Lyle Menendez denied parole, one day after brother is rejected

(NewsNation) — A California state panel Friday denied parole to Lyle Menendez, a day after parole commissioners also voted to keep his younger brother, Erik, behind bars for the Aug. 20, 1989, shotgun murders of their parents. In both cases, the brothers were faulted for misbehavior in prison.

During Friday's 11-hour hearing, Lyle Menendez and his supporters, including family members, argued the 57-year-old would not present a danger to the public if released from prison. The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office, which opposed parole for the brothers, countered with its own barrage of information about the gruesome murders of Jose and Kitty Menendez.

In denying Lyle Menendez parole for at least the next three years, Commissioner Julie Garland noted Lyle's attempts to improve himself in prison. But she also faulted him for infractions, including possessing contraband cellphones, and suggested he might break rules on the outside.

"We find your remorse is genuine,” Garland said. “You have been a model inmate in many ways who has demonstrated the potential for change. But despite all those outward positives, we see ... you still struggle with anti-social personality traits like deception, minimization and rule-breaking that lie beneath that positive surface."

Garland added that Lyle Menendez could get another parole hearing in as little as 18 months, through administrative process. She encouraged him in the interim “to spend some time to demonstrate, to practice what you preach about who you are, who you want to be.”

Lyle Menendez is seen at his parole hearing on Aug. 22, 2025. (California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation)

Lyle Menendez told the parole board about the abuse he said he suffered under his parents. He cried, face reddened, while delivering his closing statement. He seemed to still want to protect his “baby brother,” telling commissioners he took sole responsibility for the murders.

“I will never be able to make up for the harm and grief I caused everyone in my family,” he said. “I am so sorry to everyone, and I will be forever sorry.”

A single reporter was allowed to watch the videoconference of the parole hearing and share information, including written quotes, with the rest of the media.

Erik Menendez cited for prison violations, too

At Erik Menendez's separate parole hearing Thursday, a California parole commissioner cited several instances of the younger brother breaking prison rules. Offenses ranged from violence to inappropriate behavior with visitors to unauthorized possession of a cellphone.

“Contrary to your supporters’ beliefs, you have not been a model prisoner,” Commissioner Robert Barton told the 54-year-old inmate.

Erik Menendez is next eligible for a parole hearing in three years but, like Lyle Menendez, can seek an earlier date before commissioners.

The Menendez brothers became eligible for parole for the first after a judge, earlier this year, reduced their sentences from life in prison without the possibility of parole to 50 years to life. Relatives of the Menendez brothers say the two have consistently demonstrated remorse and personal growth behind bars over the past three decades.

In this provided image, Erik Menendez attends a parole board hearing on Aug. 21, 2025. (California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation)

The California Board of Parole previously assessed the Menendez brothers as having a “moderate risk” of committing violence if they are freed. California criminal defense attorney Brian Claypool said inmates with that risk assessment get paroled only 20% of the time, compared with the two-thirds of “low-risk” inmates who are granted release.

Lyle and Erik Menendez attended their parole hearings remotely from the Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility near San Diego, where they are housed. Their bids for parole were heard by different lineups of commissioners.

"While we are of course disappointed by today’s decision as well, we are not discouraged," representatives for the Menendez family said in a prepared statement late Friday. "The process for parole is exceptionally rigorous, but we are incredibly proud of how Erik and Lyle showed up — with honesty, accountability, and integrity."

Menendez brothers have never accepted responsibility: Prosecutor

Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman said his office submitted a more than 80-page analysis to state parole officials mapping out how the siblings plotted and carried out their parents' brutal murders at the family home in Beverly Hills to acquire a large inheritance.

The information, he said, reflected prison records of the Menendez brothers, interviews with family members, trial transcripts and gruesome evidence about the way Jose and Kitty Menendez died. The prosecutor says the Menendez brothers have never told the truth about the murders.

“If they ever do it, they might be ready for parole. But they have not done it yet,” Hochman said earlier this week.

He has pushed back at allegations that advocates for the brothers have made, that Erik and Lyle were sexually abused by their father. Hochman said Erik and Lyle Menendez initially made broad self-defense claims that they feared their parents would kill them the day of the murders.

Lyle Menendez discusses buying shotguns

On Friday, Lyle Menendez downplayed the idea the murders were premeditated, but he conceded that buying shotguns a few days before made the deaths “more likely” to happen. Having the shotguns also gave him a sense of safety, he said.

“There was zero planning. There was no way to know it was going to happen,” he said during the hearing.

Lyle Menendez said the brothers bought shotguns, rather than handguns, because there was no waiting period.

Final arbiter on Menendez case: Gov. Newsom

California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat and potential 2028 presidential candidate, is considered the final arbiter in the Menendez brothers' case. His office has broad clemency powers, and the governor is able to reverse decisions by the Board of Parole.

Observers, however, have speculated Newsom would be reluctant to free the brothers because it could negatively impact a bid for the White House.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.