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Rally for Menendez brothers today
The rally in support of the Menendez brothers comes a day before Erik Menendez will face a parole board.
LOS ANGELES - The Menendez brothers are set to make their cases for parole starting Thursday, marking the closest they’ve been to winning freedom from prison since their convictions almost 30 years ago for murdering their parents.
The brothers became eligible for parole after a Los Angeles judge in May reduced their sentences from life in prison without the possibility of parole to 50 years to life, making them immediately eligible for parole under California law because they were under the ages of 26 when they committed their crimes.
A panel of two or three parole hearing officers from a board of commissioners appointed by Gov. Gavin Newsom will evaluate the brothers individually.
Erik Menendez will have his hearing Thursday morning, followed by Lyle Menendez on Friday, over videoconference from the Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility in San Diego.
Here's a look at the timeline of the case:
August 1989: Jose and Kitty Menendez murdered
Jose Menendez, an executive at RCA Records in Los Angeles, and his wife Kitty Menendez, are shot and killed in their Beverly Hills mansion.
March 8, 1990: Menendez brothers arrested
Lyle Menendez, then 21, is arrested. Erik Menendez, then 18, turns himself in a few days later after confessing to their therapist. They are accused of first-degree murder.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: True Crime Files: Group of TikTok users leading push to free Menendez Brothers
July 1993: Trial begins
The Menendez brothers go on trial, each with a separate jury. Prosecutors argued that they killed their parents for financial gain.
The brothers’ attorneys don’t dispute the pair killed their parents, but argued that they acted out of self-defense after years of emotional and sexual abuse by their father.
January 1994: Juries deadlock
Both juries deadlock and do not reach a verdict.
October 1995: Retrial begins
The brothers’ retrial begins, this time with a single jury. Much of the defense evidence about alleged sexual abuse is excluded during the second trial.
March 1996: Brothers convicted
Jurors convicted both brothers of first-degree murder.
July 1996: Brothers sentenced
The brothers are sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
February 1998: Conviction upheld
A California appeals court upholds the brothers’ conviction.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Citing new evidence, Menendez brothers look to overturn murder convictions
May 1998: State Supreme Court affirms decision
The California Supreme Court agrees with the appeals court decision.
October 1998: Habeas corpus petitions filed
The brothers file habeas corpus petitions with the California Supreme Court, which are denied the next year.
August 1999: Petitions filed again
The brothers file habeas corpus petitions in federal district court, which are denied in 2003.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Menendez Brothers: Testimony of Lyle and Erik Menendez, and the trial marred by wealth and abuse
September 2005: Appeals denied
The U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals denies their habeas corpus appeal.
May 2023: Former member of Menudo band presents new evidence
Attorneys for the Menendez brothers ask the court to reconsider the conviction and sentence in light of new evidence from a former member of the boy band Menudo, who said he was raped by Jose Menendez when he was 14. In addition, they submit a letter that Erik wrote to his cousin about his father’s abuse before the killings.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Former Menudo member alleges he was drugged and raped by father of Menendez brothers at 14-years-old
September 2024
Netflix releases the crime drama "Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story," a nine-episode series about the killings created by Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan.
"(The show) is really more interested in talking about how monsters are made as opposed to born," Murphy says during a panel discussion at an early screening of the show’s first episode, according to Netflix. "We try to not have too much judgment about that because we’re trying to understand why they did something, as opposed to the act of doing something."
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In a statement shared on social media by his wife, Erik Menendez accuses the show of portraying "horrible and blatant lies" and of returning to "an era when the prosecution built a narrative on a belief system that males were not sexually abused, and that males experienced rape trauma differently than women."
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Erik Menendez's wife Tammi reacts to resentencing recommendation
Oct. 4, 2024: LA DA reviewing case
Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascón says his office is reviewing new evidence in the case.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Menendez Brothers: Could Erik and Lyle be resentenced? LA DA makes major announcement
Oct. 16, 2024: Family members push for release
Multiple generations of family members of the Menendez brothers hold a news conference pleading for their release from prison. The relatives say the jurors who sentenced them to life without parole in 1996 were part of a society that was not ready to hear that boys could be raped.
