Hollywood hides its secrets well, except for this one: Erik and Lyle Menendez murder their unknowing parents, Kitty and Jose Menendez, in their mansion on the night of Aug. 20, 1989. In 1996, the brothers were sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. This case is widely known for having a televised first trial, and now there are multiple documentaries and different takes on the opinion of the Menendez brothers.
The Menendez brothers came into their home and viciously murdered their parents who were watching TV. According to CNN, after the murders had taken place, Lyle called the police saying that someone else killed them while the brothers were out. According to Erik in the documentary, “The Menendez Brothers,” the night of the murders the police did not check their hands for gunpowder residue, they did not search the brothers’ cars, nothing.
When it was revealed that there were tapes taken during sessions with their therapist of the brothers confessing to the murders, they were arrested. It was later revealed that both of the brothers experienced sexual and physical abuse from their father, and mental abuse from their mother starting at age six. Family members came forward to say that the brothers would tell of troubling things that happened in their home. According to CBS NEWS, one family member recollected a conversation with Erik which resulted in the cousin telling his mother, Kitty Menendez, about the abuse. She did not believe that cousin.
Within the past four months, Netflix has released two completely different films regarding the murders and the trial that took place. A documentary “The Menendez Brothers,” and “Monsters,” which uses actors to portray the brothers. “Monsters” is not a reliable source, according to the brothers themselves, with Erik saying that it is an inaccurate portrayal. Viewers don’t seem to be taking “Monsters” too seriously either with the amount of memes floating around on TikTok and Instagram that spark from the show.
The first trial of the Menendez brothers had much media coverage and took the attention away from the facts. Information was spilling from everywhere and a lot of it was rumors. The brothers spoke of the many abuses they had to endure during their lifetime, the suicide threats
from their mother, and more. The 90s were a time when not many people in LA trusted the justice system given the results from the O.J. Simpson case, and also the acquittal of the policemen who beat Rodney King. According to Biography, Erik believed these cases showed people that the justice system was unreliable and that the courts needed to bounce back after the shocking verdict of the O.J. case.
According to ABC News, the jurors were given the choice of death or first-degree murder without the possibility of parole. With the information of abuse, there should have been a lesser count of murder or the option of manslaughter given. However, in the second trial, much of the abuse information was withheld and their therapist was not given the stand like in the first trial where Leslie Abramson, Erik’s lawyer, discredited the therapist who had broken confidentiality rules and had sexual relationships with his female patients.
Some people think information from the brothers is unreliable; however, I believe they are telling the truth. According to CNN, in 2023, a member of the band Menudo came out about being molested by Jose Menendez when he was 14 years old. The body language also shown by the brothers while on trial seems to fit and the small details provided during their testimonies only add to their credibility. According to CBS, Erik Menendez was abused up until 1988- at 18 years old he was still being raped by his father, from six to 18. The viciousness of these acts reflected what the boys had been through in their lives. People who want money would not have done it in such heinous ways.
Lyle has been in prison from age 21 to 56, and Erik from 18 to 53. According to the LA Times, and CNN, there is new evidence from other people who have come out about their abuse from Jose Menendez, and there were nude photos of the boys when they were only children. The case needs to be looked at once again and reevaluated with our modern standards.
If we can take away one thing from this trial, it is that men can be victims too. Because of our standards for men, we do not think things like this happen, but they do and it is harder for men to come forward because it is seen as shameful. These boys went on television and told their stories to the world, unveiling a new idea for people to sit with. It has been 35 years since these murders took place. 35 years of growth for the people in our country, 35 years of new ideals. A resentencing could lead to a rabbit hole of cases like this- even cases where laws may be different now. The judicial system is too slow to work on a case-by-case analysis of past convictions- people who still have felonies over laws that are not the same or have done time will still feel that weight.
These boys are known because of the Hollywood aspect of the murders. Because there is no concrete evidence for the boys’ defense I think it will be hard to get a resentencing, but I think it deserves to be reevaluated to see if they find anything different.
