More potential bad news for Erik and Lyle Menendez…
As you know, the two brothers have been behind bars since 1996 after being sentenced to life in prison for the murders of their parents, Jose and Mary Louise “Kitty” Menendez. However, former Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascón recommended that a judge re-sentence Erik and Lyle to 50 years back in October due to new evidence of the alleged sexual abuse they suffered because of their dad. The decision subsequently made them eligible for parole and prison release. It was a huge victory for the Menendez brothers, but they did not get to celebrate for long.
Related: Lyle Menendez’s Wife Announces Their Separation After ‘Cheating Scandal’ Exposed!
While the resentencing was scheduled for December 11, it was pushed back to January 30 because Gascón lost his reelection bid! Taking his place is Nathan Hochman, who decided he needed more time to look over everything related to the case before deciding on whether to withdraw the recommendation altogether or move forward with it. Erik and Lyle petitioned for clemency, but Governor Gavin Newsom wanted to wait to allow Hochman to adequately look over the case.
We have no clue what the new DA will do, but he appears to be navigating this situation a lot differently from his predecessor! Hochman revealed in an interview with NBC News on Monday that resentencing cases for Erik and Lyle will be handled separately now! Whoa! He explained:
“This is an important decision, although that decision is not going to get a more rigorous review of the facts and law than any other decision. While they’re called the Menéndez Brothers case, there’s an Erik Menéndez case and a Lyle Menéndez case. So we will look at each case separately, which is the way they actually should be handled.”
What does this decision mean for the Menendez brothers? One of three things could happen: either both are released from prison, neither gets out, or only one goes free while the other stays in jail. It depends on what Hochman decides to do once he reviews the cases in the next month or so. No clue how Lyle and Erik feel, but we can imagine this whole thing has made them very nervous…
And the outpouring of support from the public may not help them much in winning over Hochman — though he is fascinated by the reactions to the case. No matter how things turn out, he just hopes it gets people more “interest in criminal justice issues”:
“What I’m actually hoping about the Menéndez case is that people use that as the springboard to get interested in criminal justice issues. You know, there’s a whole lotta people who heard a little bit about the Menéndez case. I want them to learn a lot about the Menéndez case, and not just stop with the Menéndez case. There are plenty of cases out there that, if the public gets interested in, it’ll actually help the process of bringing justice across this– this county, this state, maybe even this nation.”
What do you think will happen, Perezcious readers? Drop your predictions in the comments!
[Image via LA CityView35/YouTube, MEGA/WENN]
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