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00:00By breaking overnight, the two California brothers convicted in serving a life sentence for killing their parents now potentially have
00:07a chance at parole.
00:08This for the first time.
00:09A judge resentenced the Menendez brothers to 50 years to life in prison for the 1989 killings, and it really
00:15does make the brothers eligible for parole.
00:18It comes after more than three decades behind bars.
00:21Joining us now live and early, frankly, from the West Coast, our friend Nick Watt.
00:26This was something to see, Nick.
00:28John, it was an extraordinary day in court, particularly when we heard directly from Lyle and Eric Menendez, who appeared
00:36in court via video link from where they're being held in a facility down near San Diego.
00:41Listen, John, the bottom line here is, for many years, the Menendez brothers had no hope of getting out.
00:48They were sentenced to life without the possibility of parole.
00:52Now, they have some hope.
00:53There are a few more hurdles for them before they walk free.
00:57For a start, there is going to be a clemency hearing on June 13th.
01:02It is up to the Parole Board of California and the Governor of California now to decide whether they actually
01:09walk free.
01:10Now, their lawyer, Mark Garagos, who you see in that picture there, he came out after the session yesterday and
01:16said,
01:172025 is going to be the year that these brothers get their freedom.
01:21They've been behind bars 35 years or so.
01:25Now, when we heard from Lyle and Eric, the first thing that Lyle Menendez said was,
01:30on August 20th, 1989, I killed my mum and dad.
01:34He said, I make no excuses.
01:36Eric Menendez also spoke and said, I assumed that I would die behind bars.
01:42That has now changed.
01:44Now, why?
01:44Well, the judge said, for a start, I'm really impressed with everything that they've done in prison while they had
01:50no hope of getting out.
01:51He also said, I don't think that they will ever commit a serious crime again.
01:57And he said he was frankly bowled over by all of the letters he received in support of the brothers,
02:01from correctional officers who said that they'd never written such a letter in the past.
02:06They wrote one on behalf of the Menendez brothers, saying they were ready to be freed.
02:10We also heard from family members.
02:12Now, a cousin spoke and said that universally, all the living members of the family have forgiven the brothers,
02:19believe that they should be given a second chance at life.
02:23They say 35 years is enough.
02:25So, governor, parole board, this isn't over.
02:28But now, the Menendez brothers have hope, John, of getting out.
02:32Yeah.
02:33For the first time, you make such a good point.
02:35These next two steps will be interesting and, frankly, politically precarious for those involved as well.
02:40Great to see you.
02:41Thank you very much.
02:43All right.
02:43This morning, prices are falling.
02:46Tonight, as we're our legal expert here, we're getting breaking news in another major legal case that has fascinated the
02:52nation.
02:52And this is a judge resentencing the Menendez brothers to 50 years to life in prison,
02:58which essentially makes them eligible for parole.
03:02What does this mean?
03:03What could we see happen next year?
03:04Well, part of the reason they did so is because the first DA, an elected office, who was recently the
03:09DA,
03:10wanted to have this resentencing.
03:12He then lost an election.
03:14The incoming DA, now the incumbent DA, said, no, no, no, I do not want to do this resentencing.
03:19Well, the judge essentially said, too late.
03:21The office has already initiated this motion.
03:23It's going to stand.
03:24And now they are eligible for parole almost immediately.
03:28But they have to go before a parole board.
03:29What they're hoping for, though, is for the governor of California to get clemency and do away, essentially, with their
03:36time in prison now and allow them to return home.
03:39This is a very significant case.
03:41It's been over 35 years.
03:43There's a lot of celebrity interests, a lot of people who have been pushing and rooting for them, documentary films,
03:49not the least of which his own family members, their own family members from both sides of the family of
03:54the parents that were killed.
03:58Yeah, that's a great point.
04:00We'll all be watching and see what happens.
04:01Thank you, Laura.
04:02Obviously, if everyone else, don't worry if you tune in tonight, 11 p.m. Eastern.
04:05There's a special...
04:06...on Capitol Hill, and this is Sienna.
04:12A stunning turn to tell you about this morning, the Menendez brothers' case.
04:15They now have a chance of parole after a judge resentenced them to 50 years to life in prison.