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- Menendez Brothers: Erik and Lyle's family push for their release from prison
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Oct. 24, 2024: DA recommends judge resentence brothers
Prosecutors say they will petition the court to resentence the brothers, and that it could lead to their release.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Menendez Brothers: Gascón reveals 'new evidence' letter that led to case review
Nov. 18, 2024: Gov. Newsom delays clemency decision
Gov. Gavin Newsom says he would not decide on granting the brothers clemency until after the newly elected district attorney has a chance to review the case.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Menendez brothers clemency on hold till new DA reviews case, Newsom says
Nov. 25, 2024: Another hearing pushed back
A Los Angeles County Superior Court judge holds a hearing regarding the request for resentencing but says he needs more time to make a decision, pushing it back to Jan. 30 and 31 instead of Dec. 11 as originally planned.
Dec. 3, 2024: LA gets a new DA
Nathan Hochman is sworn into office as the new district attorney of LA County.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: New Menendez brothers prosecutor slams 'meritless' conflict claim in push to take case out of Los Angeles
Jan. 17, 2025: Wildfires push back hearing
Due to the wildfires in the Los Angeles area, Hochman pushes the resentencing hearing back to March 20 and 21.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Resentencing hearing for Menendez Brothers postponed to Mar. 2025
Feb. 21, 2025: Hochman doesn't support brothers' petition for new trial
Hochman says his office will oppose a new trial for the Menendez brothers.
He cast doubt on the evidence of sexual abuse, including the letter Erik wrote to his cousin about his father’s abuse, and said it was not pertinent to the case.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Menendez brothers: LA DA opposes retrial, questions new evidence, abuse claims
Feb. 26, 2025: Gov. Newsom orders ‘comprehensive risk assessment’
Gov. Newsom orders the state parole board to conduct a "comprehensive risk assessment" to determine whether the brothers have been rehabilitated and if they would pose a danger to the public if released.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Gavin Newsom announces when Menendez brothers' will have Parole Board hearing
March 10, 2025: Hochman wants resentencing motion withdrawn
Hochman says his office won’t support resentencing the brothers because they have repeatedly lied about why they killed their parents.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Menendez brothers case: LA DA asking court to withdraw predecessor Gascón's resentencing motion
April 11, 2025: Judge rules resentencing hearings can go on
Judge denies prosecutors’ request to withdraw their resentencing petition.
The following week, resentencing hearings scheduled are delayed due to disputes among prosecutors and the brothers’ lawyers, who say they will ask to remove Hochman’s office from the case.
May 9, 2025: Hochman on the case
Hochman’s office remains on the case as the judge again denies prosecutors’ request to withdraw their resentencing petition.
May 13, 2025: Judge resentences Menendez brothers
Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Michael Jesic reduces the brothers’ sentences from life without parole to 50 years to life.
They are immediately eligible for parole because they committed the crime under the age of 26.
The state parole board must still decide whether to release them from prison.
During the hearing Jesic says he is not suggesting they should be released, but "one day they should get that chance."
May 15, 2025: Clemency hearing to parole suitability hearing
The California Board of Parole Hearings converts a previously scheduled clemency hearing on June 14 for the brothers into a "parole suitability hearing."
The parole board has up to 120 days after the hearing to make a decision, and Gov. Newsom then has 30 days to change it.
May 19, 2025: Hearings delayed again
The June parole hearings are delayed, with new dates set for Aug. 21 and 22.
Aug. 21, 2025: Erik Menendez hearing
Erik Menendez's parole hearing is scheduled for 8:30 a.m. He will attend via videoconference from the Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility in San Diego.
Aug. 22, 2025: Lyle Menendez hearing
Lyle will also appear via videoconference from the Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility in San Diego.
The Source: This timeline of events and previous coverage is based on FOX 11's ongoing reporting and is supplemented with information from official public records, including court documents and statements from the Los Angeles District Attorney's office, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, and the California Governor's office. The Associated Press contributed.