Menendez brothers' former Beverly Hills mansion attracts curiosity seekers
BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. (KABC) -- The Beverly Hills mansion where Erik and Lyle Menendez killed their parents in has become a tourist attraction of sorts amid a renewed push to release the brothers from prison.
Visitors, including Pedro Gonzalez of Sacramento, have been driving past the two-story home.
Asked if he believed the Menendez brothers should be paroled, he said, "Yes, yes I think it's been enough time. I don't think what they did is something you can forgive easily, but I think that they served enough time."
The brothers, convicted in the 1989 killings, will need to get a judge to go along with the recommendation Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón made Thursday and then a parole board must approve their release. The final stop is with Gov. Gavin Newsom, who could reject the board's decision.
It's an uncertain process likely to stretch out over months.
Lyle Menendez, then 21, and Erik Menendez, then 18, admitted they fatally shot their entertainment executive father, Jose Menendez, and their mother, Kitty Menendez. The brothers said they feared their parents were about to kill them to stop people from finding out that Jose Menendez had sexually abused Erik Menendez for years.
Public interest in the murder case that shocked the nation has been soaring since the release of a Netflix documentary about the brothers.
Among the recent visitors to the mansion was a Beverly Hills resident who showed ABC7 a high school yearbook photo of Erik Menendez.
"I heard about it growing up,but with the Netflix show it just made it really interesting," Dylan Neman said. "Also, my dad went to with Erik Menendez."
Gascón's office filed paperwork Thursday that recommends the brothers - now 54 and 56 years old - receive a new sentence of 50 years to life. Because they were under 26 years old at the time of the crimes, they would be eligible for parole immediately.
"I believe that they have paid their debt to society," the DA said.
A hearing before a judge could come within the next month or so. If the judge agrees to the resentencing, the state parole board will hold its own proceeding to determine whether they should go free. If the board recommends parole, Newsom would have 150 days to review the case. The governor could green-light parole, or overrule the board and deny their release.
