Nashville – A California man who conspired with his brother to murder his parents in their Los Angeles mansion in 1989 made a rare public appearance Sunday calling into a true crime conference from prison, revealing that he wants freedom despite serving a life sentence.
Joseph Menendez, whose middle name is Lyle, and his brother Eric broke into their parents’ Beverly Hills home in 1989 with shotguns.
They rained bullets down on his parents, Jose and Mary “Kitty” Menendez, firing so many bullets that one of the parents had to return with another from the car to fatally wound his mother.
New letter threatens Menendez family murder conviction as abuse claims bolster brothers’ defense
An undated photo of the Menendez family is shown on a screen during a panel at CrimeCon 2024 in Nashville, Tennessee, on Sunday, June 2. Brothers Lyle and Eric were convicted of shooting and killing their parents in 1989. (Michael Lewis/Fox News Digital)
The brothers claim they feared their father would kill them after they warned him they would expose the sexual and physical abuse. Both were convicted and given life sentences without parole, but are now seeking to have their sentences reduced under a new California law.
In an interview with attorney Mark Geragos at CrimeCon 2024 in Nashville, Menendez’s older brother said he is studying for a master’s degree and working toward reintegrating into society.
Menendez brothers reunite in California prison after ‘brutal, callous’ separation
Lyle (left) and Eric are seen in an arrest photo taken in 2023. After living apart for years, they were moved to the same housing unit at the Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility in San Diego in 2018, according to the New York Daily News. (California Department of Corrections)
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Menendez, who has previously shared some of his hopes for life after prison, said more than 20 family members have signed a letter asking the judge to resentence him.
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“Well, I’ve been in conversations with correctional officials who are responsible for making sure ex-inmates can return to prison and do good work, and I think they definitely want and would like me to continue to work on this idea of transforming prison grounds to create communities that create living conditions and better neighbors,” he told NewsNation’s Laura Engle on speakerphone in a collect call during a panel discussion at CrimeCon 2024 in Nashville.
Archival photos show Lyle and Erik Menendez wearing prison uniforms during their murder trial in Los Angeles. (Ted Sokki/Sigma via Getty Images)
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An automated voice then sounded, warning me that the call was being recorded.
“So I would love to do that, and I probably will. Because I am a survivor of childhood sexual abuse, Rosie O’Donnell and I have been talking about us going out and speaking out in forums for those groups and starting a foundation to help in that area,” Menendez added. “That’s an area that I spend a lot of time on.”
He said he is now working to form a therapy group with other inmates at the prison.
“You know, a lot of prisoners have had difficult childhoods and come from difficult environments, so I’ve formed a group where they can feel more confident talking about that,” he said. “So I’ll probably continue with those two things, and I’m really looking forward to it.”
This 1992 file photo shows double murder defendants Eric (right) and Lyle Menendez during their appearance in a Los Angeles courtroom. The Menendez brothers were later convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison. (Mike Nelson/AFP via Getty Images)
Menendez also said he plans to earn a master’s degree in urban planning and hopes to use any commutation of his sentence to reintegrate into society.
Finally, he expressed his gratitude to those who sent letters of support to him and his brother during his 30 years incarcerated.
“I would like to thank so many people around the world and across the country who have helped my family by writing to me and my brother and taking to Facebook where victims can express themselves. I want to thank them for their support and their belief that we should be given another chance.”
The brothers’ lawyers argue that they should have been convicted of manslaughter rather than murder, which would likely have meant they would have been released from prison already.
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The brothers are not the only ones to accuse their father of abuse.
Roy Rocero, a former member of the boy band Menudo, alleged last year that he was sexually abused by Jose Menendez, an executive at RCA Records, in the early 1980s.
Fox News’ Mitch Picasso and Christina Coulter contributed to this report.
