Prosecutors To Review New Evidence In Menendez Brothers' Murder Case

LOS ANGELES, CA — One of California's all-time most infamous criminal cases is being reviewed in light of new evidence that could bolster the abuse claims of convicted killers Erik and Lyle Menendez.

Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón Thursday announced his decision to review the brother's 1989 conviction for murdering their parents in light new and renewed allegations of sexual abuse by their father Jose Menendez.

At a Thursday afternoon news conference, Gascón said attorneys in his office are reviewing the possibility the Menendez brothers could be entitled to have their case reheard or to be resentenced. He says he is "not leaning in any direction right now. I'm keeping an open mind." But he insisted, "the final decision will be mine."

Jose Menendez and his wife, Mary Louise, or "Kitty," were gunned down by their sons in their Beverly Hills mansion in 1989. Erik Menendez, now 53, and Lyle Menendez, now 56, never denied carrying out the killings, but contended they were repeatedly sexually assaulted by their father and feared for their lives. The salacious case, aired on national television, captivated the nation and continues to with the recent release of the Netflix dramatization "Monster" released in September.

Attorneys for the Menendez brothers filed court papers last year seeking to have their convictions overturned, and a prosecution response is due by Nov. 26. In court papers filed last year, attorneys for the brothers pointed to two new pieces of evidence they contend corroborate the brothers' allegations of long-term sexual abuse — a letter written by Erik Menendez to one of his cousins in early 1989, eight months before the August 1989 killings, and recent allegations by a former member of the Puerto Rican boy band Menudo that he was also sexually abused by Jose Menendez as a teenager.

Gascón on Thursday said his office is reviewing that new evidence.

"We have been given a photocopy of a letter that allegedly was sent by one of the brothers to another family member talking about him being the victim of molestation," the district attorney said. "We've also got evidence that was provided by the defense, by his lawyers, that one of the members of the Menudo band alleged that he was molested by the father. None of this information has been confirmed. We are not at this point ready to say that we either believe or do not believe that information.

"But we're here to tell you is that we have a moral and an ethical obligation to review what is being presented to us and make a determination based on a resentencing side -- whether they deserve to be resentenced, even though they were clearly the murderers, because they have been in prison for 35 years and they have paid back their dues to society -- or whether (a rehearing of the case) is appropriate -- if there was evidence that was not presented to the court at that time, and had that evidence been presented, perhaps a jury would have come to a different conclusion."

Gascón stressed, "I don't think there is any question in this case that the (brothers) ... murdered their parents. I think that's factual. It's been established."

Prosecutors during the brothers trials, said the killings were financially motivated, pointing to lavish spending sprees by the brothers after the killings and arguing they were guilty of first-degree murder.

What's not in dispute is that Erik and Lyle Menendez bought a pair of shotguns with cash returned to their family's mansion in Beverly Hills and opened fire on their parents. According to police, the brothers shot their father Jose Menendez five times. As Kitty Menendez crawled on the living room floor wounded, the brothers reloaded and shot her.

It was 18-year-old Erik Menendez, who confessed to his therapist, leading to the brothers' arrest in 1990.

The brothers' first trial ended with jurors unable to reach verdicts, deadlocking between first-degree murder and lesser charges including manslaughter. The second trial, which began in October 1995 and lacked much of the testimony centered on allegations of sexual abuse by Jose Menendez, ended with both brothers being convicted of first-degree murder and conspiracy.

The brothers were both sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. They have repeatedly appealed their convictions to no avail.

Gascón defended the length of time it has taken him to speak publicly about the case, noting that the papers filed by the brothers' attorneys were submitted more than a year ago. Gascón noted that "we get a lot of petitions for sentencings."

And while offering no indication of which way he is leaning on the case, he noted, "There are differences of opinion within the office, and that is a health part of the process," again adding, "I will make the final decision."

Later Thursday afternoon, one of the brothers' attorneys, Mark Geragos, commended Gascón for taking a "bold" step by reviewing the matter and agreeing to make the final call from his office.

