Los Angeles (United States) (AFP) – Lyle and Erik Menendez were resentenced Tuesday for the murder of their parents in 1989, with a term that now opens the possibility of parole. A judge in Los Angeles said the men’s prison terms should be changed to 50 years to life, reducing their original sentence of life without the possibility of parole. The ruling means the men, who have already been behind bars for more than three decades for the bloody shotgun slayings, could be freed next month when a parole board meets.
The pair, who are serving life terms for the notorious double murder, have spent two years trying to get their sentences reduced. At an emotional hearing on Tuesday, family members had pleaded with Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Michael Jesic to open the path to the men’s freedom, insisting they were changed. Lyle Menendez addressed the court via videolink, admitting he had murdered his parents.
“I killed my mom and dad. I make no excuses. I take full responsibility,” he said, according to reporters who were in court. Blockbuster trials in the 1990s heard how the men killed Jose and Kitty Menendez in their luxury Beverly Hills home, in what prosecutors said was a cynical attempt to get their hands on a large family fortune. The men shot Jose Menendez five times with shotguns, including in the kneecaps. Kitty Menendez died from a shotgun blast in her last desperate bid to crawl away from her killers.
The brothers initially blamed the deaths on a mafia hit but changed their story several times in the ensuing months. Supporters say they turned on abusive and controlling parents, who had subjected them to years of sexual and emotional abuse. Erik Menendez on Tuesday said he was wrong to take the law into his own hands and that his actions were cruel and cowardly.
“I have no excuse, no justification. I take full responsibility,” he said. “I reached out to my brother for help and convinced him that we couldn’t escape. I fired five rounds at my parents and went to get more ammunition. I lied to police, lied to my family. I am truly sorry.”
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