Menendez brothers ‘risk assessment’ ordered by Newsom ahead of resentencing hearing
District Attorney Nathan Hochman said that new evidence suggesting convicted killers Lyle and Erik Menendez may have been abused doesn’t rise to the standard for a new trial.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom has ordered the state parole board to conduct a “comprehensive risk assessment investigation” on Erik and Lyle Menendez, to determine whether they pose “an unreasonable risk to the public” if released from prison.
On Wednesday, Newsom made the announcement during a segment on his podcast, “This is Gavin Newsom.”
“The question for the board is a simple one – do Erik and Lyle Menendez, do they pose a current, what we call `unreasonable risk to public safety,”‘ Newsom said.
“The risk assessment will be conducted as they typically are conducted — by experts in public safety as well as forensic psychologists.”
NEW LOS ANGELES DA NATHAN HOCHMAN DOES NOT SUPPORT OVERTURNING MENENDEZ BROTHERS’ MURDER CONVICTIONS
Newsom described the assessment as a “common procedure carried out by the state.”
“After that, there’s going to be a hearing that works like a standard parole hearing, providing the District Attorney and the victims a chance to be part of the process,” the governor’s office shared in a statement.
Newsom’s office explained that the legal standard in California for release on parole is whether an inmate poses an unreasonable risk to public safety, which has to be determined before the Governor can make a decision on their commutations.
“This process doesn’t mean there’s any guaranteed outcome, but it shows we’re doing our due diligence, ensuring transparency, keeping public safety at the forefront, making sure the process is fair for everyone involved, and getting closer to a conclusion,” Newsom’s office said.
Back in November, Newsom indicated he would defer any decision on the Menendez brothers’ case to local courts and prosecutors.
“The Governor respects the role of the District Attorney in ensuring justice is served and recognizes that voters have entrusted District Attorney-elect Hochman to carry out this responsibility,” Newsom’s office said in a previous statement. “The Governor will defer to the DA-elect’s review and analysis of the Menendez case prior to making any clemency decisions.”
Newsom’s office told Fox News Digital that the governor’s decision is part of a larger announcement on executive clemency actions that he will be releasing later on Wednesday.
MENENDEZ BROTHERS RESENTENCING: WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?
California Gov. Gavin Newsom asked the state parole board to conduct a “risk assessment investigation” on Erik and Lyle Menendez, which he said is a common procedure carried out by the state.
Newsom said the results of the risk assessment will be shared with the Los Angeles Superior Court judge presiding over the case, as well as Los Angeles District Attorney Nathan Hochman and defense attorneys.
“There’s no guarantee of outcome here,” Newsom said. “My office conducts dozens and dozens of these clemency reviews on a consistent basis, but this process simply provides more transparency, which I think is important in this case, as well as provides us more due diligence before I make any determination for clemency.”
Newsom’s announcement comes less than a week after Hochman asked the court to reject the Menendez brothers’ request for a new trial.
Hochman cited issues with the evidence, claiming it didn’t meet a high enough standard for a new trial.
This comes months after former DA George Gascon cited new evidence in the form of a letter suggesting the brothers may have been abused by their father as a reason for a new trial.
LETTER AT CENTER OF MENENDEZ BROTHERS’ BID FOR FREEDOM CALLED INTO QUESTION
Incoming Los Angeles County DA Nate Hochman says he hasn’t seen any of the media about the Menendez brothers before he assumes office. (Getty Images)
“We looked again at the credibility of the letters, particularly this Andy Cano 1988 supposed letter weighed in the continuum of lies, and it calls into drastic question whether this is in fact a 1988 letter written by Erik Menendez to Andy Cano about this sexual abuse,” Hochman said in a Friday news conference.
The letter was allegedly written eight months before the murders of their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez, in 1989 by Erik Menendez to his cousin Andy Cano, and detailed alleged sexual abuse by their father.
The letter wasn’t found until several years ago, the Menendez brothers’ attorney said.
The Menendez brothers’ family condemned Hochman’s decision in a previous statement shared with Fox News Digital by their legal team.
“District Attorney Nathan Hochman took us right back to 1996 today. He opened the wounds we have spent decades trying to heal,” the statement said. “He didn’t listen to us. We are profoundly disappointed by his remarks, in which he effectively tore up new evidence and discredited the trauma they experienced. To suggest that the years of abuse couldn’t have led to the tragedy in 1989 is not only outrageous, but also dangerous.
MENENDEZ BROTHERS RESENTENCING HEARING POSTPONED DUE TO RAGING LOS ANGELES FIRES
Erik Menendez (C) and his brother Lyle (L) are pictured, on August 12, 1991 in Beverly Hills. They are accused of killing their parents, Jose and Mary Louise Menendez of Beverly Hills, Calif. AFP PHOTO MIKE NELSON (Photo by MIKE NELSON / AFP) (Photo by MIKE NELSON/AFP via Getty Images) (MIKE NELSON/AFP via Getty Images)
“Abuse does not exist in a vacuum. It leaves lasting scars, rewires the brain, and traps victims in cycles of fear and trauma. To say it played no role in Erik and Lyle’s action is to ignore decades of psychological research and basic human understanding.”
The statement added that it was “absurd” for Hochman to say that the evidence should have been submitted at the trial.
