DA Hochman says Menendez brothers should not get new trial; no decision yet on resentencing

Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman said Friday he does not believe the Menendez brothers should get a new trial, but he still has not yet decided whether to recommend they be resentenced for their crimes.

During a news conference, Hochman talked about Lyle and Erik Menendez — who were convicted in the mid-1990s of killing their parents — and explained the court processes the brothers are pursuing in hopes of getting out of prison.

Hochman explained those processes in some detail, including what’s called a “habeas motion,” which is a challenge to incarceration based on evidence presented in trial. He said his office sent a letter to the court arguing the request should be denied.

To support his position, Hochman questioned the credibility of a piece of evidence revealed years after the Menendez brothers were convicted — a 1988 letter from Erik Melendez to a cousin that appeared to support claims that the brothers’ father molested them.

Hochman also pointed to “a continuum of lies” the brothers told about their parents’ behavior.

The motion does not take into account whether the brothers are rehabilitated after spending more than three decades in prison. However, rehabilitation would be a factor if there is a resentencing hearing for the brothers.

Hochman has not yet said whether he would recommend resentencing, despite having consulted with Menendez family members who want that to happen.

An Oct. 31, 2016, photo provided by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation shows Erik Menendez, left, and a Feb. 22, 2018, photo provided by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation shows Lyle Menendez.

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California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation

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“What I said to the family is that I would listen to them, and I did,” Hochman told reporters at the news conference.

But some family members disputed that after the news conference.

“District Attorney Nathan Hochman took us right back to 1996 today,” they said in a statement. “He opened the wounds we have spent decades trying to heal. He didn’t listen to us.”

Background on the case

Lyle and Erik Menendez were convicted of murder in the 1989 shooting deaths of their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez. They long maintained that they had suffered years of sexual abuse by their father.

Lyle Menendez is now 57. Erik Menenez is 54.

Hochman said his office had created a video outlining the details of the Menendez case.

Their case is back in the spotlight now after the emergence of several documentaries, many of which focus on the brothers’ claims of abuse, and increased attention from a new generation of people who voiced their support on TikTok and other social media platforms.

Before Hochman, former L.A. County District Attorney George Gascón announced last year that he would recommend resentencing for the Menendez brothers. Hochman was elected district attorney in November, beating Gascón in a contentious race to run the largest prosecutors' office in the country.

A judge has to make the final decision on resentencing. A hearing date that had been set for late January was pushed to March.

The Justice for Erik and Lyle Coalition, made up of members of the brothers’ family, said in their statement Friday that they are now placing their hopes with Superior Court Judge Michael Jesic, who is expected to consider resentencing.

“We are profoundly disappointed by his remarks, in which he effectively tore up new evidence and discredited the trauma [the brothers] experienced… ,” the statement read. “For DA Hochman to claim that new evidence should have been submitted at trial is absurd. The justice system failed Erik and Lyle then, and it continues to fail them now.”

The family members said they have lived for decades with the weight of the abuse the brothers endured as children and a justice system that refused to see them as victims.

“Our family has been waiting 35 years for the justice system to acknowledge what we have always known,” the statement continues. “We are so incredibly proud of the men Erik and Lyle have become — men who have dedicated their lives to helping others, despite believing they would never have a second chance.

“We have fought and advocated tirelessly for their release, so that we can heal and finally move forward. All we are asking for is to right this decades-long injustice.”

Not all of the family members want the brothers to be released.

Kitty Menendez’s brother, Milton Anderson, has said that the new evidence — which may corroborate the brothers’ claims — doesn’t justify their actions. He said through an attorney that the brothers “meticulously planned and executed the cold-blooded murders of both their parents.”

What’s next

A hearing in L.A. Superior Court is scheduled for March 20.