Lyle Menendez has been denied parole one day after his brother Erik was similarly blocked from being freed from prison after more than three decades. The Menendez brothers, who were convicted in the 1989 killings of their parents in their Beverly Hills mansion, were both rejected for release after separate, lengthy hearings before California’s parole board. The elder Menendez brother, 57, who has long been portrayed as the dominant sibling, can try for parole again at a hearing in three years, though the panel said that could be reduced to 18 months with good behaviour.
The parole board said they found “that there are still signs” Lyle poses a risk to the public. The panel cited the brutal nature of the killings of their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez, his lack of self-control and the signs that he still employs poor decision making. “We find your remorse is genuine,” parole commissioner Julie Garland told him, explaining the decision and noting all the positive changes he had made while in prison.
The panel repeatedly brought up his illicit cell phone use in prison, which they said he appeared to have near constant access to for years. Commissioner Patrick Reardon, one member of the panel, questioned if they should give so much weight to all the positive things he did in prison – like his schooling and programmes he created for inmates – when he was constantly violating the rules.
The brothers’ trek to freedom is not over yet, as they each can appear in front of the board again, each after three more years. The parole denials will shift focus to California Governor Gavin Newsom, who is separately considering a clemency request from them. Clemency could come in the form of a reduced sentence or even a pardon. Weighing in on such a high-profile and controversial case could be politically risky for Newsom, who is said to be mulling a presidential run.
In addition to the clemency request, the brothers are also asking for a new trial in light of newly uncovered evidence alleging childhood sexual abuse by their father. A judge is mulling that request, but it is opposed by the Los Angeles district attorney’s office. During Friday’s hearing, prosecutor Ethan Milius lobbied against Lyle’s release. He questioned whether he has “genuinely” taken accountability for his conduct and pointed to Lyle’s inability to “follow basic rules while in a highly structured setting.”
A coalition of relatives who have long advocated for them, as well as supporters, were also in attendance virtually for Friday’s hearing and spoke on his behalf. Lyle’s cousin Eileen Cano, who also spoke to the panel during Erik’s hearing on Thursday, told the board that she is amazed by how much Lyle has achieved despite facing life in prison without parole. “While most people surrender to the crushing weight of prison life, Lyle rose above it,” she said. “Lyle will not be a risk to the community because we as a family will hold him accountable,” she continued. “Delaying his release would serve no purpose. Lyle is not the man who went to prison 35 years ago.”
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