The wait for Erik and Lyle Menendez is prolonged even further. The famous case of the brothers who killed their parents in their Beverly Hills mansion 35 years ago had a new development on Monday, following a hearing held amid a strong campaign for their release.
The Superior Court Judge Michael Jesic said in the hearing in Los Angeles that he needed time to review 17 boxes of documents and give time to the new district attorney in Los Angeles County to comment on the case.
When will the new Menendez brothers hearing be?
Jersic then scheduled the hearing for the request for a new sentence for January 30th instead of December 11th, as originally planned.
Erik and Lyle Menendez, who had been scheduled to participate in the hearing but couldn't due to technical issues, were found guilty of murdering Jose and Kitty Menendez in 1989 and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Instead of the brothers, both incarcerated in a San Diego prison, Jesic allowed two aunts of the brothers to testify this Monday after their lawyer argued that it was difficult for them to travel to the hearing.
Joan Andersen VanderMolen, Kitty's sister who turns 93 on Tuesday, and Teresita Baralt, 85 years old and Jose's older sister, called for the release of Erik and Lyle, stating that 35 years was too long for the brothers after the abuse they suffered as children.
Baralt pointed out that she was very close to José and lived across the street from him and Kitty for years, whom she described as her best friend. "We miss tremendously those who have gone," Baralt said tearfully after speaking. "But we also miss the children." Both women said they had kept in touch with the siblings, although they had not seen them.
The Menéndez lawyers filed a petition for habeas corpus —a request for a court to examine whether someone is being legally detained— in May 2023, in which they asked a judge to consider new evidence of their father's sexual abuse.
This year, the case gained fame again in the public court due to the Netflix drama series “Monsters: Lyle and Erik Menendez Story” and the documentary “The Menendez Brothers”, which addresses the sexual, physical, and psychological abuse that Erik and Lyle suffered at the hands of their father, José, and of which their mother Kitty was always aware.