Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman He met Friday with the family of Lyle and Eric Menendez as the new top cop considers retrying the brothers.
The meeting and subsequent press conference came after the Menendez family called for a new sentence that “reflects the abuse, trauma and rehabilitation of Eric and Lyle over the past 35 years.”
“As we prepare to meet with D. A. Hochman, our family hopes to have an open and fair discussion,” the family said in a statement issued Thursday evening before the meeting with Hochman. “Despite the abuse they suffered as children and the unfairness of their current sentence, Eric and Lyle Menendez have spent the past three decades taking responsibility for their actions and contributing positively to their community through leadership and rehabilitation.”
The brothers are serving life in prison without parole for the 1989 shotgun killings of their parents at their mansion in Beverly Hills, California. The case returned to the national spotlight after former Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón expressed support for the reinstatement.
Lyle, left, and Eric, right, are pictured in footage from 2023. After years apart, they were moved to the same housing unit at the Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility in San Diego in 2018, according to the New York Daily News. (California Department of Corrections)
Lyle, left, and Eric Menendez sit with defense attorney Leslie Abramson, right, in Beverly Hills Municipal Court during a hearing on November 26, 1990. (AP Photo/Nick Ut)
During a press conference, he was newly sworn in District attorney He said that the meeting with the family was “fruitful.”
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
“It was a very productive session as they gave me all of their ideas about what should happen in this case, their experiences that they wanted to share, and the directions they wanted this case to go,” Hochman said. “It was a very productive conversation over several hours.”
Nathan Hochman speaks during a news conference in Los Angeles on September 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Damien Dovarganis, File)
The prosecutor said his office is diligently reviewing thousands of pages of transcripts and court records from the case.
“Right now, the re-sentencing hearing is set for January 30 and 31. That date is the date we are working against. If that changes, we will definitely let you know,” he said. “We will continue to do the difficult but important work of reviewing the facts of the law to make the right decision In this case“.
Follow the FOX TRUE CRIME team on X
Hochman said his office expects to reach a decision by the time of the hearing on Jan. 30.
WATCH ON FOX NATION: The Menendez Brothers: Victims or Villains?
Hochman did not reveal what he was talking about With familySaying it was an “informal, informal conversation.”
He added: “We will spend the time necessary to get this decision right.” “There's not a lot of free time in my life right now, but that's okay. I didn't sign up for a job that said I would have a lot of free time.”
