The new Los Angeles District Attorney has said he is opposed to the resentencing of imprisoned brothers Lyle and Erik Menendez, insisting they needed to fully accept responsibility for the 1989 killings of their parents.
Nathan Hochman, who took office in December, told reporters on Monday he will request the withdrawal of the previous district attorney’s motion to reduce their sentence—which if passed, would make them immediately eligible for parole—but that his office is “prepared to go forward” with a resentencing hearing scheduled for March 20 and 21.
Cliff Gardner, the brothers’ attorney, told Newsweek before Monday’s press conference that if Hochman withdraws the brothers’ request for resentencing “there are a number of steps which can be taken.”
He said that includes: “opposing the motion to withdraw the resentencing request under current law,” and “asking the Superior Court to exercise its own, independent power to initiate resentencing.”
“We will decide what steps to take after we see what Mr. Hochman intended to do.”
Why It Matters
Eric, 54, and Lyle, 57, Menendez were convicted in 1996 of murdering their parents in 1989. They have been in prison with no possibility of parole since.
Hochman’s predecessor, George Gascón, had sought a reduction in their sentences to 50 years to life which, if granted, would make the brothers immediately eligible for parole.
The brothers’ story gained publicity when it featured in hit Netflix show Monsters.
What To Know
The L.A. District Attorney, Nathan Hochman, told reporters on Monday that the brothers “have not shown full insight into their crimes,” calling their self-defense claim “fabricated.”
Hochman’s predecessor, George Gascón, filed a resentencing motion in October, saying the brothers likely endured “a tremendous amount of dysfunction…and molestation” and had in prison achieved “redemption and rehabilitation.”
But Hochman on Monday said “we are asking the court to withdraw the previous district attorney’s motion for resentencing, because we believe there are legitimate reasons and the interests of justice justifies that withdrawal.”
That stance could change, he added, if the brothers “completely accept responsibility for their lies of self-defense and the attempted suborning of perjury they engaged in”.
California Governor Gavin Newsom in February ordered a “comprehensive risk assessment” into whether they would be a threat to society if they left prison on parole.
Prosecution’s in the case had argued the Menendez brothers murdered their parents to receive a multimillion dollar inheritance. Their defense attorneys argue they had experienced years of sexual abuse.
Hochman, however, has said he questions their sexual abuse defense after reviewing the facts put forward in their resentencing plea. “When it came to any corroborating information about the sexual abuse, it was extremely lacking,” he said on February 21.
An attorney for Menendez brothers’, Cliff Gardner, told Newsweek before Monday’s press conference: “The District Attorney…noted that Erik and Lyle were only 18 and 21 at the time of the crime, they are now in their mid 50s so there is little risk of future violence.”
He pointed Newsweek to Gascón’s notes on the brothers which said, “the childhood abuse and trauma incurred by both defendants in this case is sufficient to invoke court consideration,” and that the brothers were peaceful and hardworking while in prison.
What People Are Saying
DA Nathan J. Hochman in a press conference on February 21: “Sexual abuse is abhorrent, and we will prosecute sexual abuse in any form it comes. While sexual abuse, in this situation, may have been a motivation for Erik and Lyle to do what they did, it does not constitute self-defense.”
“Our position is that they shouldn’t get out of jail,” Hochman said on Monday. “We bring that position to the court. The court can agree with it, the court can disagree with it or modify it in some respect.”
Attorneys for the brothers, Mark Geragos and Cliff Gardner, said in reference to Newsom opening a parole risk assessment for the brothers: “This initial step reflects the governor’s considered decision to at least obtain the information required to make a fair decision as to whether Erik and Lyle, after 35 years in prison, have done the hard work necessary to have a chance at a life outside prison.”
What Happens Next
The resentencing hearing is currently set for March 20 and 21.
If you or someone you know has been a victim of sexual violence, you can contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 800-656-4673, or contact the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN) helpline via their website rainn.org.
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