 "LA district attorney calls for resentencing for Menéndez brothers amid growing popularity of Netflix show")
The infamous Menéndez brothers might breathe a sigh of relief after George Gascón, the Los Angeles County District Attorney, has recommended a resentencing in their 1989 murder case. The move is touted as a step towards their release. On Thursday, Gascón said at a press conference that the brothers should be resentenced in the case, which deals with them killing their parents.
The district attorney insisted that their life sentence without the possibility of parole should be removed as the office reviewed new evidence in the case. Gascón maintained that the brothers should be eligible for parole because of their ages when they committed the murder.
“After a very careful review of all the arguments made … I came to a place where I believe that, under the law, resentencing is appropriate and I’m going to recommend that to a court tomorrow,” Gascón said. A judge will now have a final say in the case during a hearing which is scheduled to take place next month, The Guardian reported.
The development is now touted as a major victory for the brothers who claim that they killed their parents in self-defence after years of sexual, physical and psychological abuse by their father. However, the prosecutors involved in the case argued that the two siblings were motivated by greed to inherit their parents’ multi-million dollar wealth.
LA district attorney says he believes the brothers
While speaking at the press conference, Gascón said that he believed the brothers’ account of abuse. “I do believe the brothers were subjected to a tremendous amount of dysfunction in the home, and molestation,” he said. “They have been in prison for nearly 35 years. I believe that they have paid their debt to society," the LA district attorney added.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsErik and Lyle Menéndez were convicted back in 1996 for the murders of their parents, José and Kitty. The brutal murder case drew public attention recently thanks to a new Netflix series on the case. While supporting his argument, the district attorney highlighted the brothers’ behaviour in prison.
He mentioned that since they were first incarcerated, they have earned college degrees and served as mentors and caregivers in prison. “Even though they didn’t think they would ever be let free, they engaged in a journey of redemption and a journey of rehabilitation,” Gascón said.
Meanwhile, the cousins of the Menéndez brothers rejoiced at the news and lauded Gascón. The cousins went on to call the district attorney’s action a “day filled with hope” for the family. “This decision is not just a legal matter – it is a recognition of the abuse my cousins endured,” said Karen VanderMolen, Kitty’s niece.
Earlier this month, Gascón had announced that his office would review new evidence and decide whether the case should be considered for resentencing or a new trial. “There is no question they committed the killing. The question is to what degree of culpability should they be held accountable to given the totality of the circumstance,” Gascón told CNN at that time.
He went on to point out that the state exhibited implicit bias in a manner that may have affected how the case was presented, citing a comment from one prosecutor “how men cannot be raped”.
With inputs from agencies.
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