that the two still do not possess sufficient insight into their crimes by claiming they committed the murders in self-defense. The fundamental idea of resentencing comes down to whether the brothers can be trusted not to commit crimes again, Balian added. Due to the severity of the murders and how the brothers pressed the shotgun into their mother’s cheek, the court needed to be certain of the brothers’ rehabilitation before resentencing them.
“Are they still trying to justify why they loaded the shotguns and killed their parents?” Balian asked the court.
The court also heard testimony from family members on behalf of the brothers.
Anamaria Baralt, a cousin of the brothers who said she grew up best friends with Erik, said that although their actions caused “generational trauma” for her family, she would not hesitate to welcome them back into her home with her children after seeing how they have changed. Baralt wiped away tears during her testimony while talking about how her family has had to endure ceaseless public ridicule due to the murders. Terry Baralt, Anamaria’s mother and Jose Mendez’s older sister, was hospitalized earlier on during the resentencing process. Anamaria added that Erik and Lyle should be freed so they can visit Terry while her health is declining.
During Anamaria’s cross-examination, Erik Menendez leaned forward and held his head in his hands.
“I know Erik and Lyle very well,” she said. “I hope they get a chance to inspire the world.”
Tamara Lucero Goodell, another Menendez family member who was 8 years old at the time of the murders, said she took her son to meet Erik and Lyle in prison and her son later wanted to return to the prison to see them again. Goodell also said members of the Menendez family met with Los Angeles District Attorney Nathan Hochman after he was elected to express their discomfort with him naming Kathleen Cady—who previously represented the only Menendez family member who favored the brothers staying incarcerated—to lead his department’s Bureau of Victim Services. However, Hochman was not receptive to their concerns during the meeting, Goodell said.
Jonathan Colby, a retired judge from Florida, also testified on behalf of the brothers and said that meeting them in prison changed his ideas on how criminals can be rehabilitated. Colby told the court how the brothers started programs in prison to improve care for elderly inmates as well as painting murals and maintaining green spaces in their facilities.
Colby, who was tough on crime while a judge, said he had never testified on behalf of a criminal before in his life.
Anerae Brown, a rapper known as “X-Raided” who was incarcerated with the brothers, testified that Erik and Lyle’s positive influence during his time in prison ultimately led to his own freedom.
“If I hadn’t met Lyle and Erik, I might still be sitting there doing stupid things,” said Brown, who became a father since his release and continues to perform publicly as a rapper.
After the hearing, defense attorney Mark Geragos said the resentencing decision proves that “redemption is possible … The fact is the Menendez brothers have done remarkable work, and today is a great day after 35 years,” he said, adding that the family is “one huge step closer to bringing the boys home.”
Los Angeles District Attorney Nathan Hochman said in a statement on the evening of May 13, “The decision to resentence Erik and Lyle Menendez was a monumental one that has significant implications for the families involved, the community, and the principles of justice. Our office’s motions to withdraw the resentencing motion filed by the previous administration ensured that the Court was presented with all the facts before making such a consequential decision.”
With City News Service
