Officials in California rejected Erik Menendez’s bid for parole Thursday, saying after an all-day hearing that the convicted killer should not be released from prison.
Menendez, 54, will be able to seek parole again in three years.
The stunning decision came three months after a Los Angeles judge found that Menendez and his brother, Lyle, do not pose an “unreasonable risk” and resentenced them to 50 years to life for the 1989 shotgun murder of their parents — a ruling that effectively canceled their previous prison terms of life without the possibility of parole and made them eligible for parole “suitability” hearings immediately.
Lyle, 57, is set to appear before the parole board Friday.
The brothers were convicted of first-degree murder in 1996 after two trials that spanned three years. They claimed they killed their parents, José and Kitty Menendez, in self-defense after years of abuse at their father’s hands.
Prosecutors have disputed the brother’s claims that they acted in self-defense and pointed to the grim specifics of the killings — Lyle reloaded his shotgun before he shot his mother in the face, for example — and they described the killings as ruthless and financially motivated.
Speaking at the resentencing hearing, Erik described his crimes as “cruel and vicious” and said he was “directly responsible for it all.”
More on the Menendez brothers
Their case was catapulted back into the spotlight after a pair of streaming series and advocacy from some high-profile figures and relatives. The effort to secure their release has highlighted the sometimes complicated debate over rehabilitation versus incarceration.
Many family members have been outspoken advocates for the brothers’ freedom. After their resentencing hearing in May, a cousin, Anamaria Baralt, attributed the judge’s decision to the brothers’ growth behind bars and the “purpose of service” that she said they exhibited.
Among other things, the brothers have attended college, established a “beautification” project at the San Diego prison where they are incarcerated and helped inmates with severe disabilities, court filings show.
Baralt said she expected the parole process to be difficult on the brothers’ family but added: “We will eagerly step through those doors if that means getting them home.”
The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office has had different views on the brothers’ push for freedom. Weeks before his ouster last year, the county’s former top prosecutor, George Gascón, said the siblings had been “exceptional” inmates and recommended that they be resentenced.
His successor, Nathan Hochman, tried — and failed — to withdraw that recommendation. He said the siblings had not taken responsibility for more than a dozen lies he said they told about the murders, including the claim that they killed their parents in self-defense.
“The Menendez brothers have never fully accepted responsibility for the horrific murders of their parents, instead continuing to promote a false narrative of self-defense that was rejected by the jury decades ago,” Hochman said in a statement ahead of the hearings.
“We have consistently opposed their release at this time because they have not demonstrated full insight into their crimes or shown that they have been fully rehabilitated, and therefore continue to pose a risk to society,” he said.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.