Decades after he and his brother were found guilty of the 1989 shotgun killings of their parents in Beverly Hills, Lyle Menendez has been refused parole.
On Friday, August 22, the 57-year-old made his parole hearing appearance by video conference from the Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility in San Diego.
The Menendez family released a statement saying, “We are disappointed by today’s decision, of course, but we are not discouraged.” Although the parole application procedure is very demanding, we are very proud of Erik and Lyle’s honesty, responsibility, and integrity.
The road does not end here. Their habeas case is still being reviewed, and both will appear before the Board once more. The statement added, “We know they will take time to consider the Board’s recommendations and will continue to guide, mentor, and create programs that promote recovery and hope for others.” We are aware that these are decent men who have made the effort to change their ways and are sorry. We will always be there for them on the trip ahead because we love them without conditions.
The ruling comes after Lyle’s 54-year-old younger brother, Erik Menendez, was denied release the day before. According to The New York Times, Parole Commissioner Robert Barton stated that Erik had not been an exemplary prisoner and characterized the brothers’ murders as lacking any human empathy.
After being found guilty in 1996 of killing their parents, Jos and Kitty Menendez, in August 1989 at their $5 million Beverly Hills mansion, Lyle and Erik have been behind bars for over 30 years.
The brothers have long insisted that they acted in self-defense, saying they were afraid for their life because Jos Menendez sexually abused them for years—of which Kitty was supposedly aware—and threatened to harm them if they came forward with the abuse. However, prosecutors contended that the murders were driven by greed, citing the brothers’ exorbitant post-murder spending binge as evidence.
Erik and Lyle were first given life sentences without the chance of release. Since the brothers were under 26 at the time of the murders—Erik was 18 and Lyle was 21—a judge in May resentenced them to 50 years to life, which allowed them to be released on parole.