04:21Now, remember, they have been serving life without parole for killing their parents in 1989.
04:25Now their attorney says there is a real chance they could go free if, and here's the if, California's governor
04:31and the state parole board sign off.
04:34I'm hopeful that now that the right thing will be done and they'll block out.
04:40Their trauma has become kind of the subject of prurient interest.
04:45But they are a real family, real people, who have lived through unimaginable horrors.
04:51And I'm hopeful and glad that we're one huge step closer to bringing the boys home.
05:00Joining me now to discuss is Dave Eriker, former state attorney for Palm Beach County, Florida.
05:04Dave, nice to see you this morning.
05:05When we look at this, how likely at that next hearing do you think it is that, in fact, you
05:11could see the Menendez brothers released?
05:14Good to be with you, Erica.
05:15I think it is likely.
05:17There are two ways to do it.
05:18The governor moved forward with clemency, and that goes before the same parole board next month.
05:23And now the judge has said yes.
05:25They're going to be resentenced, so it's up to the parole board.
05:28So I do expect them to be set free.
05:30This shows you the power of celebrity.
05:32That's why I got to the stage.
05:33You have Kim Kardashian and a lot of others who got behind this cause.
05:37And I was actually surprised yesterday at the level of apology that the Menendez brothers gave to the court.
05:46We had never seen this before, where they said they took full responsibility for their actions.
05:50They didn't rely on the abuse excuse.
05:53And I think that's going to pave the way for their release.
05:56We'll be watching, as you know, that hearing, I believe it's maybe June 13th next month.
05:59So we'll watch for that.
06:00I just want to get your take on what we heard yesterday on the stand from Cassie Ventura, the Sean
06:05Cohn.
06:06Well, Inja, I'm trying to get them justice if she feels like there's been no miscarriage of justice.
06:10And she's been supporting the Menendez brothers.
06:12We've talked about, of course.
06:14They had a Netflix documentary.
06:16Where are we with her support for them and where they are, the two brothers, of course?
06:20Well, there were developments overnight in California.
06:24And those developments were that the judge resentenced the Menendez brothers.
06:30So they were initially life without possibility of parole.
06:33Now they've been resentenced between 50 years and life imprisonment.
06:38But because they were under 26 when they committed the crime, that now means that their case can be heard
06:45before the California Parole Board.
06:47And ultimately, it's up to the state governor, Michael Gavin Newsom, to decide whether or not he should accept that
06:55they are suitable for parole.
06:56But you're quite right, Ben.
06:58Kim Kardashian very quickly said we should be thinking about what's happened to the Menendez brothers.
07:04Because, as we've discussed, now a great deal of evidence has come forward in relation to the sexual abuse they
07:10experienced at the hands of their father,
07:13who was a music mogul and indeed independent testimony about that sexual offending came forward from one of the boy
07:22bands that he used to be in charge of.
07:25So her influence could lead to them finally getting paroled, even though the initial sentencing was they were never going
07:31to get paroled.
07:32Absolutely.
07:32And already she's been successful in getting a grandmother out of prison who served 20 years for committing a non
07:40-violent offense.
07:41She was selling drugs.
07:42And effectively, by Kim Kardashian taking up this woman's case, she was able to get President Trump during his first
07:49presidency to grant her clemency.
07:52And indeed, it was Kim Kardashian herself who phones the woman to say, you've been pardoned.
07:59You're going to be released from jail.
08:01Wow, the Kardashian effect.
08:02I know.
08:03She's quite a force, isn't she?
08:04Amazing.
08:05David, thank you.
08:06You're all fascinating.
08:07We'll carry on keeping an eye on that case as it develops.
08:09And we're going to chat to you a little bit later on.
08:11Perfect.
08:12All right, then.
08:12After the break, can he floss and...
08:15Now, it remains one of the most shocking cases in American criminal history.
08:1936 years ago, two brothers, Eric and Lyle Menendez, took a pair of shotguns and used them at point-blank
08:26range to murder their parents.
08:28They were sentenced to life in prison, but have always argued that they were acting in self-defense after years
08:33of sexual abuse at the hands of their father.
08:36Now, they could soon be released from prison after a judge in California reduced their sentence and made them eligible
08:43for parole.
