Lyle and Erik Menendez face a Los Angeles court on Tuesday for a key hearing in their bid to cut short the life prison terms they are serving for the shotgun murders of their parents in their Beverly Hills home 35 years ago.
Defense lawyers are seeking a reduced sentence for the brothers, now 57 and 54, that would allow for their immediate release or make them eligible to be considered for parole.
The outcome could hinge on fresh defense evidence in support of the brothers’ assertion since the early days of the sensational case that they had been sexually abused by their father, a record company and entertainment industry executive.
It was uncertain whether the defendants themselves would be physically present for the proceedings or watch via video hookup, as they have during previous hearings, from the San Diego prison where they are incarcerated.
Former Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascon petitioned for a re-sentencing last fall, citing the new sexual abuse evidence and the brothers’ clean prison records.
Gascon reasoned that the pair had paid their debt to society and should be eligible for parole under the state’s youthful offender statute since they were younger than 26 at the time of their offense.
