Sentenced to life in prison nearly three decades ago, Erik and Lyle Menendez could have a shot at freedom as Los Angeles prosecutors comb through new evidence.
In a Thursday news conference, Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón shared that attorneys for the Menendezes had provided new evidence in a petition and asked the court to vacate their convictions. Gascón announced a Nov. 29 hearing on potential resentencing .
“We have not decided on an outcome. We are reviewing information,” Gascón said, per CNN, adding that his office wasn’t certain of the “validity” of the new evidence. “We will evaluate all of it.”
The pair killed their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez, in 1989. They were sentenced to life in prison in 1996 on their second murder trial. That trial famously forbade the use of most evidence detailing possible abuse of the brothers, a move that has long inspired criticism from criminal justice advocates including Kim Kardashian. The new evidence includes a letter from Erik Menendez that his attorneys believe backs up the brother’s claims of long-term sexual abuse by his father.
Erik and Lyle Menendez have long been vocal about the abuse they experienced at the hands of their father, Jose, a factor they say should have played into their sentencing.
Cliff Gardner, an attorney for the Menendez brothers, celebrated the news in an email to the Associated Press.
“Given today’s very different understanding of how sexual and physical abuse impacts children — both boys and girls — and the remarkable new evidence, we think resentencing is the appropriate result,” Gardner reportedly wrote. “The brothers have served more than 30 years in prison. That is enough.”
The duo are back in the limelight due to a Ryan Murphy-created Netflix series dramatizing their case: “Monsters: The Lyle And Erik Menendez Story.” Erik criticized the series in a post to Facebook last month.
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