JEROME Oziel was the Menendez brothers’ therapist and was a key witness in the trial that followed the murder of Erik and Lyle’s parents.
The therapist was one of the first people that Erik Menendez confessed to, in a decision that began a series of events involving Jerome, his mistress and a shocking arrest.
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The twists and turns of the case were dramatized in Ryan Murphy’s Netflix series Monsters and explored in the documentary The Menendez Brothers.
Here’s everything you need to know about Jerome Oziel.
The Menendez family therapist
Jerome Oziel earned his doctorate in clinical psychology in 1972 at Arizona State University and opened up a private practice in Beverly Hills.
He became an expert in phobias, but began to specialise in sex-related disorders.
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The therapist met Lyle and Erik in 1988 and became their therapist after they committed a series of burglaries.
Months after the brothers killed their parents in August 1989, Erik scheduled a meeting with Jerome and confessed to the murder.
Due to confidentiality practices between therapists and their clients, Jerome did not go to the police but he began to record their sessions.
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The Menendez brothers’ crime
On August 20, 1989, the Menendez brothers murdered their parents in a killing so brutal that police initially thought it had been at the hands of the Mob.
The brothers had killed Kitty and José Menendez with shotguns and later claimed that this was in response to years of alleged sexual abuse from their father.
After the murder, they lived a lavish lifestyle using their inheritance.
However, Erik’s confession to Jerome caused this lifestyle to unravel.
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A shock arrest
Jerome told his mistress, Judalon Smyth, everything Erik had confided in him.
After Jerome split up with her, Judalon went to the police and admitted everything she knew including details about the therapist’s recordings.
A legal battle ensued over whether the tapes were admissible in court and two of the recordings became integral parts of the case.
Jerome became a primary witness for the prosecution and the brothers were sentenced to life in prison without parole.
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After the trial
Jerome lost his license after the trial, after the California Board of Psychology said that he had wrongfully shared information with Judalon.
It was also alleged that Judalon was a client of his and that him having a sexual relationship with her amounted to sexual misconduct.
He surrendered his license but clarified to Bustle in 2017 that this was not because of the accusations leveled against him.
Jerome said: “I did not surrender my license due to the accusation, which implies I gave up my practice because I did things alleged in the original accusation.
“I had phased out of my practice because I had a major business offer that was highly lucrative and moved to be the CEO of a large business in another state a year and a half prior to the surrender. … No agency ever found I did a thing that was improper or wrong.”
Jerome now goes by “Jerry” and lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
He chose not to take part in the Netflix documentary exploring Erik and Lyle’s crime.