Hochman also noted that Newsom has the clemency petition on his desk and “he can do whatever he wants, whenever he wants, and we will be dealing in the next couple of weeks with the resentencing issue.”
If Hochman’s office continues down the resentencing road, Newsom still has the final say. If the brothers’ sentences are reduced to something that would make them eligible for parole, the governor has veto power over parole board decisions. He could also issue clemency or a pardon on his own.
The resentencing hearing was pushed back nearly two months due to California’s devastating wildfires.
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Lyle and Erik Menendez were found guilty in 1996 of the 1989 killing of their parents at their ritzy Beverly Hills home and sentenced to life in prison without parole.
The brothers claim they shot their father, former RCA Records executive Jose Menendez, in self-defense, arguing they thought he was going to kill them after they warned him they planned to expose him as a child sex abuser.
They also killed their mother, Mary “Kitty” Menendez, who was sitting next to Jose eating ice cream in their living room when they opened fire.
Their first trial ended in a mistrial, when jurors couldn’t agree on their fate. After a second trial in the mid-1990s, in which some of their evidence about the alleged sexual abuse was excluded, jurors agreed with prosecutors that their motive was greed.
Fox News Digital’s Michael Ruiz, Michael Dorgan, and Brie Stimson contributed to this report.
Stepheny Price is a writer for Fox News Digital and Fox Business. She covers topics including missing persons, homicides, national crime cases, illegal immigration, and more. Story tips and ideas can be sent to stepheny.price@fox.com
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Gov. Gavin Newsom said in November he’d defer to newly-elected Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman before making any decisions
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California Gov. Gavin Newsom tells parole board to assess Menendez brothers’ public safety risk
California Gov. Gavin Newsom tells parole board to assess Menendez brothers’ public safety risk
California Gov. Gavin Newsom has directed the state’s parole board to investigate whether Erik and Lyle Menendez pose an “unreasonable” public safety risk if released from prison, where the siblings have spent decades for the 1989 shotgun murders of their parents, the governor said in a teaser Wednesday for his new podcast.
The announcement comes months after their attorneys filed a clemency request with Newsom’s office and days after Los Angeles’ top prosecutor said he opposed a separate effort by the brothers seeking to overturn their convictions.
In another bid to secure their freedom, Erik, 54, and Lyle, 57, have sought to have their sentences of life without the possibility of parole reduced through a process known as resentencing.
In the teaser for the “This is Gavin Newsom” podcast,” the governor said public safety experts and forensic psychologists will conduct a risk assessment investigation for the parole board to determine whether the brothers pose a public safety threat if released.
The findings of that investigation will be handed over to Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman, Newsom said, and to the Los Angeles County Superior Court judge presiding over their resentencing effort, which is ongoing.
“There’s no guarantee of outcome here,” Newsom said. “My office conducts dozens and dozens of these clemency reviews on a consistent basis but this process simply provides more transparency, which I think is important in this case, and more due diligence before I make any determination for clemency.”
Lawyers for the Menendez family, many of whom have supported the brothers’ release, said in a statement Wednesday that they were grateful for the governor’s comments.
“The family realizes that the Governor’s action does not mean he will commute the sentences,” they said. “Instead, this initial step reflects the Governor’s considered decision to at least obtain the information required to make a fair decision as to whether Erik and Lyle, after 35 years in prison, have done the hard work necessary to have a chance at a life outside prison.”
The brothers were arrested in March 1990, seven months after Jose and Kitty Menendez were fatally shot in their Beverly Hills home.
The brothers initially lied to police about the killings, saying it could have been a hit linked to organized crime. During two trials in the 1990s, their defense team described the killings as self-defense after years of sexual abuse by their father.
Prosecutors have disputed the sex abuse claims and said the motive was financial. They’ve also pointed to the cold-blooded nature of the killings: After running out of bullets, Lyle reloaded his shotgun and shot his mother in the face at point blank range.
Former Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón — who was voted out in November — said he supported clemency and resentencing for the brothers.
A two-day hearing on the latter effort is scheduled for next month.
Tim Stelloh is a breaking news reporter for NBC News Digital.
© 2025 NBCUniversal Media, LLC
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Newsom instructs parole board to evaluate risk of possible clemency for Menendez brothers
California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) directed the state’s parole board to evaluate the risk of possibly granting clemency to Erik and Lyle Menendez.
Newsom’s announcement came on a teaser trailer Wednesday for his new podcast, “This is Gavin Newsom.”
“So, we’re getting a lot of questions, a lot of calls about something that’s getting a lot of attention unsurprisingly and that’s what’s going on with the Menendez brothers,” he said.
Newsom said he directed parole board to conduct a risk assessment investigation into the Menendez brothers’ application for resentencing, which is an avenue to change their sentences.
Erik, 54, and Lyle, 57, were sentenced in 1996 for the shotgun killings of their parents, Jose and Mary “Kitty” Menendez.
They have been serving two life sentences without parole but have sought to change that.
Last November, Newsom said he would postpone his decision on the brothers’ case until after the new Los Angeles District Attorney can review the case details.
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“The risk assessment will be conducted as they typically are conducted by experts in public safety as well as forensic psychologists,” Newsom said on the podcast. “We’re going to make the findings, by the way, available to the judges presiding over the resentencing motion.”
Newsom admitted that there was no guaranteed outcome for the brothers, but he hopes the process will provide transparency around their situation.
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