What to know about the Menendez brothers' bid for freedom

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The district attorney of Los Angeles County has recommended resentencing for Erik and Lyle Menendez who were convicted for killing their parents in 1989 and may now have a pathway to freedom after spending 34 years behind bars.

Here are some things to know about the case:

The shotgun killings of Jose and Kitty Menendez took place on Aug. 20, 1989, in their Beverly Hills mansion. Their son Lyle Menendez was the one who called 911, with brothers initially claiming the killing was Mafia-related or connected to their father's business dealings. The brothers went on spending sprees, buying Rolex watches, cars and houses. Two months later, Erik Menendez told his psychologist, Jerome Oziel, that he and his brother killed their parents. They were eventually arrested and charged in their parents' deaths.

The murder case captured the public's attention. Coming on the heels of the O.J. Simpson trial, the nation was hungry for true crime TV. The brothers' first trial was one of the first to be almost entirely televised on Court TV. It spawned documentaries, television specials and dramatizations. The Netflix drama “ Monsters: Lyle and Erik Menendez Story " and the documentary “The Menendez Brothers," released in the fall of 2024, have been credited in recent weeks for bringing new attention to the case.

The brothers' first trial took place in 1993 with separate juries. Prosecutors argued that they killed their parents for financial gain. The brothers’ attorneys never disputed the pair killed their parents, but argued that they acted out of self-defense after years of emotional and sexual abuse by their father.

Both trials resulted in a hung jury on all three counts for the killing of Jose and Kitty Menendez, and the conspiracy to commit murder. The juries were split over murder and manslaughter convictions.

At the second trial in 1995, the judge excluded a substantial amount of evidence that was heard in the first trial, including testimony from several family members who witnessed or heard about the abuse. Prosecutors doubled down on their claim that no abuse happened. A single jury convicted both brothers of three counts, including first-degree murder, plus lying in-wait and special circumstance allegations. They were sentenced to life without parole in 1996.

In the years that followed, the brothers' repeatedly appealed their convictions. In 1998, they were denied by an appellate court and the California Supreme Court. Their petitions for habeas corpus, a request for a court to examine whether someone is being lawfully detained, were denied by the state Supreme Court.

After exhausting their options in state court, they filed petitions in federal court, which were denied. They then appealed in 2005 to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, which denied them again.

Their attorney said after that appeal failed, they resigned themselves to spending the rest of their lives in prison.

In 2015, the brothers heard about a letter written by Erik Menendez to his uncle Andy Cano that was mentioned in a Barbara Walters television special. When they asked their attorneys about it, the attorneys were unaware of the letter and realized it had not been introduced at either trial, making it effectively new evidence.

This letter, attorneys say, corroborates the allegations that Erik was sexually abused by his father.

Roy Rossello, a former member of the Latin pop group Menudo, recently came forward saying he was drugged and raped by Jose Menendez, the boys’ father, when he was a teen in the 1980s. Menudo was signed under RCA Records, which Jose Menendez headed at the time.

Rossello spoke about his abuse in the Peacock docuseries “Menendez + Menudo: Boys Betrayed.” He provided a signed declaration to the brothers' lawyers, the final piece of evidence needed for them to file a new petition for habeas corpus in May 2023 and ask for a reexamination of the case.

Los Angeles County prosecutors have recommended that the brothers receive a new sentence of 50 years to life. Because they were under 26 years old at the time of the crimes, they would be eligible for parole immediately under a California law that went into effect in 2018.

District Attorney George Gascón said he took several factors into consideration when making the decision, including the brothers' rehabilitation in prison. In documents filed by his office, prosecutors pointed to both brothers' educational achievements — both have attained several degrees — and contributions to the community, such as a GreenSpace prison beautification program started by Lyle Menendez. Both brothers also received low-risk assessment scores.

Gascón also said the trial would have been treated differently with today's understanding of how sexual and physical abuse affects children.

The brothers have the strong support of most of their family, who say they were victims that were vilified. One of their uncles, however, wants them to remain in prison.

The petition for resentencing will now be reviewed by a Los Angeles County Superior Court judge. Legal experts say it won’t be a smooth process though.

Gascón faces dissent from within his own office regarding the decision, and one of the family members does not support resentencing. They will have an opportunity to make their arguments heard in front of a judge.