08:44Ellie Pitts has this report.
08:48It was this slick Netflix show, a dramatic reconstruction of their crime that helped bring their case back to court.
08:56Eric and I killed our parents together, so I'd say that makes us pretty close.
09:01Eric and Lyle Menendez have spent more than 30 years in prison after killing their parents, but a judge has
09:09now resentenced them, making them eligible for parole and potential release.
09:14They are a real family, real people, who have lived through unimaginable horrors, and I'm hopeful and glad that we're
09:23one huge step closer to bringing the boys home.
09:27The brothers' family have been campaigning for their freedom and testified in court that they are changed men.
09:33We are here today with this result because of Eric and Lyle, because they chose to live their lives with
09:40clarity and a purpose of service that the judge was impressed by.
09:47In 1989, Jose and Kitty Menendez were shot by their sons in their Beverly Hills mansion.
09:57At the time, prosecutors argued the brothers wanted their multi-million pound inheritance, but Eric and Lyle claimed they'd acted
10:07in self-defense after years of sexual abuse by their father.
10:11They were sentenced to life in prison without the chance of parole, and still the district attorney believes they'd not
10:18proven they should be let out of jail.
10:20We have said with respect to resentencing that our position is not no, or it's not never, it's not yet.
10:28And the reason we said that is that the Menendez brothers have failed to come clean with the full extent
10:34of their criminal conduct, their cover-up, their lies, and their deceit over the past 30 years.
10:40The question of whether they should be released will be put to a parole board hearing next month.
10:45The answer could end the life behind bars that they were sentenced to nearly three decades ago.
10:52Ellie Pitt, ITV News.
10:55And it could be. Who knows what's ahead?
10:59Also, there's an interesting one. There's a huge moment in the case of Eric and Lyle Menendez.
11:04A lot of people following that story.
11:06And Kim has had a vested interest as well.
11:11Yes, she has. I mean, this is a horrendous story.
11:15This is many years ago.
11:17Eric and Lyle Menendez, they claimed that their father abused them, and they actually shot and killed both their parents.
11:25People watched it on Netflix.
11:26It was a drama.
11:27There's also been a documentary.
11:29You had 12.3 million viewers in the first four days alone.
11:33Basically, they've been asking for resentencing, and it looks like that is going to happen.
11:38Judges said that they will be resentenced to 50 years of life.
11:42Now, they've been in prison for 30 years, so this basically makes them immediately eligible for parole, as we mentioned
11:48there.
11:48Kim has been once saying that they've served their time.
11:52They should be allowed back out.
11:53Judge saying that he doesn't think they're a danger now to the public, but the simple fact of the matter
11:59is that the California Parole Board will decide exactly what's going to happen.
12:03Mm, absolutely.
12:05And another huge trial making the headlines.
12:08He sent a re-sentence to Menendez brothers, bringing them a step closer to being granted parole 36 years after
12:14they killed their parents.
12:17Los Angeles has a re-sentence to two brothers, Eric and Lyle Menendez, who are serving life in prison for
12:23the 1989 murder of their parents in a Beverly Hills mansion.
12:26The judge gave them a new sentence of 50 years to life, making them eligible for parole.
12:31Eric and Lyle Menendez, whose case has received fresh scrutiny after being at the center of a Netflix drama, have
12:37long argued that killings were an act of self-defense.
12:41Another American correspondent, Peter Bowes, spoke to me from outside the courtroom in Los Angeles.
12:46Well, this was really quite a dramatic day in court.
12:49Both Lyle and Eric Menendez were present on video links from their prison, which is near San Diego, just to
12:56the south of Los Angeles.
12:58But they were both given an opportunity towards the end of the hearing to speak for themselves.
13:04Lyle Menendez was particularly emotional, telling the court, telling the judge that they took full accountability for what they did
13:12back in 1989.
13:14And that was to kill their parents' point-blank range.
13:18Murders that suddenly shocked America, have divided this country in terms of public opinion for all of those years.
13:25They've served more than 35 years in prison, like Menendez, saying that there were no excuses for what they did.
13:32But they have had a tremendous amount of support, certainly from all of the surviving family members of, indeed, the
13:41victims.
