Menendez brothers appeal delayed until January

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Michael Jesic on Monday postponed Erik and Lyle Menendez’s appeal, originally scheduled for Dec. 11, to Jan. 30, 2025.

The move, reported by Los Angeles’ Fox 11, Associated Press and other businesses, comes after a Monday court hearing in which the brothers’ lawyers asked the judge to reconsider their life sentences without parole for the 1989 murders of their parents.

During Monday’s case, defense attorney Mark Geragos asked the judge to plead guilty to the brothers on a lesser charge of voluntary manslaughter, Fox 11 reported. The older sisters of the brothers’ late parents, Kitty and Jose Menendez, also testified.

Geragos and fellow defense attorney Clifford Gardner filed a habeas petition asking the court to reconsider the conviction and sentences in the wake of new evidence that has received widespread attention both because of the case returning to the cultural zeitgeist via television shows focused on on the history of the brothers, and a heated race for Los Angeles District Attorney that saw DA George Gascón lose his election after he recommended that the brothers be impeached. The new DA Nathan Hochman takes office on December 3.

Judge Jesic Monday said he needed time to review the documents and give new DA Hochman time to weigh in on the case.

Monday’s hearing was the latest update in a case that has repeatedly gripped the nation, and as such created quite a scene outside the courthouse with waiting media crews and members of the public camped out long before the sun rose in hopes of securing one of 16 lottery tickets for seats inside the field.

In 1989, RCA Records executive Jose Menendez and his wife, Kitty, were shot and killed in their Beverly Hills home. In March 1990, their sons, Lyle and Erik, were arrested and charged with first degree murder. The brothers faced separate jury trials, which were widely covered at the time, and their lawyers claimed they suffered years of physical abuse, mostly from Jose. Both juries remained deadlocked, paving the way for a second joint trial that began in 1995. Erik and Lyle were convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Supporters have long pointed to a lack of testimony about their abuse during the second trial as a possible reason for the guilty verdicts.

Over the decades, the case has often found its way back into the headlines, but nothing compared to what went down in recent years after a wave of support emerged on TikTok as new evidence and another victim emerged who apparently confirmed claims by the brothers that they had been sexually abused by their father. A Peacock documentary, Menendez + Menudo: Boys Betrayedexecutive produced by court reporter Robert Rand, featured a member of the popular boy band Menudo who claimed he had also been a victim of Jose. Separately, Rand discovered a letter Erik had sent to a cousin, Andy Cano, in 1988 (long before the murders), which included allegations of sexual abuse at the hands of his father.

The brothers’ story also got global attention from Netflix with a couple of projects, Ryan Murphy’s Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Storyand a follow-up documentary that featured exclusive interviews with the two, The Menendez Brothers.

In the midst of his re-election bid, Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón filed a motion in October recommending that a judge suspend the brothers. At a press conference announcing the move, Gascón cited “an enormous amount of public attention” on the matter, as the streamer’s narrative series remained one of the platform’s most watched titles. Gascón lost the election to Nathan Hochman, who released a statement saying he would need time to examine the case file before making a decision.

“When I take office on December 3, I look forward to doing the hard work of thoroughly reviewing the facts and the law in the Menendez case, including reviewing the confidential prison records, the transcripts of the two trials and the voluminous exhibits that, as well as speaking with the prosecutors, the defense lawyers and the victim’s family members,” he said.

California Governor Gavin Newsom has also weighed in. “The governor respects the district attorney’s role in ensuring that justice is served and recognizes that voters have entrusted District Attorney-elect Hochman with carrying out this responsibility,” a statement released by his office read. “The governor will submit to the elected DA’s review and analysis of the Menendez case before making any clemency decisions.”

Hilary Lewis contributed to this report.