If he agrees with the resentencing recommendation, the brothers will need the state parole board to grant their release. California Gov. Gavin Newsom then has 150 days to review the parole board's decision.

Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascon, right, flanked by Menedez family members talks during a news conference at the Hall of Justice on Thursday, Oct. 24, 2024, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)

Diane Hernandez niece of Kitty Menendez is joined by Arnold VanderMolen, Nephew of Kitty Menendez, right, and Kitty Menendez's sister, Joan Andersen VanderMolen, center sit at a news conference being held by Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascon on Thursday, Oct. 24, 2024, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Eric Thayer)

Media gather for a news conference being held by Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascon on Thursday, Oct. 24, 2024, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)

Mark Geragos defense attorney for Erik and Lyle Menendez surrounded by family members talks during a news conference on Thursday, Oct. 24, 2024, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)

Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascon, talks during a news conference at the Hall of Justice on Thursday, Oct. 24, 2024, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)

This combination of two booking photos provided by the California Department of Corrections shows Erik Menendez, left, and Lyle Menendez. (California Dept. of Corrections via AP)

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — The FBI is investigating an early Wednesday attack in which a U.S. Army veteran drove a pickup truck into a crowd of New Year’s revelers in New Orleans, killing 15 people. The driver had posted videos on social media hours before the carnage saying he was inspired by the Islamic State group and expressing a desire to kill, President Joe Biden said.

The FBI identified the driver as 42-year-old Shamsud-Din Bahar Jabbar.

Officials have not yet released the names of the people killed in the attack, but their families and friends have started sharing their stories. About 30 people were injured.

Here is the latest:

U.S. President Joe Biden said Wednesday evening the FBI was looking into whether an explosion outside a Las Vegas hotel owned by President-elect Donald Trump was connected to the New Orleans attack.

Fireworks and camp fuel canisters were found in a Tesla Cybertruck that blew up outside the Trump International Hotel early Wednesday, killing a suspect inside the vehicle.

The person who died in the explosion was an active-duty U.S. Army soldier who spent time at the base formerly known as Fort Bragg, three U.S. officials told The Associated Press on Thursday. The officials also spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to disclose details of his service.

The truck explosion came hours after a driver, 42-year-old Shamsud-Din Bahar Jabbar, rammed a truck into a crowd in New Orleans. Jabbar, a U.S. Army veteran, also spent time at Fort Bragg, a massive Army base in North Carolina that is home to Army special forces command. An official told the AP that there is no apparent overlap in their assignments there.

The investigation so far has not shown the incidents are related, and authorities don’t think the men knew each other, two law enforcement officials said. The officials were not authorized to discuss details of the investigation publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.

▶ Read more about the Las Vegas Cybertruck explosion

The FBI says it recovered the black banner of the Islamic State group from the truck that smashed into New Year’s partygoers. The investigation is expected to look in part at any support or inspiration that driver Shamsud-Din Jabbar may have drawn from that violent Middle East-based group or from any of at least 19 affiliated groups around the world.

Routed from its self-proclaimed caliphate in Syria and Iraq by a U.S. military-led coalition more than five years ago, IS has focused on seizing territory in the Middle East more than on staging massive al-Qaida-style attacks on the West.

But in its home territory, IS has welcomed any chance to behead Americans and other foreigners who come within its reach. The main group at peak strength claimed a handful of coordinated operations targeting the West, including a 2015 Paris plot that killed 130 people. It has had success, although abated in recent years, in inspiring people around the world who are drawn to its ideology to carry out ghastly attacks on innocent civilians.

▶ Read more about IS and what attacks it has inspired

Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry will be joined at the news conference by officials from the FBI, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the Louisiana State Police and the New Orleans Police Department.

The conference is scheduled to begin around 10:15 a.m. CST.

“The Superdome is completely secure,” Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry said on Fox News. “Again, the FBI continues to pour resources into the state.”

Landry said he plans to attend Thursday afternoon’s college football playoff game between the University of Georgia and the University of Notre Dame.

“We need not let fear paralyze us,” Landry added. “That’s the problem in this country. When we do that, the terrorists win.”

ROME — A telegram of condolences, addressed to Archbishop Gregory Aymond, said Francis was saddened to learn of the attack in New Orleans and was spiritually close to the city.

