Menendez brothers granted early parole suitability hearing, family says
Erik and Lyle Menendez have been granted an early parole suitability hearing, tentatively scheduled for March 2027, a spokesperson for the family says.
The Menendez brothers were previously sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for the 1989 murders of their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez. Erike and Lyle fatally shot their parents at their Beverly Hills home, admitting to the killings over the course of two trials as they claimed self-defense and said they feared for their lives following years of physical and sexual abuse.
"We are incredibly proud of the men they have become and deeply grateful to the Parole Board for recognizing their efforts and allowing them to advance their parole hearing," the family said in a statement to CBS News.
In May 2025, Erik and Lyle were re-sentenced to 50 years to life, which automatically made them eligible for parole consideration because they were younger than 26 when the crimes were committed.
The brothers were denied parole in August 2025 after the Parole Board Commissioner Robert Barton cited prison violations, including using illegal cell phones and incidents of violence.
Erik, 55, and Lyle, 58, became eligible to apply for a parole suitability hearing again in August 2028.
"For almost 40 years, Erik and Lyle have worked to take responsibility for their actions, confront and heal from the unimaginable abuse and trauma they endured, grow as individuals, and dedicate themselves to serving others," the family's statement said. "Through efforts such as helping to establish a hospice program and creating Green Space, they have sought to build an environment that reminds people serving life sentences that their lives still have meaning and that, regardless of their circumstances, they can choose each day to grow, heal, accept accountability, and contribute something of value to the world around them."
The brothers have maintained the stance that they killed their parents in self-defense after alleging physical, sexual and emotional abuse.
In September 2025, an LA superior judge denied the brothers' petition for a new trial in which they alleged two new pieces of evidence proved their father, Jose Menendez, was sexually abusive.
"The evidence alleged here is not so compelling that it would have produced a reasonable doubt in the mind of at least one juror or supportive of an imperfect self-defense instruction," LA Superior Court Judge William Ryan wrote in his ruling.