Menendez Brothers to Remain Behind Bars After Judge Rejects Bid for New Trial

Lyle and Erik Menendez, who were convicted of killing their parents Jose and Kitty in 1989, will remain behind bars for now.

On Monday, Sept. 15, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge William Ryan rejected a 2023 Habeas Corpus petition filed by the brothers’ attorneys, which cited two pieces of evidence they say supported their claims of sexual abuse, ABC 7 reported.

If the petition was granted, it would have made the brothers eligible for a new trial.

The judge ruled that the new evidence likely would not have “resulted in a hung jury, nor in the conviction of a lesser instructed offense,” Judge Ryan said, per NBC4.

Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Click here to get breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases in the True Crime Newsletter.

“Neither piece of newly discover [sic] evidence is particularly strong,” Ryan continued. “The evidence alleged here is not so compelling that it would have produced a reasonable doubt in the mind of at least one juror or supportive of an imperfect self-defense instruction.”

The alleged evidence was a letter purportedly sent by Erik to his cousin in 1989, before the murders, that detailed claims of sexual abuse against Jose. The second piece of evidence was an affidavit submitted by former Menudo member Roy Rosselló, who claimed he was raped by Jose.

“The fight continues,” said a post on Lyle Menendez’s Facebook page after the ruling.

“This disappointing decision does not take away from the courage of Roy Rosselló or the torment that he lived through at the hands of Jose Menendez,” the post continued. “To claim that another rape victim of Jose Menendez would not have affected the decision of at least one juror is quite the exercise in mental gymnastics. And to claim that the writing of Erik was also meaningless would likewise get a gold medal in the mental gymnastics category. Onward!”

“What’s disappointing is Roy not getting an opportunity to see his truth through,” sources close to the family told PEOPLE in an exclusive statement. “It was incredibly brave of him to come forward. In terms of outcomes though, the most important was getting resentenced and the fact that they’ll have an opportunity to go before the parole board again soon.”

The brothers, who have been imprisoned since the 1990s for the infamous shotgun murders of their parents, have long been fighting for release and have long maintained that the killings were in response to alleged sexual abuse committed by Jose.

Prosecutors have argued that the brothers’ motive was greed and cited their lavish spending spree after the slayings.

Earlier this year, the brothers were resentenced to 50-years-to-life, which made them immediately eligible for parole. However, last month, both brothers were denied a chance at parole primarily due to their past behavior in prison.

Lyle and Erik Menendez will be eligible to apply for parole again in three years.