One of the more shocking murders in this country was the 1989 slaying of José and Mary Louise "Kitty" Menendez.
The couple was brutally murdered by their sons.
Over the years, the brothers, Lyle and Erik Menendez, have become celebrities of sorts, but Erik was just denied parole, with Lyle’s fate yet to be determined.
Due to waiting period mandates on handguns, the two brothers decided to purchase Mossberg 12-gauge shotguns.
On Aug. 20, 1989, the married parents were watching a movie on TV when their sons entered the home with their new shotguns and opened fire.
The boys shot their father six times, including a shot to the back of the head, and shot their mother 10 times, including a shot to the front of her face.
At first, the brothers waited to hear a response to the gunfire, but then left, disposed of their clothes and the shotguns, and bought tickets to a movie to establish their alibi, only to back out of the plan due to a timestamp on the ticket. They eventually used a festival as their alibi, returning home to call 911 about the murders.
The two boys were arrested in March 1990, then tried for the murder of their parents.
Later that month, they were both convicted of first-degree murder, sentenced to life without the possibility of parole.
In October 2024, Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón, a George Soros disciple, said he wanted to resentence the brothers to 50 years to life, which would make them eligible for parole immediately.
Gascón was removed from office, but the presiding judge decided to allow the resentencing, deeming the brothers did not pose an “unreasonable risk” to society.
Erik was first up for parole, and the killer-turned-celebrity was crushed to learn that his parole had been denied after a 10-hour hearing took place on Thursday.
Lyle was up for his hearing on Friday, hoping to succeed where his brother failed.
Michael Beckman, a lawyer specializing in parole hearings, explained the denial, stating, “The board is really big on the philosophy that if you can’t follow the rules in prison, you can’t follow the rules in free society. Add to that that cellphones are one of the three big bad rule violations along with violence and substance abuse.”
These murders were horrific, and the claims by the sons that they were being abused have often fallen on deaf ears as nothing more than a justification for the killings. They could have gone to the police, they could have enlisted family members, etc. These two should never see the light of day as free people again.
