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It has been 35 years since Lyle and Eric Menendez committed the horrific murder of their parents in their Beverly Hills home. The brothers were tried twice before being sentenced to life in prison; most people expected them to be forgotten about, but the case refuses to go away quietly. In fact, an episode of “Impact by Nightline”, called “Menendez Brothers: Monsters or Victims?”, is being released today on Hulu which suggests that the brothers’ defense of sexual abuse at the hands of their father may be more credible. Juju Chang is the anchor of ABC News Nightline; she appeared on 710 WOR’s Len Berman and Michael Riedel in the Morning program to explore whether Eric and Lyle were really monsters who slaughtered their parents in cold blood or victims who finally reached a breaking point.
“In this exhaustive reporting I think the answer is both,” Chang told Berman and Riedel. “What they did on that night 35 years ago was monstrous, nothing short of that, and I don’t think that anyone would say that these boys- or men, rather- are innocent. But I think in the 35 years a lot has changed, and after being sentenced to life in prison with no hope of parole, for the first time in 35 years, they have a real glimmer of hope, of freedom, and that’s what’s happening in these last weeks of October, as the L.A. DA has announced that he’s reconsidering both the sentence and some new evidence.”
The brothers were charged with first degree murder, not manslaughter, a fact which Chang says limited the jury’s options when the brothers were sentenced. “Jurors in the second trial were not given evidence of sexual abuse. They were told, ‘It’s either first degree murder or they’re out’, and so they got first degree murder, life without parole. And so, what they’re saying is, if manslaughter had been available, they would have gotten maybe 20, 25 years, and they’ve now in prison for 35 years… (The DA) is going to recommend to a judge- or not- that their sentence be reduced, and if it is, they could walk free.”
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