Erik and Lyle Menendez have created self-help groups and programs while locked up for 35 years

LOS ANGELES – Erik and Lyle Menendez person lived much clip down bars than free.

Since their apprehension implicit 35 years agone for the treble execution of their parents successful their Beverly Hills, California, home, the brothers person gotten an education, participated successful self-help classes and started assorted enactment groups for their chap inmates.

Their attorneys program to item their behaviour during their clip successful situation erstwhile they reason earlier a Los Angeles judge connected Thursday and Friday for a reduced condemnation that could pb to their release.

The brothers were sentenced to beingness successful situation without the anticipation of parole astatine ages 18 and 21 aft sidesplitting their amusement enforcement father, Jose Menendez, and their mother, Kitty Menendez.

While defence attorneys argued the brothers acted retired of self-defense aft years of intersexual maltreatment by their father, prosecutors said the brothers killed their parents for a multimillion-dollar inheritance.

Former District Attorney George Gascón gave them different chance erstwhile helium asked the tribunal to see a caller condemnation for the brothers, 1 that would marque them instantly eligible for parole.

A resentencing petition filed by Gascón’s bureau gives a elaborate presumption of their clip locked up and their efforts astatine rehabilitation. Both brothers person received commendations and statements of enactment from correctional officers who person observed their behaviour successful prison.

Correctional Lieutenant Victor Cortes wrote of Lyle’s “exceptional conduct, a precocious grade of quality and trustworthiness” successful an April 2024 memo supporting his resentencing.

“As acold arsenic I tin comprehend from my nonrecreational grooming arsenic a correctional bid officer, Erik Menendez is simply a rehabilitated antheral who humbly strives toward helping those successful need,” Corrections Officer D. Rosario said successful a March 2016 memo, according to the resentencing petition.

Gascón’s successor, Nathan Hochman, doesn't agree. He submitted a motion past period to retreat the resentencing request, and prosecutors argued during past Friday’s proceeding they could not enactment the brothers’ resentencing.

Disciplinary records

Lyle has not been successful a azygous combat successful the 30 years helium has been successful prison, according to situation records that noted that helium had to beryllium moved to a Special Needs Yard successful 1997 due to the fact that “he wouldn’t combat backmost erstwhile attacked."

Both brothers person the lowest imaginable hazard appraisal and earthy information hazard scores for inmates serving a beingness sentence, according to the resentencing petition.

Unlike his brother, Erik was cited for 2 fights among his 8 violations successful prison. Lyle has had 5 violations, according to the resentencing petition. Some of these violations see possessing a cellphone and contraband specified arsenic a lighter oregon Adidas shoes.

Early situation years

During the archetypal fewer years of his clip successful prison, Erik completed galore unfortunate empathy, choler absorption and home unit programs.

Lyle became progressive successful enactment roles aboriginal connected and served arsenic Representative for Prisoners successful Northern California prisons successful 2003, according to subordinate warden B. Holmes successful a 2017 memo cited successful the resentencing petition.

“For implicit 10 years serving successful that capacity, helium has worked productively with the medication to foster a affirmative programming civilization astatine Mule Creek State Prison," Holmes said.

Community enactment groups

Erik cofounded the Life Care and Hospice connections enactment radical successful 2016 with the extremity of providing enactment for aged and disabled inmates and processing much compassion and knowing betwixt them and their able-bodied peers, the resentencing petition said.

“Because adjacent down bars, helium believes successful compassion and dignity,” his relative Anamaria Baralt said astatine a quality league past month.

According to assemblage assets manager Crystal Lopez, Erik authored the full program and yet developed a caller 126-page manual for the programme successful 2023.

Erik besides started 2 meditation programs and has go the pb facilitator for Alternatives to Violence, an in-prison struggle solution workshop. At 1 point, helium was teaching 5 antithetic classes a week, the resentencing petition said.

Lyle founded a programme successful 2016 that focuses connected helping different inmates recognize their puerility trauma and sermon topics similar experiencing enactment maltreatment arsenic children arsenic good arsenic Youth LWOP Ally, a mentorship radical of younker offenders with sentences of beingness without anticipation of parole mentoring different younker moving connected their rehabilitation goals.

The Green Space Project

At the Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility successful San Diego, Lyle spearheaded the Green Space Project opening successful 2018, which aims to beautify situation yards to make an situation amended suited for reducing unit and recidivism.

Their task was inspired by the Norwegian approach to incarceration that believes humane situation environments leads to much palmy reintegration into society.

“Over 100 inmates participated, marking the archetypal clip situation medication entrusted an inmate to pb specified a redesign,” Baralt said during a virtual quality league successful February.

He worked with section businesses and each levels of situation medication to rise much than $250,000 for the project, and helium partnered with Guide Dogs of America to rise $100,000 for artificial grass, according to the resentencing petition.

Erik is the pb creator for a monolithic mural that depicts San Diego landmarks.

The last merchandise volition see outdoor classrooms, rehabilitation-group gathering spaces and grooming areas for work dogs.

Pursuing higher education

Lyle graduated from the University of California, Irvine with a bachelor of arts successful sociology earlier this twelvemonth and earned an subordinate grade successful sociology previously. He is presently enrolled successful a master’s programme wherever helium studies municipality readying and recidivism, and the Green Space programme is portion of his capstone project.

Erik was accepted into UC Irvine for the autumn 2023 word and volition postgraduate successful June with a bachelor of arts successful sociology. Prior to that, helium earned subordinate degrees successful sociology and societal and behavioral science, arsenic good arsenic a wellness attraction adjutant diploma.

“They've taken a truly horrible concern and portion they are inactive successful prison, they took that platform of hards and made it a winning manus for themselves,” their relative Tamara Goodall said.

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