Lyle Menendez

By Joe Lombardi From Daily Voice

 A day after his brother was denied parole, Lyle Menendez met the same fate for the infamous Beverly Hills murders that shocked the nation 36 years ago.

A two-member panel ruled Friday, Aug. 22, that there are "still signs" that Lyle poses a risk to the public,” Parole Commissioner Julie Garland said.

The hearing lasted 11 hours and did not wrap up until 9 p.m. West Coast time. 

On Thursday, Aug. 21, a panel ruled that the 57-year-old Menendez's younger brother, Erik, age 54, still has significant work ahead before being considered for release from prison. 

Lyle Menendez shared with the parole board the details of the alleged abuse he endured at the hands of his parents. 

He cried as he delivered his closing statement, appearing determined to protect his “baby brother,” expressing to the commissioners that he alone should bear the responsibility for the shotgun murders.

“I will never be able to atone for the pain and sorrow I have caused my family,” he stated. “I am deeply sorry to everyone, and I will always carry that remorse.”

The decisions follow a May resentencing that made both Erik and his brother, Lyle, eligible for parole after serving more than 30 years for the 1989 murders of their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez.

While the panel acknowledged Erik’s positive contributions during his incarceration, it pointed to his “lengthy record of rule violations” as a major concern.

 “The ability to present one persona while being different underneath raises concerns for us,” Commissioner Robert Barton said. “While you may mature in certain aspects, you can still have blind spots in others.” 

The brothers will be eligible to reapply for parole in three years. There remain two avenues to freedom: clemency from Gov. Gavin Newsom and a court petition referencing new evidence in this long-standing case.

Interest in the case has surged again since the September 2024 debut of the Netflix series Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story.

The brothers, who initially deflected suspicion onto the Mafia, later confessed to the killings. Prosecutors argued the murders were motivated by greed, while the defense cited years of abuse.

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