Prosecutors in California are reviewing the convictions of the Menendez brothers, who were found guilty of killing their parents in 1989, to determine whether they should be resentenced and possibly released, officials said Thursday.
Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón said his office is also investigating possible evidence included in petitions the brothers filed last year alleging sexual assault by their father.
Gascón said the allegations are under investigation and that no information has been confirmed. A hearing is scheduled for November 26.
Prosecutors can assess whether inmates have been rehabilitated based on their actions in prison and determine whether they should be resentenced, Gascón said, noting they “can walk away based on what the court decides.”
That review in the brothers’ case is ongoing, he said, adding, “Until we get there, we’re not sure which way this will go.”
Joseph “Lyle” Menendez, now 56, and Erik Menendez, now 53, were convicted in 1996 of murdering their parents in their Beverly Hills home seven years earlier.
After two trials, they were sentenced to life in prison without parole and remain in a California prison.
In their first lawsuit, the brothers said their father had sexually abused them for years. Prosecutors accused them of killing their parents to inherit a fortune. The proceedings ended in a mistrial.
Abuse allegations were limited during their second trial. The brothers were sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
The district attorney’s announcement came amid controversy over a new Netflix series about the case, “Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story.”
In a statement released by his wife, Erik Menendez said the series contained “blatant lies” and was “devastating” to his brother.
The show’s creator, Ryan Murphy, defended the series, saying he was used to writing about provocative and controversial topics.
On Thursday, Kim Kardashian pleaded for the brothers’ release. “They are not monsters,” she wrote in a personal essay for NBC News.
The public prosecutor, Gascón, is eligible for re-election. He said at Thursday’s news conference that more than 300 people have been reconvicted during his tenure and only four have committed new crimes.
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
