In the ensuing 30 years, theyve maintained their victimization story, and now, a new Peacock docuseries purports to have evidence that might corroborate their allegations against Josand it comes from the unlikeliest of sources. All Rights Reserved. The house in which Jos and Kitty were killed was located on one of the most exclusive blocks in Beverly Hills and was at different times occupied by Michael Jackson and Elton John. "I think it was the emotional pull of the defense that caused a mistrial," Deputy District Attorney Pamela Bozanich, who prosecuted Lyle, told The Times. From 1996 to 2018, the eldest brother Lyle was imprisoned at Mule Creek State Prison. Part of the reason for that sidelining, it appears, is that Roy doesnt fully remember what took place. Some said Jos planned to take Lyle and Erik out of the will for fears theyd blow their inheritance on their new girlfriends. Why did Lyle and Erik Menendez kill their parents? Erik was playing tennis in Israel at the time but came home voluntarily, and was arrested on March 11. He believed that whatever had to be done should be done with no heart, if necessary, a colleague told Vanity Fair. She added: My mom is a person that says like, You know, they killed their parents, and thats wrong.'. The brothers claimed the fatal shooting of Jose and Kitty Menendez in their Beverly Hills home was a form of "imperfect self-defense,"according to The New York Times. Crime News is your destination for true crime stories from around the world, breaking crime news, and information about Oxygen's original true crime shows and documentaries. They planned on spending as little time as possible in the home, but on the night of the murders, Jos reportedly forbade the boys from going out, prompting a heated argument. Nonetheless, he thrived in the competitive landscape, raking in millions a year. Lyle showed promise as an up-and-coming tennis athlete, while Erik had aspirations of getting into politics. Weve had lots of trials like that since, but that was really the one that proved that people would be interested in watching big trials.. All articles are regularly reviewed and updated by the HISTORY.com team. The first two juries (one for each brother) deadlocked, and a mistrial had to be called. Theres only so many gun stores in San Diego.. In December 1993, jurors began weeks of deliberations but couldnt agree to the charges, resulting in a hung jury. Thats where he met his future wife, Mary Louise, who was known as Kitty. Much of Menendez + Menudo: Boys Betrayed involves Roy speaking candidly and tearfully about his arduous ordeal, the multiple suicide attempts it instigated, and his hunger for justice. Pointing to a picture of Jose in the preview, To learn more about the case and all of its key players, watch Menendez + Menudo: Boys Betrayed, premiering May 2 on. It was so brutal that police thought the killings were a mob hit, and early investigations focused on business rivals and a porn executive who had a bone to pick with Jos. He worked his way up the ladder at a number of businesses. I believed every word he said, said juror Wendy Delahunt. Spectators were taken aback when, during opening arguments, Lyles defense attorney, Jill Lansing, told jurors, Lyle and Erik Menendez killed their parents.. Simpson, Caylee Anthony, the Zodiac Killer, and the Black Dahliathere is no mystery around the murder of Jose and Kitty Menendez. Erik said theyd done it to put their mother out of her misery, while Lyle made it clear that they were both in on the crime. Despite Rand bringing this to the attention of Lyle, Erik, and their attorney Cliff Gardnerand he and Ynclan making excited and optimistic pronouncements about what itll mean for the Menendez boys fateits not clear that this is enough to move the legal needle. Meanwhile, Lyle returned to Princeton, but not to attend classes. He lived with a cousin in Pennsylvania before winning an athletic scholarship to Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, Illinois. Erik! The population was then around 5 million. After a merger with a Minnesota-based record company, IVE became known as Live Entertainment and is now known as Artisan Entertainment. A jury convicted Erik and Lyle Menendez in 1996 of murdering their parents, Mary Louise "Kitty" and music executive Jose Menendez, in 1989. .css-m6thd4{-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;display:block;margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;font-family:Gilroy,Helvetica,Arial,Sans-serif;font-size:1.125rem;line-height:1.2;font-weight:bold;color:#323232;text-transform:capitalize;}@media (any-hover: hover){.css-m6thd4:hover{color:link-hover;}}G. Gordon Liddys Wild Career After Watergate. They went home to get Eriks false identification he had so they could go to a bar, retired Beverly Hills Detective Sgt. Im not 90 percent sure; Im 100 percent sure., How could she be so confident? On August 24, 1989, the day before his parents funeral, Lyle dropped over $15,000 on three Rolex watches, as witnesses and he would later testify. Lyle testified that he believed his brother because he, too, was allegedly sexually assaulted by Jos at a young age. We may earn commission from links on this page, but we only recommend products we back. Prosecutors argued that the brothers were driven by greed, pointing out that Erik and Lyle spent an estimated $700,000 of their inheritance in the months following their parents' deaths. They were kept in separate prisons and did not reunite until 2018 after having served almost 22 years of their life prison sentences. Thirty years ago this week, a shocking crime unfolded in a Beverly Hills mansion. The sensationalized trial of Lyle and Erik Menendez during the 1990s continues to be a source of fascination and debate, especially in light of social media and the #MeToo movement. Ex-Menudo Singer Makes Shock Claim About Menendez Brothers Dad. Jos was worth $14 million at the time of his death, and within six months, the brothers spent an estimated $700,000 of his fortune. Jos was born in Cuba, emigrated to the United States after the Cuban Revolution of the 1950s, living in the attic of a cousins home until he earned a college scholarship for swimming. Still, such notions are undermined by the sense that Menendez + Menudo: Boys Betrayed is deliberately avoiding a comprehensive reexamination of the case. Instead, people still interested in the Menendez Brothers fate had to wait for written news accounts of the events. Jos allegedly threatened to kill their sons to keep the truth from getting out, according to the brothers testimonies. Both boys were indicted on December 7, 1992 and tried separately for murder. Finally, the Supreme Court of California ruled that two of the three tapes were eligible to be used in the trial, including one that contained Lyles admission of guilt. After the verdict in their final trial and before their sentencing, the brothers sat down with Barbara Walters for one final interview. When this younger generation is learning about the Menendez case, theyre able to draw on a very vivid, primary source, which was the recording of this trial, said Marcus. I know.. On the outside, things seemed quite normal for the family, begging the question: who would want to kill L.A.s newest executive and his wife in cold blood? He smiled and looked up at her slowly. 3,830, This story has been shared 2,229 times. Well, why did you need to buy a Rolex watch four days after your parents were killed? Bozanich asked. He decided to forgo attending UCLA and instead hired a tennis coach for $60,000 a year in the hopes of going pro. In March 1996, both Lyle and Erik were convicted and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

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