Los Angeles DA abandons bid to free Menendez brothers

• Los Angeles District Attorney Nathan Hochman announced he would withdraw a resentencing request for Erik and Lyle Menendez. The convicted murderers are serving life without parole for killing their parents in 1989.

• Hochman emphasized that the Menendez brothers’ decades-long claim of self-defense remains unconvincing and central to denying their release from prison.
• The consideration for resentencing stemmed from a California law enabling resentencing for certain cases. Former DA George Gascón initiated the policy before his defeat to Hochman in a recent election.

Full Story

Los Angeles District Attorney Nathan Hochman said on Monday that he would no longer seek to reconsider the life sentences of convicted murderers Erik and Lyle Menendez. Hochman told reporters on Monday that he would request to withdraw a resentencing proposal for the two convicted murderers.

The Menendez brothers are currently serving life sentences without the possibility of parole in the R.J. Donovan Correctional Facility in San Diego.

Their backstory

The two brothers rose to infamy after a high-profile murder trial that led to their conviction for murdering their parents on Aug. 29, 1989. Several documentaries were produced about the Beverly Hills murders and subsequent 1996 conviction, including a Netflix series. 

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Why the reversal?

The brothers claimed self-defense at trial, saying they believed their parents were planning to kill them that night. They both maintain that was the case decades later, something Hochman believes is key in not letting them out of prison.

“…the Menendez brothers have continued to lie for over 30 years about their self-defense – that is, their purported actual fear that their mother and their father were going to kill them the night of the murders,” Hochman said in the filing.  

The brothers attempted to overturn their convictions as recently as 2005. 

What changed?

A California law that led to the resentencing of 227 people and the release of 174 was considered a reason for resentencing, according to a report from the nonprofit RAND.

The request for resentencing originated from former District Attorney George Gascón, who Hochman beat in a reelection bid last November. Gascón had been subject to multiple recall attempts in his time in Los Angeles.