Supporters say Menendez brothers should be freed. Prosecutors say they should still be behind bars
Current and former prosecutors who tried the brothers in the 1990s told NBC News they believe Erik and Lyle Menendez are cold-blooded killers who should be in prison.
While supporters and relatives of Erik and Lyle Menendez have advocated for their resentencing and possible release from prison, current and former prosecutors who tried the brothers in the 1990s told NBC News that they believe the men are cold-blooded killers and should remain where they are — behind bars.
In an exclusive interview, one of the prosecutors cast doubt on a new piece of potential evidence the brothers have presented in court to challenge their convictions.
“They killed their parents. They slaughtered their mother,” former Los Angeles County Deputy District Attorney Pamela Bozanich, who prosecuted the brothers in their first trial, told “Dateline.” “Why should they live among us?”
The brothers were sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole in the 1989 shotgun killings of their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez, and have spent more than three decades in prison. But last month, Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón — who this week was voted out of office — told a judge that he supported resentencing the men to 50 years to life, which could make them eligible for parole immediately. Erik and Lyle Menendez no longer pose a public safety risk and have paid their debt to society, Gascón told reporters.
The announcement was applauded by those who pointed to the horrific abuse the siblings said they endured for years at the hands of their father, a wealthy entertainment company executive. Their supporters said it was time for the men to be free.
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