13:41Their parents now supporting the brothers' release from prison.
13:46And we heard from several of them earlier on in the day saying that both Lyle and Eric, they say,
13:52deserved a second chance at life.
13:56And that, it seems, is what they're going to get, because, as you say, the resentencing means that, as opposed
14:02to being sentenced to life without the possibility of parole,
14:05which is the original sentence, it's now 50 years to life, which opens the door to parole and the next
14:12stage in this process,
14:14which is a parole board hearing that could take some weeks, some months, indeed, and they will hear from all
14:21sides, all different arguments in this case,
14:24and reach a decision, make a recommendation, which is then sent to the governor of California, Gavin Newsom,
14:30and he will have the final sight as to whether they are released.
14:36Peter, you mentioned how this case has divided opinion in America.
14:40Has that opinion now shifted, following this Netflix drama, following this new developments in their court case, and now this
14:47resentencing?
14:49You know, in all honesty, it's difficult to tell whether a public opinion has shifted since the Netflix drama and
14:56the Netflix documentary.
14:58There haven't been any really scientifically viable surveys to accurately gauge public opinion.
15:06But I think what it is fair to say is that many, many more people know about the case,
15:10that the brothers seem to have picked up many new supporters and followers,
15:14especially the new streaming generation, the TikTok generation, especially, have really got behind this story.
15:21Many people going back and looking at the original footage.
15:25Remember, this is one of the first criminal trials of its kind ever to be televised in America.
15:30So the footage is out there.
15:32A lot of the footage was used in the documentary.
15:34And a lot of people saying that the issue at stake, at least the claim or the defense,
15:42that they were sexually abused by their father,
15:45and that that should have perhaps been more prominent in the original trial,
15:49that, let's say, a trial were held now, that that might have been taken more seriously
15:53and might, in fact, result, or might have resulted in a different verdict.
15:57And that's because, largely, people see these times now as being very different in the late 80s and early 90s.
16:05So I think attitudes have changed, and that might well have coloured public opinion towards these two men.
16:14Around the world and across the UK, this is BBC News.
16:21In the last few hours, a US court has re-sentenced two brothers, Eric and Lyle Menendez,
16:27who are serving life in prison for the murders of their parents in Beverly Hills Mansion back in 1989.
16:33The brothers have served more than 35 years for their crimes.
16:36Their original sentence ruled out the possibility of them ever being set free,
16:40but they've now been told their sentence will run from 50 years to life, making them eligible for parole.
16:46Their cases received fresh scrutiny after being at the centre of a Netflix drama.
16:51The Menendez brothers have long argued the killings were an act of self-defence.
16:55Earlier, I spoke to North American correspondent Peter Bowes, who has been following the latest developments today.
17:01Well, this was really quite a dramatic day in court.
17:04Both Lyle and Eric Menendez were present on video links from their prison, which is near San Diego,
17:10just to the south of Los Angeles.
17:12But they were both given an opportunity towards the end of the hearing to speak for themselves.
17:18Lyle Menendez was particularly emotional, telling the court, telling the judge that they took full accountability
17:25for what they did back in 1989, and that was to kill their parents' point-blank range.
17:32Murders that suddenly shocked America have divided this country in terms of public opinion for all of those years.
17:39They served more than 35 years in prison, Lyle Menendez saying that there were no excuses for what they did.
17:46But they have had a tremendous amount of support, certainly from all of the surviving family members of, indeed, the
17:55victims.
17:55Their parents now supporting the brothers' release from prison, and we heard from several of them earlier on in the
18:03day,
18:03saying that both Lyle and Eric, they say, deserved a second chance at life.
18:10And that, it seems, is what they're going to get.
18:12Because, as you say, the resentencing means that, as opposed to being sentenced to life without the possibility of parole,
18:19which is the original sentence, it's now 50 years to life, which opens the door to parole,
18:26and the next stage in this process, which is a parole board hearing that could take some weeks, some months,
18:33indeed,
18:34and they will hear from all sides, all different arguments in this case, and reach a decision, make a recommendation,
18:41which is then sent to the governor of California, Gavin Newsom,
18:44and he will have the final sight as to whether they are released.
18:49Prosecution's key witness in the sex trafficking trial...
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