I am a strong believer that Erik and Lyle Menendez should be released from prison and living out their lives at home with their families – following their well-known case.
They murdered their parents in 1989.
We know now, based on numerous documentary and dramatized accounts of their story, that there was more to the story than the jury that sent them to prison for life understood at the time of their sentencing.
Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascón on Oct. 24, recommended the resentencing of the Menendez brothers.
Nathan Hochman, who beat Gascón in Tuesday’s election and spoke to KTLA about the case, saying that if a change in the Menendez’s sentence were to be recommended by him, it would be after much research and review.
Hochman takes office on Dec. 2, before the Menendez brothers hearing.
The media, the public and the legal community’s interest in revisiting the Menendez case is based on a new and nuanced look at evidence of apparent sexual abuse by their father, Jose Menendez, that was withheld from the jury that convicted the brothers in 1996.
At the time, there was a sense that boys and men essentially could not be sexually abused by other men.
The recent release of a nine-episode Netflix miniseries, “Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story,” a dramatization, showed the extent of the abuse that happened in the 1980s, and brought new and nuanced interest to the case.
In the 1996 trial, Lyle and Eric Menendez, who had bought shotguns and murdered their parents as the couple watched TV, were seen as greedy rich kids who wanted their parents’ money, so they murdered them in cold blood.
Today, nearly 30 years later, I believe that Erik and Lyle Menendez should be out of prison as soon as possible. If I were part of the parole board, I would grant them freedom.
They committed the gruesome crime, nobody is denying that. But it was complicated, and they were imperfect defendants, which means they were acting in self defense based on a history of abuse, similar to battered spouse defendants.
If I were Governor Newsom, I would pardon the Menendez brothers soon.
They have served 30 years, the case, we now know, was much more complicated. They have done good works in prison, and they both have families of their own. I hope they are home for the holidays.
Sexual assault victims should be protected.
Despite being confined within prison walls for more than three decades, Erik and Lyle have made something of their lives.
Lyle earned his bachelor’s degree and graduated from an in-prison college program offered by the UC system.
Erik has provided hospice care for inmates, and he also has advocated for prison reform.
They endured incredible hardships. They were harmed by their parents, who should have protected them. Their childhood trauma led them to commit the vicious murders in 1989, when Lyle was 21, and Eric was 18.
It was out of imperfect self defense. And they have paid for their crime, and have managed against the odds to contribute to society while behind bars.
Both Erik and Lyle are married. Erik has been married to Tammi Ruth Saccoman since 1999 and has a step daughter.
Lyle has been married twice while in prison, in 1996, and to his current wife, Rebecca Sneed, since 2003.
Relatives of the Menendez brothers also support their release.
I strongly believe that they should have never been incarcerated in the 90s to begin with. Perhaps if we understood the affects of sexual abuse back then, they would not have been. Perhaps there would have been a support structure for them, at ages 18 and 21 or before, that would have protected them, and prevented their heinous crimes from ever occurring.
Karina Rodriguez is a sophomore journalism major and a staff writer for the Campus Times. She can be reached at karina.rodriguez3@laverne.edu.
Karina Rodriguez is a senior journalism major with a concentration in broadcast journalism, and editor-in-chief of the Campus Times. She has previously served as sports editor, social media editor, arts editor and a staff writer.
