The Menendez Brothers, one step closer to life outside the prison wall when facing the next obstacle (parole board hearing), bidding to release from a 1989 shotgun in Beverly Hills.
Criminal defense attorneys in Minton, Bassett, Flores & Carsey, Austin, Texas, told Fox News Digital that the focus will now shift to the state parole board and Gov. Gavin Newsom.
"There is no doubt that Newsom is doing some political calculations about this decision," he said.
Bassett believes that the parole board “will consider the opinions of all interested people, especially the families of the victims”, weigh the results of the comprehensive risk assessment (CRA), and ask the brothers to show their remorse and acceptance of their responsibilities.
Menendez brothers can get free under California law signed by Gavin Newsom: Experts
The Menendez brothers will face parole committee in June. (Getty Image)
Fox News Digital contacted Newsom's office, which mentioned Wednesday's press conference where he briefly spoke about Erik and Lyle Menendez's parole process and said the process is still evolving.
“As you know, we started a process designed to help judges understand the resentment of risk assessments. We think we should be cautious before any resentment,” he said. “In the past few months, this process has unfolded, with forensic psychologists assessing each brother’s risk.”
Some details of these risk assessments have not been made public and are presented in a section of Tuesday’s resentment hearing. The analysis of these reports often includes causes that lead to a person's chances of committing crimes, prison conduct and recidivism.
Both brothers admit to killing their parents, Mary "Katie" and Jose Menendez in the 1989 creepy shotgun massacre Their Beverly Hills are home. Until Tuesday's resentment hearing, they insisted that their behavior was self-defense for life, physical and sexual abuse by their parents.
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The sketch describes (LR) Erik and Lyle Mendendez when they appeared on Friday, April 11, 2025 in the Superior Court in Van Nuiss, California. (Bill Robles)
Colorado-based criminal defense attorney Eric Faddis outlines the technical barriers the Menings brothers must clear before the board begins to review their cases.
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Thanks to the brothers' recent hatred of Erik and Lyle under California's young criminal law, they are now eligible for parole. "Erik was 18 and Lyle was 21 when he murdered his parents.
"There are no other eligibility requirements, which means the parole board "can now consider whether the release is appropriate." ”
On Monday, June 2, an undated photo of the Menandes family appeared on the screen in a 2024 group of Crimichen in Nashville, Tennessee. (Fox News figures)
Faddis responded to Bassett's comment that the board would weigh the "severity of the crime", any previous criminal history, participation in a rehabilitation program, signs of remorse and the prospect of stabilizing living conditions when released.
“In this case, all living family members of the victims support the release,” he said. “The board may consider any positive contribution to the society the brothers made during their incarceration, including advocating survivors of child sexual abuse.”
When asked how the gravity of the double homicide factor makes a decision, even decades later, Fades said: “Double homicide is as serious as the severity it has been obtained.”
He admitted that while the father’s alleged abuse may reduce the assessment of the father’s killing, “there is no equal mitigation for the mother’s murder.”
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Left Erik Menendez and his brother Lyle are in front of their home in Beverly Hills. (Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
Faddis predicts that recent statutory changes could benefit the brothers’ release. He said that under the criminal law of Article 4801, the parole board must now clearly consider “whether the crime was caused by the victims of prisoners.”
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"Many people think that this previous abuse is now more weight than it was legally and socially than it was in the 1990s," he said.
The brothers will appear on parole board on June 13, 2025 in a video of Richard J. Donovan Correctional Institution.
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The board of directors will recommend or reject the brothers’ release. Newsom has the final say on whether they should be free.