The criminal case of Lyle and Erik Menendez has long captivated the nation with renewed interest following the release of the Netflix series, “Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story,” co-created by Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan. Lyle and Erik Menendez’s opportunity for freedom remains in question after the Los Angeles County District Attorney who recommended the brothers be resentenced lost his reelection bid in a landslide to Nathan Hochman, a tough-on-crime former federal prosecutor.
George Gascón announced last month that his office was recommending the two brothers, now in their 50s, should be eligible for parole after spending more than 30 years behind bars for gunning down their wealthy parents in 1989.
José and Kitty Menendez were fatally shot in their Beverly Hills mansion on August 20, 1989. Their sons, who were 21 and 18 at the time, were arrested less than a year later, in 1990, and convicted of first-degree murder six years later. José Menendez was a successful Los Angeles businessman before he was killed at the age of 45, along with his 47-year-old wife Kitty Menendez in the family room of their Beverly Hills home. (José Menendez was chief executive officer of LIVE Entertainment, a video-distribution company that is a partially owned subsidiary of Carolco Pictures, a movie-production company.)
The prosecution sought to prove that the brothers killed their parents out of greed for the more than $14 million estate which they stood to inherit. While José had not disinherited Lyle and Erik, he confided shortly before his death that he had told his sons he planned to write them out of his will. At both criminal trials, the prosecution argued that the brothers were motivated by a desire to receive the multimillion-dollar estate.
Following the murders, Lyle and Erik came into possession of their parents’ sizable estate. The estate was estimated to be worth $14.5 million at the time of José and Kitty’s deaths. This would be equivalent to roughly $36.8 million in 2024, and the estate consisted of properties in Calabasas, Beverly Hills, and New Jersey, shares in José’s company LIVE Entertainment, and personal possessions of the couple, including their expensive cars and jewelry.
At their two high-profile trials, the Menendez brothers did not deny killing their parents but argued they should not be convicted because they acted in self-defense after enduring physical and sexual abuse by their father.
Lyle and Erik embarked on a spending spree after the murders. Lyle acquired a Porsche, three Rolex watches (the day before their parents’ funeral, as witnesses later testified), and a restaurant, while Erik focused his expenditures on tennis lessons ($60,000 a year) and travel as well as racking up thousands in gambling losses and investing $40,000 in a rock concert at the Palladium in Los Angeles that never happened. Within six months of the murders, their total spending approached $700,000. This spending attracted scrutiny and raised suspicions, which ultimately assisted law enforcement in uncovering the financial motive behind the homicides.
The Menendez defense was paid for with money from the estate of the parents the brothers killed. From the beginning, all the potential contingent heirs and executors knew that the estate assets were used to pay for the defense of Lyle and Erik.
Once convicted and given life sentences, the California Slayer Statute eliminated any possibility of Lyle and Erik’s future financial gains from their parents’ estate. This statute bars anyone who intentionally kills another individual from inheriting from the victim’s estate or receiving benefits from life insurance policies. According to the statute, an individual who commits a felony resulting in the death of another is prohibited from benefiting from the victim’s estate, irrespective of their familial ties. The killer(s) is not entitled to any property, interest, or benefit from the victim’s estate. This includes property from a will, trust, or intestate succession.
If the killings were committed in self-defense, however, or deemed a justifiable homicide, California’s Slayer Statute would not apply. Slayer Statute cases are heard in probate courts, and it’s crucial for trustees and personal representatives handling estates to be aware of Slayer Rules. This ensures proper distribution of assets and protects beneficiaries (or alternate beneficiaries) from unintended consequences.
“This is not about whether they committed the crime, they did,” Gascón explained to Dateline’s Keith Morrison. “This is about 35 years of rehabilitation under state law, can they be released safely?” Gascón cited new evidence of years of sexual and physical abuse at the hands of their father, the support of all but one of their family members, and behavior he said demonstrated rehabilitation during their nearly three decades in prison.
Among the many cases Nathan Hochman will inherit from the previous DA, none may be more high-profile than the Menendez brothers’ murder case. Los Angeles County’s incoming district attorney said he may ask the court for more time to review the Menendez brothers’ case. Hochman takes office on December 2, and a hearing on resentencing will be held on December 11.
If you have questions about an estate plan, trust, probate, or will, contact me at 561-807-1977 or email max@maxjpaul.com.