Erik Menendez Denied Parole

Erik Menendez was denied parole Thursday by a California board that said his continued misbehavior during decades in prison for murdering his parents with his older brother in 1989 showed he is still a risk to public safety. A panel of two California commissioners denied Menendez parole for three years, after which he will be eligible again, in a case that continues to fascinate the public. A parole hearing for his brother Lyle Menendez, who is being held at the same prison in San Diego, is scheduled for Friday morning, the AP reports. The brothers also still have a pending habeas corpus petition filed in May 2023 seeking a review of their convictions based on new evidence supporting their claims of sexual abuse by their father.

The commissioners determined that Menendez should not be freed after an all-day hearing during which they questioned him about why he committed the crime and violated prison rules. They rejected parole despite strong support from family members who have advocated for the brothers' release for months. "Two things can be true. They can love and forgive you, and you can still be found unsuitable for parole," commissioner Robert Barton said. Barton said the primary reason for the decision was not the seriousness of the crime but Menendez's behavior in prison. The repeated use of a cellphone was "selfish" and a sign of Menendez believing that rules don't apply to him, Barton said to Menendez, who was clearly visibly hurt by the decision but listened intently.

"Contrary to your supporters' beliefs, you have not been a model prisoner and frankly we find that a little disturbing," Barton said, questioning if that meant Menendez was not entirely honest with family members about his behavior. The parole hearings marked the closest they have come to winning freedom since their convictions almost 30 years ago. A judge reduced their sentences in May, and they became immediately eligible for parole. Erik Menendez made his case to two parole commissioners, offering his most detailed account in years of how he was raised, why he made the choices he did, and how he transformed in prison. (See more of what he said.)