(NewsNation) — A California state panel on Thursday denied parole to Erik Menendez, one of two brothers who has been in prison for decades after the siblings killed their parents in a notorious 1989 shotgun murder.

The closely watched decision on the 54-year-old inmate comes a day before the California Board of Parole was scheduled to hear arguments over whether Lyle Menendez, 57, deserves to be released.

The brothers became eligible for parole earlier this year after a judge reduced their sentences from life in prison without the possibility of parole to 50 years to life.

In the two separate hearings, the parole board was obligated to assess whether the brothers pose an “unreasonable risk of danger to society” if released from prison.

Parole board commissioners previously determined t

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