Menendez brothers resentencing hearing set to get underway after months of delays: Live – UK Times

The big question at the center of this week’s hearing is have Erik Menendez, 54, and Lyle Menendez, 57, been rehabilitated while in prison and do they deserve a lesser sentence of 50 years to life.

This new sentence would make them eligible for parole under California’s youthful offender law because they committed the crime under the age of 26.

Defense attorney, Mark Geragos, said in April he may ask the judge to reduce their charges to manslaughter, potentially allowing them to be immediately released.

Newly-elected district attorney Nathan Hochman reversed course from Gascón and opposed the brothers’ resentencing. His office has said it does not believe that the brothers were sexually abused by their father.

Citing the forensic psychologist’s analysis that said the brothers had recently broken prison rules by smuggling cellphones inside, which Hochman argued demonstrated an inability to regulate their own behavior.

It came to the conclusion that they were “moderately more likely” than others to engage in violence in the community, Hochman said.

Prosecutors have attempted to withdraw the resentencing petition twice, but Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Michael Jesic ruled both times that the resentencing hearings could continue.

Former LA County District Attorney George Gascón had opened the door to possible freedom for the brothers last fall by asking a judge to reduce their sentences.

His office said the case would’ve been handled differently today due to modern understandings of sexual abuse and trauma, and the brothers’ rehabilitation over three decades in prison.

A resentencing petition laid out by Gascón focuses on the brothers’ accomplishments and rehabilitation. The brothers’ attorneys say their clients have worked hard to better themselves and give back to the prison community.

The extended Menendez family, with the exception of an uncle who died in March, has said they fully forgive the brothers for what they did and want them to be freed.

The Menendez brothers’ sentencing hearing is set to begin today at 9:30 a.m. in Los Angeles, California.

The hearing is expected to last two days if there are no delays.

It’s unclear when exactly the judge will issue a decision.

Erik and Lyle Menendez have spent nearly 30 years in prison for the double murder of their parents.

But now they face a chance at freedom.

Here’s a look at their case over the last three decades:

After months of delays, a resentencing hearing for Erik and Lyle Menendez is set to begin today in Los Angeles.

The brothers will appear in Los Angeles court at 9:30 a.m. local time, for the hearing.

A judge will hear arguments from both sides and then will decide whether the brothers should get a chance at freedom after serving nearly 30 years in prison for murdering their parents in 1989.

Follow along for live updates from The Independent.