The Menendez brothers have received bad news in their bid to gain their freedom over three decades after the brutal slaying of their parents.
Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman has formally asked a judge to deny the Menendez brothers’ 2023 habeas corpus petition.
The motion seeks a new trial or dismissal of their murder convictions.
Speaking at a press conference on Friday, Hochman sharply questioned the credibility and timeliness of the new evidence presented by the brothers’ defense, arguing it fails to meet legal standards for admissibility.
The petition centers on two key pieces of evidence, which has led to some debate about whether the brothers acted in self-defense.
The Netflix series Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story brought public attention to the abuse they allegedly suffered at the hands of their father.
LA DA takes down evidence supporting the Menendez brothers’ abuse claims
The first is a letter allegedly written by Erik Menendez to his late cousin Andy Cano eight months before the murders. The letter reportedly details instances of sexual abuse perpetrated by their father, Jose Menendez.
However, Hochman contended that the defense would have introduced the letter during the trial if the letter were genuine.
“If this letter truly existed, the defense counsel would have absolutely used it at the trial because it would help corroborate,” he said at the conference per ABC, dismissing the document as unreliable.
The second piece of evidence involves testimony from Roy Rossello, a former member of the boy band Menudo, who claimed in 2023 that he was raped by Jose Menendez when he was a teenager.
Hochman argued that Rossello’s allegations could not have influenced the brothers’ state of mind at the time of the murders in 1989, adding that such evidence does not satisfy the requirements for a successful habeas petition.
New Los Angeles DA criticizes the Menendez Brothers’ testimony
At trial, the Menendez brothers, convicted in 1996 for the 1989 murders of their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez, admitted to the killings while claiming they acted in self-defense after enduring years of abuse.
However, Hochman maintained that their testimony was inconsistent, noting that the brothers initially provided different accounts and only later mentioned sexual abuse.
He argued that the abuse allegations, even if true, do not justify the extreme act of killing their parents.
In addition to the habeas petition, the Menendez brothers are pursuing other legal avenues, including a resentencing motion and a clemency plea to Governor Gavin Newsom.
Former DA George Gascon had recommended resentencing that might make them eligible for parole, but Hochman remains undecided.
With renewed interest spurred by documentaries and media coverage, the Menendez case remains one of America’s most controversial criminal trials as legal battles over new evidence persist.