One of the most notorious murder cases in America is facing the possibility of being reopened for a third time, nearly 35 years after the crime: the murder of José and Mary Louise “Kitty” Menendez by their two sons.

On Aug. 20, 1989, brothers Erik and Lyle Menendez killed their parents, José and Kitty. They were found dead in their Beverly Hills mansion. They were said to be unidentifiable after 15 gruesome bullets found them, identified to be from two 12-gauge shotguns. 

The brutal nature of the crime scene caused police to originally believe that someone from the Mafia had murdered them, as José had been known as a cruel, abrasive man. The early stages of the investigation focused on finding suspects who would have a strong hatred towards José.

Suspicions heightened as Erik and Lyle did not “act” like two brothers who had just unknowingly walked into a disastrous crime scene and found their parents dead. 

José had a $14.5 million fortune at the time of his death, which the brothers inherited. They spent their newfound inheritance on clothes, cars, vacations, etc. Within six months, they had spent around $700,000 of it, yet there was no proof that they were involved in the killings until almost a year later.

March 5, 1990, Judalon Smyth confided in the police, confirming that it was not the Mafia who killed José and Kitty Menendez, but their two sons, Lyle and Erik, who were 21 and 18 on the day of the murders.

Smyth had been a mistress of Dr. Jerome Oziel’s, and after their break up, Smyth turned the brothers into the authorities with a taped confession. Smyth got ahold of the tape through Dr. Oziel, who was Erik’s former mandated therapist after he was involved in multiple burglaries in 1988. Dr. Oziel had reached out to Erik and Lyle after learning about the death of their parents and was the first to learn of the murders.

At this point, the shocking murders and cover-up pointed to the brothers killing José and Kitty for greed. Only in the 1993 court trials did the brothers come forward with the sexual abuse they faced at the hands of their father.

Due to José’s high social status, the trial quickly picked up live national news coverage as it progressed. He was known as a cruel, competitive and emotionally abusive father, pushing his kids too far at points in time. The accusation took the trial to an entirely different level; this was not just malintent murders, but possible self-defense from an abuser. 

Lyle stated that he was sexually assaulted from ages six to eight, and Erik also stated he was assaulted from ages six to 18, which was his age at the time of the murder. They went into immense detail of what José did to them, and what he made them do to each other. Multiple family members testified for the brothers’ defense, but there was no physical evidence, which was why they were ultimately sentenced to life in prison with no parole (Biography).

Nearly 35 years later, a trial to free the brothers may finally take place. After two new pieces of evidence were found, the brothers filed a petition for a writ of habeas corpus in early 2023. One piece was a letter Erik wrote to his late cousin, Andy Cano, supporting the claim that he had been sexually abused, and the other was a statement from Roy Rosselló, a member of the Puerto Rican musical group Menudo, who said José sexually assaulted him as well. 

George Gascón, a Los Angeles County District Attorney, stated after the brothers’ petition had languished until early Oct. that there would be a hearing with the new evidence to give the brothers a possible new sentencing, one of life with parole (Biography).

The case and new evidence have picked up even more traction recently as the 2024 Netflix show “Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story” and “The Menendez Brothers” 2024 documentary have become strikingly popular. Erik has stated that the show had been inaccurate, as it implied an incestuous relationship and other questionable things about the brothers, but the documentary is known to show more of the true, factual features (Biography).

“I feel shows like [Monsters] dramatize things. I [also] watched the documentary, and some of the actual court tapes, too, and I heard some things that could have [been] worded differently, but I think the show proves that they were abused by their father,” said Lucy Powers, (she/her), 10.

This case has enraptured the people of the media, with both sides arguing what should be the outcome of this case. This new publicity has affected the case both negatively and positively.

“There’s good and bad aspects for it [social media], because…without it getting big on social media, they [the court] probably wouldn’t have thought that much about even trying to free them,” stated Powers. “But there’s definitely things that, because of publicity now, that shouldn’t be as focused on that are probably [being] focused on right now.”

People all over the country are waiting on the edge of their seats, waiting to see exactly what will happen with Erik and Lyle. While the case brings about different reactions from people, it raises an important question about the ethics of entertainment and media in crime cases.