Warning: This post contains spoilers for Monsters: The Lyle and Eric Menendez Story!
This article discusses Eric and Lyle Menendez’s real lives and the murders and sexual assault surrounding the crime.
As the duo’s story gets new life on the Netflix show, attorney Mark Geragos weighs in on the Menendez brothers’ chances of being released from prison. Monsters: The Story of Lyle and Eric Menendez. Second installment by Ryan Murphy the monster The anthology follows the titular brothers through their court trial for murdering their parents in 1989, where they cite sexual and emotional abuse from their parents as reasons behind the murders. the monster Season 2 ends with them receiving life sentences without the possibility of parole in 1996, where they still are 28 years later.
On the heels of the show’s premiere, people After the brothers were convicted, attorney Mark Geragos spoke to discuss the matter Monsters: The Story of Lyle and Eric Menendez Will affect your chances of being released from prison. It also comes after a May 2023 habeas corpus petition filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court following the discovery of new evidence of sexual abuse allegations against Jose by former Menudo member Roy Rossello, who she said raped her in the 80s, and Eric gave his cousin Andy Cano a wrote the letter, in which she described her father’s sexual abuse months before the murder.
Geragos said that was part of the reason the letter wasn’t discovered sooner “no one saw [the cousin’s personal] Impact till 2015“And as such it has not yet been found.”10 years since our last appeal“And based on his team’s new defense method that”The second trial did not comply with constitutional protections for several reasons“:
We hold that the second trial did not comply with constitutional protections for several reasons. Go to habeas [Corpus petition] There is new evidence. This requires new evidence as the case has basically been dead for almost 17 years. And the new evidence was a letter Andy Cano wrote or received from Eric eight months before Menudo was accused and killed.
To see what that means for the brothers’ future, Geragos says there is now “three things“What the judge can do with the application, Although he says he ultimately issued an order to the DA to respond informally“Which they have taken very seriously in the last 15 monthsHe also said the defense team conducted conditional examinations of Kitty’s older sister and took statements from 24 family members who “All asked to express their displeasure, presenting many other documents and evidence for them to look at and consider when making a decision“:
A judge can basically do three things. The judge could deny it, the judge could order the DA to respond, or the judge could do what the judge did, which was issue an order for the DA to informally respond, which they’ve taken very seriously over the last 15 months because we’ve presented evidence to them. is done
When asked about the brothers’ feelings on the new application, Geragos said the Menendez “Cautiously optimistic“Also feel that if the trial took place today it would have seen a very different outcome:
I tried this case today, 99 times out of 100, it’s voluntary manslaughter. Twenty years, 30 years, the culture goes by, and I think has become more enlightened or developed, and people are beginning to understand that at that time there was probably a feeding frenzy, and in a more sober reflection, they did not get a fair trial.
Despite his optimism, a spokesperson for the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office said they “Investigating the claims made in the petition“, and that informal response is due on September 26. Both former LA Senior Deputy District Attorney Dimitri Gorin and defense attorney Newama Rahmani were asked about their thoughts on the possibility of the brothers’ release, and Neither thought the new evidence would benefit their appealThe latter calls it a “Hello Mary type logic“:
Dmitry Gorin
: I don’t know how much this new evidence moves the needle. Because of the history of the case, because of the previous rulings of the trial, and materially, it does not really change the evidence in the case. It’s more of the same. It proved terrible. It’s sad that they were persecuted, but it’s the same.
Neyama Rahmani
: This is a Hail Mary type argument. This is not enough, in my opinion. A supporting note, or the fact that a victim abused someone else, is not evidence that would normally result in the granting of a habeas petition.
What this means for the possibility of the Menendez Brothers’ release
Looks like the show’s release won’t help much
Although the petition may have come more than a year before the show’s release, it seems clear that Geragos and his clients hope that Monsters: The Story of Lyle and Eric MenendezIts premiere will generate new awareness and support for their stories. This is certainly not the first time that a true-crime project has led to the development of a widely publicized case. One of HBO’s most notable The Jinx: The Life and Death of Robert DurstIn which the heir to a top real estate estate confesses to the involuntary manslaughter for which he was previously accused and is subsequently arrested and convicted.
Jinx
The latter will receive a second season covering the eight years between the Season 1 premiere and Durst’s arrest before its 2024 premiere, featuring Durst’s phone calls while in prison and interviews with new people connected to the case.
However, despite the hopes of the Geragos and Menendez brothers, both the LAC DA’s office has yet to respond informally. It may indicate Monsters: The Story of Lyle and Eric Menendez Not enough to get the brothers out of jail. Although Gorin and Rahmani at least note that it is a “long shot“Rather than an absolute certainty, the evidence being presented seems largely consistent with the brothers’ previous defense position, making it unlikely that a new trial would be granted.
Our take on the prospect of the Menendez Brothers’ release
Murphy’s Netflix show did little to give them a meaningful defense
Revisiting a 20-plus-year-old court case is certainly not undesirable. The passage of time does not mean that the possibility of overturning an earlier conviction is completely zero. Again looking at the true crime genre, both investigative journalism podcasts in the dark and the 2020 documentary Who killed Malcolm X? The murder of Curtis Flowers and the iconic civil rights activist successfully led to the release of the latter and two others accused of involvement in the assassination of Malcolm X.
even still, I believe it Monsters: The Story of Lyle and Eric Menendez won’t be enough Persuading a court or the DA’s office to properly conduct a new trial to overturn the brothers’ life sentences. Eric Menendez recently came out with a scathingly critical letter about the show.”wrong” portrayal of him and his brother, critics also agreed that the show was a jumbled mess of inconsistent tone and its titular imagery. Even audiences turned against the show compared to their positive response to its Jeffrey Dahmer-centric first season, the monster May do more harm than good.
Source: People