Menendez Brothers Win Moves Them One Step Closer To New Sentence

A recent ruling from a Los Angeles judge in the Menendez brothers' decades-long case to allow the consideration of resentencing hearings may lead to a new chapter for Erik and Lyle Menendez. The brothers, serving life without parole sentences since the 1990s for the 1989 murders of their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez, claim they acted in self-defense after years of abuse.

E! Online reported that on April 11, Judge Michael Jesic denied District Attorney Nathan Hochman’s bid to withdraw the petition for resentencing, which allows the case to go forward on April 17 and 18. Then, the court will further address whether resentencing is in order.

DA Hochman, who is opposed to the move for resentencing, said that his office is ready to follow wherever the court leads it. He felt that the evidence strongly supports the original convictions and charged the brothers with continuing to perjure themselves over the issue of self-defense. He believes the Menendez brothers never embraced full disclosure and went as far as to convince others to lie to protect them.

During their trial in 1993, Erik and Lyle claimed they had acted in "imperfect self-defense," having testified that their father had sexually abused them. By the time of the 1995 retrial, though, prosecutors had alleged that Lyle had encouraged a friend and an ex-girlfriend to put together their allegations of abuse to assist in cementing the conviction and life sentences.

Despite Hochman’s view, he did hint at a possibility of clemency. An admission of guilt by the brothers on their lies about the abuse could go a long way in helping any future applications for resentencing.

People are divided about this case and the potential new sentence. For some, the original conviction stands for deserved punishment for a brutal crime; for others, the allegations of abuse—which now prompt possible resentencing—extend the dialogue into matters of truth, rehabilitation, and fairness.

Now all eyes are once again on Erik and Lyle Menendez in anticipation of the forthcoming hearings on April 17 and 18, and whether or not the court will review one of the most sensational and controversial modern murder cases in American history.

Related: New DA Makes Bombshell Change in Menendez Brothers Case