Menendez Brothers was sentenced to life with parole, by opening freedom

Lyle and Erik Menendez were sentenced to life on Tuesday with the possibility of parole, preparing the field for their possible release after more than three decades behind bars for having killed their parents in their Beverly Hills manor.

The decision, by judge Michael V. Jesic of the Los Angeles Superior Court, intervened after a day of testimonies by family members, who declared that the brothers had transformed their lives inside the prison thanks to groups of education and self-assistance. They urged the court to reduce the brothers’ convictions for the murders of 1989.

“It was an absolutely horrible crime,” said judge Jesic, having made his decision. But as shocking as the crime, said judge Jesic, he was also shocked by the number of correctional officials who wrote letters on behalf of the brothers, supported support that has clearly influenced his decision.

“I don’t suggest that they should be released,” he said. “It’s not for me to decide.”

But, he continued: “I think they have done enough in the past 35 years to have this chance.” The future of the brothers, he said, would now be in the hands of Governor Gavin Newsom and those responsible for the Word of the State.

Although the decision of Judge Jesic has been the most important legal step so far in the long effort of the brothers to win the liberation, this is not the last step. By reducing the sorrows of the brothers, the judge allowed them to be immediately eligible for parole.

Now attention will be on the officials of the conditional release of the State. The brothers were to appear before the board of directors on June 13 as part of the consideration of Mr. Newsom de Clémence, a distinct process which took place in parallel with the renowned effort.