Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Wednesday that he’s ordering the California Board of Parole Hearings to closely examine whether the Menendez brothers pose a risk to public safety if released from prison right now.
Newsom made the announcement on his “This is Gavin Newsom” podcast.
“The question for the board is a rather simple one,” Newsom said during the introductory episode. “Do Erik and Lyle Menendez pose an unreasonable risk to public safety?”
Public safety experts and forensic psychologists will conduct the risk assessment. According to Eytan Wallace, California Capitol reporter for Nexstar Media, the process starts with experts analyzing what led a person to commit an offense and determining whether they have done the transformational work needed—and gained the skills—to avoid repeating their mistakes.
Nexstar Media is the parent company of KTLA 5.
Once that’s complete, a hearing will work like a standard parole hearing, providing the District Attorney and the victims a chance to be part of the process.
The risk assessment results will be available to the judge presiding over the case and Los Angeles District Attorney Nathan Hochman.
Newsom’s announcement comes after Hochman announced that his office had issued an informal response requesting the courts deny the brothers’ habeas petition.
A habeas petition is a formal challenge to the legality of a conviction. It is often considered a last resort after appeals have been exhausted. If new evidence is deemed sufficient, it could eventually lead to a convict’s release.
In October, former DA George Gascón announced that his office would reexamine the case in the light of new evidence, including a letter purportedly written by Erik Menendez just months before he and his brother, Lyle, killed their parents with a shotgun at their Beverly Hills home in 1989. They were 21 and 18 at the time, respectively.
The letter details alleged sexual abuse committed by their father, Jose Menendez.
Despite the setback from the DA’s office, Newsom has “unilateral” power to grant the brothers clemency, which would free them immediately. Still, Newsom noted that “there is no guarantee of outcome here.”
Erik and Lyle Menendez admitted to fatally shooting their father, Jose Menendez, and their mother, Kitty Menendez, after fearing their parents were about to kill them to stop people from finding out that Jose Menendez had sexually abused Erik Menendez for years.
The brothers have been in prison for over 30 years after being convicted in 1996.
The case has regained national attention since the release of Netflix’s “The Menendez Brothers” film.
