«Menendez Brothers: The story of cold-blooded killers or victims of family violence?»
19 september 2024 в 19:13
Lyle and Erik Menendez continue to serve a life sentence in prison for the brutal murder of their parents on August 20, 1989, when the brothers, then 21 and 18 years old, shot them in their Beverly Hills mansion.
Now, 35 years later, the Menendez brothers have become the latest subjects of Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan’s anthology, Monster. Titled Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story, the series stars Nicholas Alexander Chavez and Cooper Koch as Lyle and Erik, as well as Javier Bardem and Chloe Sevigny as their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez. The first part of this crime story, focused on serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer and featuring Evan Peters as the «Milwaukee Cannibal», - garnered 1 billion views in the first 60 days on Netflix.
The 10-episode season, which will begin airing on September 19 on Netflix, aims to explore whether the Menendez brothers were cold-blooded killers seeking to inherit their family’s fortune, as the prosecution claimed, or victims of years of physical, emotional, and sexual abuse by their parents, as the defense argued and as the brothers maintain to this day.
Before delving into the series, here are five things to know about Lyle, now 56, and Erik, 53.
At the time of their parents' murder on August 20, 1989, Lyle was studying at Princeton, and Erik was a freshman at UCLA. The brothers grew up in Beverly Hills, enjoying a privileged life thanks to their wealthy parents — Jose, a Hollywood executive, and Mary Louise «Kitty», - a former beauty queen.
After Jose and Kitty were found brutally shot in their Beverly Hills mansion, Lyle and Erik spent money lavishly, depleting their parents' estimated $ 700,000 estate on cars, jewelry, and even purchasing restaurants and cafes. But their ultimate downfall came when Erik confessed to his psychiatrist, Jerome Oziel, who then shared the information with his mistress, Judalon Smyth. Smyth informed the police that Erik had confessed to the murders in therapy and that there were audio recordings of the confession. The brothers were arrested in March 1990, sparking a years-long legal battle over the admissibility of Oziel’s recordings.
«I never thought I believed in evil, but when I heard those boys talk, I believed», - Smyth told investigative journalist Dominick Dunne in 1990.
The brothers claimed in court that their father, who was nearly decapitated by a 12-gauge shotgun, was a child molester. These claims were corroborated by the testimony of their cousins, Andy Cano and Diana Vander Molen, who said that Lyle and Erik had confessed to them about the sexual abuse they suffered as children. As for their mother, who was shot 14 times, the brothers said she was an alcoholic who encouraged and condoned their father’s violence.
Their first trial, which began in 1993, ended in a hung jury. In the second trial, the judge limited testimony about alleged abuse and prohibited the jury from considering manslaughter charges instead of murder. Both brothers were found guilty of two counts of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
«Erik and Lyle Menendez have been in prison for 34 years and 6 months, and I believe they are there for killing their long-term abusers», - said Robert Rand, who spent significant time with the brothers after the crime and is the author of the book «The Menendez Murders: The Shocking Untold Story of the Menendez Family and the Murders That Rocked the Nation».
«The correct verdict in the trial of the Menendez brothers should have been manslaughter, not murder».
Despite their heinous crimes and life behind bars, there was no shortage of women interested in the Menendez brothers. Lyle married Anna Eriksson on July 2, 1996, but they divorced on April 1, 2001, after she learned of the crimes
Now, 35 years later, the Menendez brothers have become the latest subjects of Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan’s anthology, Monster. Titled Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story, the series stars Nicholas Alexander Chavez and Cooper Koch as Lyle and Erik, as well as Javier Bardem and Chloe Sevigny as their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez. The first part of this crime story, focused on serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer and featuring Evan Peters as the «Milwaukee Cannibal», - garnered 1 billion views in the first 60 days on Netflix.
The 10-episode season, which will begin airing on September 19 on Netflix, aims to explore whether the Menendez brothers were cold-blooded killers seeking to inherit their family’s fortune, as the prosecution claimed, or victims of years of physical, emotional, and sexual abuse by their parents, as the defense argued and as the brothers maintain to this day.
Before delving into the series, here are five things to know about Lyle, now 56, and Erik, 53.
At the time of their parents' murder on August 20, 1989, Lyle was studying at Princeton, and Erik was a freshman at UCLA. The brothers grew up in Beverly Hills, enjoying a privileged life thanks to their wealthy parents — Jose, a Hollywood executive, and Mary Louise «Kitty», - a former beauty queen.
After Jose and Kitty were found brutally shot in their Beverly Hills mansion, Lyle and Erik spent money lavishly, depleting their parents' estimated $ 700,000 estate on cars, jewelry, and even purchasing restaurants and cafes. But their ultimate downfall came when Erik confessed to his psychiatrist, Jerome Oziel, who then shared the information with his mistress, Judalon Smyth. Smyth informed the police that Erik had confessed to the murders in therapy and that there were audio recordings of the confession. The brothers were arrested in March 1990, sparking a years-long legal battle over the admissibility of Oziel’s recordings.
«I never thought I believed in evil, but when I heard those boys talk, I believed», - Smyth told investigative journalist Dominick Dunne in 1990.
The brothers claimed in court that their father, who was nearly decapitated by a 12-gauge shotgun, was a child molester. These claims were corroborated by the testimony of their cousins, Andy Cano and Diana Vander Molen, who said that Lyle and Erik had confessed to them about the sexual abuse they suffered as children. As for their mother, who was shot 14 times, the brothers said she was an alcoholic who encouraged and condoned their father’s violence.
Their first trial, which began in 1993, ended in a hung jury. In the second trial, the judge limited testimony about alleged abuse and prohibited the jury from considering manslaughter charges instead of murder. Both brothers were found guilty of two counts of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
«Erik and Lyle Menendez have been in prison for 34 years and 6 months, and I believe they are there for killing their long-term abusers», - said Robert Rand, who spent significant time with the brothers after the crime and is the author of the book «The Menendez Murders: The Shocking Untold Story of the Menendez Family and the Murders That Rocked the Nation».
«The correct verdict in the trial of the Menendez brothers should have been manslaughter, not murder».
Despite their heinous crimes and life behind bars, there was no shortage of women interested in the Menendez brothers. Lyle married Anna Eriksson on July 2, 1996, but they divorced on April 1, 2001, after she learned of the crimes
© Kolganov Andrey
