Christal Hayes
BBC News, Los Angeles
A long-awaited resentencing hearing on Tuesday is set to determine whether two brothers who killed their wealthy parents in their Beverly Hills mansion could be freed from prison after three decades.
After months of delays, a judge began hearing two days of arguments both for and against Erik and Lyle Menendez’s bid to receive a lesser sentence – which could ultimately lead to their paroled release.
Prosecutors have argued the brothers meticulously planned the 1989 killings to access their parents’ fortune, still have not taken accountability and should not be released. The brothers have said they acted out of self-defence after years of abuse.
The notorious case, which has prompted books, documentaries and dramas, still divides America.
The brothers appeared virtually for the hearing, both wearing bright blue shirts and sitting in the same room in their San Diego prison. They appeared upbeat and smiled, even waving at the start of hearing to their legal team.
Mark Geragos, the brothers’ attorney, will go through evidence and then bring witnesses to testify before the court about why the brothers should be resentenced. The DA’s office will follow with their own presentation against their bid for freedom.
The brothers’ cousin Anamaria Baralt, who has been close with them since they were children, was the first witness to take the stand. She pleaded for the judge to release them and put an end this saga.
“It’s been a nightmare,” she said. “I am desperate for this process to be over.”
She speaks with Erik and Lyle frequently, she told the court, and testified about their growth and that they’ve taken “ownership of their actions”. She said they have acknowledged to her the ways they tried to steer their previous trial – with Lyle admitting to her in a recent phone conversation he’d asked a witness to lie when testifying.
“They are very different men from the boys they were,” she said.
Ms Baralt noted how nearly every member of their family is in support of their release, adding several relatives are in poor health and elderly.
“We’re on borrowed time,” she said, turning to the judge with tears in her eyes. “I pray that you will help us.”
Outside the courthouse, groups of media set up TV cameras and tents for the first day of arguments. Nearby, more than a dozen members of the public gathered hoping to win a “golden” ticket to watch the trial from inside the courtroom. The yellow badges were handed out to most of those vying for access – the trial is not being streamed or televised to the public.
Elena Gordon, who nabbed a ticket, remembers watching the divisive case as a girl on television. She travelled from Orange County, California, multiple times to attend hearings as the brothers’ resentencing bid was delayed again and again.
“I feel like this is just a historical moment – both for our area and for such a big case,” Ms Gordon said, wearing her golden ticket in an elevator on her way to the courtroom. “It’s a big day.”
The judge is expected to determine whether the brothers, who were sentenced to life in prison without possibility of parole, should receive a lesser sentence.
Instead of testifying as part of the hearing, the brothers plan to address the court with a statement read aloud, their attorney told the court. This might prevent them from being questioned by prosecutors as part of cross examination. The BBC has asked who else might testify.
Members of the Menendez family and those involved in the original case could be be among those called.
“I know right now that I’m going to put family members on the stand,” Mr Geragos said on his podcast. “I know right now, I’ll put correctional officers on the stand. I know right now I may put behavioural scientists on the stand.”
The district attorney’s office has not said who it plans to call to testify.
Three possible paths to freedom: What’s next for the Menendez brothers?What to know about the Menendez brothers resentencing hearingThe hearing will not be a re-trial and the brothers’ guilt will not be questioned.
Instead, much of the focus is likely to be on what they have done during their 30 years in prison and whether they have been rehabilitated.
During their trials, prosecutors painted them as entitled and eager to access their parents’ $14m (£10.7m) fortune.
They argued that the duo methodically planned the killings, buying shotguns and opening fire on their parents 13 times as the couple watched TV – before going gambling, to parties and on shopping sprees.
The brothers ultimately admitted to the killings, but argued they acted out of self-defence after years of emotional, physical and sexual abuse by their father Jose, a high-powered film and record label executive.
The brothers’ trial in 1993 was one of the first high-profile murder cases to be shown live on television, gripping audiences in the US and globally.
Los Angeles DA opposes move to resentence Menendez brothersFamily of Menendez brothers call for their release in killing of parentsTheir first trial ended in a deadlock, but in 1996, the brothers were convicted of first-degree murder in a retrial. Many of their claims of sexual abuse were not allowed as part of the proceedings.
The hearing comes after a Netflix drama thrust the case back into the spotlight, and support for resentencing them has notably come from the previous Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascón.
His replacement, Nathan Hochman, has vehemently opposed the brothers’ efforts to be freed and argued they have not “demonstrated true accountability” and instead have clung to a litany of “lies” about the case.