Francis “prays for healing and consolation of the injured and bereaved,” said the telegram, which was signed by the Vatican secretary of state, Cardinal Pietro Parolin.

Separately, Italian President Sergio Mattarella also sent condolences to President Joe Biden, whom he will see during Biden’s visit to Rome next week, saying all of Italy was mourning the loss of life.

“At this time of sorrow for the American people, I would like to reaffirm the firm resolve of the Italian Republic to oppose in the strongest terms all forms of terrorism, on the basis of those values of civilization, democracy and respect for human life that have always been shared with the United States,” he said in a statement.

The College Football Playoff quarterfinal at the Sugar Bowl between Georgia and Notre Dame was postponed by a day because of the truck attack, which unfolded about a mile away.

The game, originally scheduled for 7:45 p.m. CST at the 70,000-seat Superdome on Wednesday, was pushed back to 3 p.m. Thursday. The winner advances to the Jan. 9 Orange Bowl against Penn State.

“Public safety is paramount,” Sugar Bowl CEO Jeff Hundley said at a media briefing alongside federal, state and local officials, including Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry and New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell. “All parties all agree that it’s in the best interest of everybody and public safety that we postpone the game.”

The decision to postpone the game meant numerous traveling fans with tickets would not be able to attend. Ticket prices online plummeted in some cases to less than $25 as fans with plans to depart on Thursday tried to unload them.

The Superdome was on lockdown for security sweeps on Wednesday morning. Both teams spent most of the day in their hotels, holding meetings in ballrooms.

▶ Read more about the decision to postpone the Sugar Bowl

Officials have not yet released the names of the 15 people killed in the New Orleans New Year’s Day truck attack, but their families and friends have started sharing their stories.

Here’s a look at some of what we know:

▶ Read more about the victims of the New Orleans truck attack

Authorities say the driver of a pickup truck sped through a crowd of pedestrians gathered in New Orleans’ bustling French Quarter district early on New Year’s Day, killing at least 15 people and injuring about 30 others. The suspect was killed in a shootout with police.

The FBI is investigating the attack as an act of terrorism and said it does not believe the driver acted alone.

Wednesday’s attack unfolded on Bourbon Street, known worldwide as one of the largest destinations for New Year’s Eve parties. Large crowds had also gathered in the city ahead of the College Football Playoff quarterfinal at the Sugar Bowl, which had been scheduled for later Wednesday at the nearby Superdome. The game was postponed until Thursday afternoon following the attack.

▶ Catch up on what we know about the New Orleans truck attack

EDS NOTE: GRAPHIC CONTENT - Emergency personnel work the scene on Bourbon Street after a vehicle drove into a crowd on New Orleans' Canal and Bourbon Street, Wednesday Jan. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)

The FBI investigates the area on Orleans St and Bourbon Street by St. Louis Cathedral in the French Quarter where a suspicious package was detonated after a person drove a truck into a crowd earlier on Bourbon Street on Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Matthew Hinton)

Matthias Hauswirth of New Orleans prays on the street near the scene where a vehicle drove into a crowd on New Orleans' Canal and Bourbon streets, Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

A bouquet of flowers stands at the intersection of Bourbon Street and Canal Street during the investigation after a pickup truck rammed into a crowd of revelers early on New Year's Day, Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025, in New Orleans. (AP Photo/Matthew Hinton)

An officer walks along Conti Street after a vehicle drove into a crowd on New Orleans' Canal and Bourbon streets, Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

Law enforcement officers stand behind a SWAT vehicle near a location in Houston, Texas, Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025, where police personnel investigate the place suspected to be associated with an attacker in a deadly rampage in New Orleans. (Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle via AP)

Investigators work the scene after a person drove a vehicle into a crowd earlier on Canal and Bourbon Street in New Orleans, Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)

Neighbors stand and watch outside the police lines surrounding a location in Houston, Texas, Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025, where police personnel investigate the place suspected to be associated with an attacker in a deadly rampage in New Orleans. (Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle via AP)

Police officers stand near the scene where a vehicle drove into a crowd on New Orleans' Canal and Bourbon streets, Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

Neighbors embrace as they stand outside the police lines surrounding a location in Houston, Texas, Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025, where police personnel investigate the place suspected to be associated with an attacker in a deadly rampage in New Orleans. (Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle via AP)