It’s Time to Free the Menendez Brothers

We are all products of our experiences. They shape who we were, who we are, and who we will be. Physiologically and psychologically, time changes us, and I doubt anyone would claim to be the same person they were at 18. I know I’m not!

You think you know the story of Lyle and Erik Menendez. I certainly thought I did.

In 1989, the Menendez brothers made headlines after the brutal murder of their parents, José and Kitty Menendez. The shocking images from the trial, broadcasted worldwide, turned the brothers into iconic villains of the 90s pop culture. People watched, astonished, as the story unfolded of two seemingly privileged young men who coldly plotted the death of their parents, supposedly for their inheritance.

However, as years have passed and new facts have come to light, the narrative has shifted. What many didn’t know at the time, or refused to see, was the systematic and horrific abuse that Lyle and Erik had endured throughout their lives. The two young men weren’t just cold-blooded killers, as the media painted them, but victims of long-term physical, emotional, and sexual abuse at the hands of their father. Their household was a place of fear and oppression, where the illusion of a wealthy and successful family hid a much darker reality.

The trauma that Lyle and Erik carried throughout their lives wasn’t fully considered in the court of public opinion. Even during the trial, many details of the abuse were either minimized or dismissed, while the focus remained on the media spectacle. Now, decades later, with a deeper understanding of the psychological impacts of long-term trauma, the question arises: Did the Menendez brothers really receive a fair trial?

Justice must be applied with a full understanding of all the factors that shape a person’s actions. We cannot overlook the context and the invisible scars that long-term abuse leaves on its victims. Lyle and Erik were vulnerable young men, shaped by years of violence and manipulation, especially by their father. At the time of the crime, they acted out of desperation, believing it was their only way to escape the cycle of abuse they were trapped in.

Just as we all change over time, our understanding of justice must also evolve. It’s time to consider whether Lyle and Erik Menendez, now middle-aged men who have spent over 30 years behind bars, should continue to pay for a crime committed in a moment of extreme trauma and fear. They’ve already served decades in prison, and both men have spent years reflecting on their actions and confronting the demons of their past.

This is not a call to downplay the seriousness of what happened, but rather to acknowledge that human beings are complex, and actions committed in moments of deep trauma shouldn’t be viewed through a simplistic lens. The judicial system must be capable of looking beyond black and white, and understanding the full context of a person’s life.

It’s time to free the Menendez brothers. They’ve paid a steep price, and now they deserve a chance to rebuild their lives outside the prison walls, far from the ghosts of their past.

True justice must take into account the totality of human experience — and in the case of the Menendez brothers, that story is far from simple.