The Menendez brothers are due in court Monday for a status hearing

CNN
—

Nearly 30 years after they were sentenced to life in prison for murdering their parents, Lyle and Erik Menendez are set to appear in court Monday, the latest step in their bid for release after the Los Angeles County District Attorney recommended they be arraigned .

The brothers, currently incarcerated in California, are expected to appear virtually at the status hearing scheduled to start at appear in person.

The hearing could help determine whether a scheduled sentencing hearing next month remains on schedule or will be delayed as a new prosecutor must be sworn in.

The two men were last seen in public in 1996 during the second trial for the murder of their parents. After their first trial ended in two deadlocked juries, they were found guilty in a second trial and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

The judge has imposed strict courtroom restrictions for Monday’s hearing: No cameras are allowed in court and all cellphones will be placed in sealed bags.

Sixteen seats in the court will be offered to the public via lottery in the hours before the hearing, according to a news release from the Los Angeles Superior Court.

During their two trials, the brothers have not disputed that they killed their parents. Instead, they claimed they killed them in self-defense after years of sexual, emotional and physical abuse. Prosecutors, meanwhile, said the killings were premeditated, committed so the men could get their parents’ multimillion-dollar estate.

The push to reconsider the case began in 2023 when a Peacock docuseries featured another alleged victim who said he was raped by Jose Menendez – the brothers’ father. Attorneys for the Menendez brothers filed a habeas petition asking the court to reconsider the conviction and sentence in light of new evidence from the other alleged victim and from a letter Erik wrote about the abuse prior to the killings.

In October, Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón filed a motion recommending that a judge recuse himself from the siblings, which could allow them to be released immediately.

“Not only have they worked on their own self-improvement, but they’ve done a lot of work to improve the lives of those around them, which is an extraordinary part,” Gascón, who has since lost his re-election bid to Nathan Hochman, told CNN. “I think they’ve served enough time.”

The decades-long lawsuits date back to 1989, when Jose Menendez, an executive at RCA Records, and his wife Kitty Menendez, were shot and killed in their Beverly Hills home. Lyle was 21 and Erik was 18. Lyle call 911 and said, “Someone killed my parents.”

The two men were arrested in March 1990 and charged with first degree murder. They both went to trial in 1993 with separate juries. The case was broadcast on Rettens TV.

The brothers’ defense lawyers argued that the brothers feared for their lives after experiencing years of abuse, particularly at the hands of their father. Both defendants took the stand to testify about the abuse they experienced and said their father had threatened to kill them if they did not keep the abuse a secret. Prosecutors, meanwhile, argued that the killings were premeditated and that the brothers sought financial gain.

Both juries deadlocked and could not reach a verdict.

In 1995, the brothers’ retrial began – this time with one jury and without a camera in the courtroom. Much of the defense’s evidence of sexual abuse was excluded, according to defense attorneys. Both brothers were convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Since then, the two men have been “model prisoners by all accounts,” Gascón said in an interview with CNN in October. The brothers have participated in victim impact programs, workshops and events and created several programs to help those in need around them, according to the representative motion filed by Gascón.

After not seeing each other for decades, the brothers were reunited in 2018 when Lyle was transferred to the same housing unit in a San Diego jail as Erik.

A Peacock docuseries, “Menendez + Menudo: Boys Betrayed,” was released in 2023, prompting calls to review the brothers’ sentences. The series features the account of Roy Rosselló, a former member of the boy band Menudo, who claims he was raped by Jose Menendez – then the head of RCA Records – in the mid-1980s when he was 13 or 14 years old .

The Menendez brothers filed a habeas corpus petition shortly after the documents were released, citing Rosselló’s allegations as well as a letter from Erik Menendez to his cousin that they say refers to the abuse. “I never know when it (sic) happens and it drives me crazy. Every night I stay up thinking he might come in,” Erik wrote in the 1988 letter. The letter, discovered in 2018, was not presented at either of the two trials, the petition states.

In October, Gascón recommended the brothers be resentenced, saying he supports serving the brothers life with the possibility of parole — which would normally mean 50 years to life in prison. But because the crimes occurred when the brothers were under the age of 26, they would be eligible for juvenile parole under California law.

The Attorney General said in October that changing attitudes about sexual abuse and trauma have changed the public’s perception of the case.

“There’s no question that a jury today would probably look at this case very differently than a jury did 35 years ago,” he told CNN.

The case has also received renewed attention because of a television series, “Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story.” Erik Menendez has criticized the portrayal of the brothers in the series as “dishonest” and “demoralizing”.

Netflix also released a documentary on the Menendez case last month in which both men discussed what led to the killings.

Gascón’s failed re-election bid has created some uncertainty about the fate of the Menendez brothers. Hochman, the incoming LA County District Attorney and a former federal prosecutor who campaigned for a tougher stance on crime, will take office in early December. Hochman has said he needs time to review the confidential prison files, court transcripts and extensive exhibits, as well as consult with prosecutors, defense attorneys and family members of the victims.

“Before I can make any decision on the Menendez brothers’ case, I will need to become thoroughly familiar with the relevant facts, the evidence and the law,” Hochman said in a statement.

In an interview, Hochman said he would move as “quickly” as possible to review the case.

“If I ask for a delay, it will not be a delay for delay’s sake because I believe that the Menendez brothers, the victim’s family members, the public deserve to have a decision made as soon as it can be done in a thorough way,” told Hochman to CNN.

A sentencing hearing is scheduled for December 11.

There are other ways in which the brothers could be released. Gascón also wrote letters to Governor Gavin Newson, supporting the brothers in an attempt at clemency, which could free the brothers immediately. But Newsom has delayed any clemency decision until Hochman reviews the case, according to a news release from his office.

CNN’s Eric Levenson, Cindy Von Quednow, Dalia Faheid and Taylor Romine contributed to this report.