Erik Menendez appears before the parole board via teleconference on Thursday at the Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility in San Diego.
California Department of Corrections via AP
Erik Menendez, left, and Lyle Menendez
California Department of Corrections via AP
Lyle, left, and Erik Galen Menendez sit in a Beverly Hills, Calif., courtroom, on May 14, 1990.
AP File Photo
LOS ANGELES — Erik Menendez was denied parole Thursday after serving decades in prison for murdering his parents with his older brother in 1989.
A panel of 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 two 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.
The brothers became eligible for parole after a judge reduced their sentences in May from life without parole to 50 years to life.
The parole hearings marked the closest they’ve been to winning freedom from prison since their convictions almost 30 years ago for murdering their parents.
The brothers were sentenced to life in prison in 1996 for fatally shooting their father, Jose Menendez, and mother, Kitty Menendez, in their Beverly Hills mansion in 1989. While defense attorneys argued that the brothers acted out of self-defense after years of sexual abuse by their father, prosecutors said the brothers sought a multimillion-dollar inheritance.
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. He noted the hearing fell almost exactly 36 years after he killed his parents — on Aug. 20, 1989.
“Today is August 21st. Today is the day that all of my victims learned my parents were dead. So today is the anniversary of their trauma journey,” he said, referring to his family members.
The state corrections department chose a single reporter to watch the videoconference and share details with the rest of the press.
What happens next
Lyle Menendez is set to appear over videoconference Friday for his parole hearing from the same prison in San Diego.
The case has captured the attention of true crime enthusiasts for decades and spawned documentaries, television specials and dramatizations. The Netflix drama “ Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story ” and a documentary released in 2024 have been credited for bringing new attention to the brothers.
Greater recognition of the brothers as victims of sexual abuse has also helped mobilize support for their release. Some supporters have flown to Los Angeles to hold rallies and attend court hearings.
