The District Attorney in Los Angeles announced Thursday that his office will reexamine the convictions of the Menendez brothers in light of new evidence, including a letter from Erik detailing alleged sexual abuse by their father.
Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón made a public statement reported by KTLA about his office's decision to reevaluate the convictions of Erik and Lyle Menendez, who were found guilty of murdering their parents in 1989 and have served 35 years of their lifetime prison sentences.
"I want to be very clear, we have not conceded one way or the other," he said. "We're not saying that there was anything wrong with the original trial. We have been given evidence."
The new evidence includes a letter written by Erik Menendez alleging their father, Jose Menendez, sexually abused the brothers, raising questions about whether this information could have influenced their original trial.
Gascón further clarified that his office is not yet taking a stance on the validity of the evidence. "I'm not here to make judgment on that," he said. "But there is no question that today would have been a greater level of sensitivity to the way the case was looked at."
The reconsideration of the case could lead to a re-sentencing or even the release of the Menendez brothers.
The case originally captured national attention as the brothers were painted as excessively privileged and motivated by greed to kill their wealthy parents. The brothers have maintained that the murders were a result of years of abuse but were not allowed to present claims of abuse in their sentencing trial.
An initial hearing in consideration of the case is scheduled for Nov. 29.
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