"I believe that what you saw today with District Attorney Gascón was that he has taken, I think, a rather bold step in that he has said he's going to make the final decision," Geragos said. "It may not be a popular decision in prosecutorial circles, but I would think that in our culture we've come a long way the last 10 years, maybe 15 years. I think we're at a point now where any reasonable person taking a look at this case believes they should be out (of prison)."

Geragos said he believes the new evidence in the case is more than enough for a judge to "set aside the result" of the brothers' trial and overturn their conviction.

"They have now served 35 years," Geragos said. "In those 35 years that they have served in prison, they have been model prisoners. They have worked tirelessly in the face of literally no expectation that they would ever get out to reform not only themselves but the environment in which they find themselves."

Bryan Freedman, the extended family’s lawyers, said they strongly support the brothers’ release.

“She wishes nothing more than for them to be released,” Freedman said of Joan VanderMolen, the brothers’ aunt.

The brothers’ attorneys said the family believed from the beginning they should have been charged with manslaughter rather than murder. Manslaughter was not an option for the jury during the second trial that ultimately led to the brothers’ murder conviction, attorney Mark Geragos said.

The Beverly Hills Police Department, which investigated the killings, issued a statement saying that as the investigating agency, "the BHPD presented facts and evidence to the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office at that time who proceeded with filing criminal charges. To date, BHPD has not been contacted by the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office regarding these new developments.

"BHPD remains committed to transparency and working collaboratively with all agencies to pursue justice."

The court papers filed by defense attorneys last year included a copy of the handwritten letter allegedly sent by Erik Menendez to his cousin, Andy Cano. Attorneys contend the letter was only recently discovered by Cano's mother. Cano, who died of a drug overdose in 2003, testified in the brothers' first trial that Erik Menendez had told him about the molestation by his father when Erik was 13 years old, according to the court documents.

In the letter, Erik Menendez writes in part, "I've been trying to avoid dad. It's still happening Andy, but it's worse for me now. I can't explain it. ... I never know when it's going to happen and it's driving me crazy. Every night I stay up thinking he might come in. I need to put it out of my mind."

In court papers, Menendez brothers attorneys Geragos and Cliff Gardner wrote that the new evidence "not only shows that Jose Menendez was very much a violent and brutal man who would sexually abuse children, but it strongly suggests that , in fact, he was still abusing Erik Menendez as late as December 1988. Just as the defense had argued all along."

To bolster their contention, the attorneys also cited allegations that surfaced last year in a Peacock documentary series, in which Roy Rosselló — a former member of the boy band Menudo — alleged that Jose Menendez drugged and sexually assaulted him when he was about 14 years old during a visit to the Menendez home in New Jersey in 1983 or 1984.

Jose Menendez was an executive at RCA Records, which signed Menudo to a recording contract.

"I know what he did to me in his house," Rosselló, now 55, said in the series. In another segment, he points to a picture of Jose Menendez and says, "That's the man here that raped me. That's the pedophile."

A declaration from Rosselló — who also alleges Menendez sexually assaulted him on two other occasions in New York — was attached to the court papers filed on behalf of the Menendez brothers last year.

The Menendez brothers' attorneys argue that the new evidence warrants a reopening of the case, saying it establishes "a prima facie case for relief."

"To resolve this case, jurors had to decide a single, critical question: was Jose Menendez molesting his sons?" the attorneys write in the court document. "Jurors making this determination did not know of Erik's letter to his cousin Andy, and they did not know that Jose Menendez had previously raped a 14-year-old boy."

As a result, the attorneys argue that the brothers are being "unlawfully" imprisoned.

"Newly discovered evidence directly supports the defense presented at trial and just as directly undercuts the state's case against (the brothers)," the attorneys contend in the document.

The papers asked that following a response from prosecutors, a judge "vacate the judgment and sentence imposed," or in the alternative schedule an evidentiary hearing.

City News Service and the Associated Press contributed to this report.