Lyle and Erik Menéndez
American brothers convicted of murdering their parents / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Joseph Lyle Menéndez (born January 10, 1968)[2] and Erik Galen Menéndez (born November 27, 1970)[3] are American brothers who were convicted in 1996 of the murders of their parents, José and Mary Louise "Kitty" Menéndez.
Lyle and Erik Menéndez | |
---|---|
Born | Joseph Lyle Menéndez (1968-01-10) January 10, 1968 (age 56) New York City, U.S. Erik Galen Menéndez (1970-11-27) November 27, 1970 (age 53) Blackwood, New Jersey, U.S. |
Criminal status | Incarcerated at Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility (both)[1] |
Spouse(s) | (Erik) Tammi Menéndez (m. 1999) (Lyle) Rebecca Sneed (m. 2003) |
Parent(s) | José and Mary Louise “Kitty” Menéndez |
Conviction(s) | First-degree murder, conspiracy to commit murder |
Criminal penalty | Life in prison without the possibility of parole (both) |
Details | |
Victims | José and Mary Louise “Kitty” Menéndez |
Date | August 20, 1989 |
Location(s) | Beverly Hills, California, U.S. |
Target(s) | José and Mary Menéndez |
Killed | 2 |
Weapons | Mossberg 12-gauge shotgun |
Date apprehended | March 8, 1990 (Lyle) March 11, 1990 (Erik) |
During their trial, the brothers stated that they committed the murders out of fear that their father would kill them after they threatened to expose him for years of sexual, emotional, and physical abuse, while the prosecution argued that they did it to inherit their father's multimillion-dollar estate. They were first tried separately with one jury for each brother. However, both juries deadlocked, resulting in a mistrial. For the second trial, they were tried together by a single jury that found them guilty. Both brothers were sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.