New evidence could support Menendez brothers' sexual abuse claims that could lead to retrial
Warning: This article contains discussion of sexual assault which some readers may find distressing.
The extremely harrowing case surrounding the Menendez brothers' murder trial has been brought back into conversation once again following the release of Ryan Murphy's controversial new Netflix series, Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story.
The nine-part drama chronicles the lives of Erik and Lyle Menendez who were convicted of the brutal murders of their parents, Kitty and José Menendez, in Beverly Hills back in 1989.
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The brothers, who are now serving life sentences without the possibility of parole, claim to this day that the killings stemmed out of fear from a lifetime of physical, emotional, and sexual abuse at the hands of their parents.
But now, new evidence could support the Menendez brothers' sexual abuse claims that could lead to retrial.
Last year, the brothers' lawyer filed a petition to vacate their convictions in light of two new pieces of evidence.
One was an allegation made by musician Roy Rossello, who has since claimed he was drugged and raped by José Menéndez at the family's Los Angeles property when he was 14.
He made the claims in the 2023 docuseries Menendez + Menudo: Boys Betrayed.
"In short, the new evidence not only shows that José Menendez was very much a violent and brutal man who would sexually abuse children, but it strongly suggests that—in fact—he was still abusing Erik Menendez as late as December 1988. Just as the defense had argued all along," a court petition filed by the Menendez brothers’ attorneys on May 3, 2023 reads.
Rosselló, 54, a former member of the boy band Menudo, claimed that José molested him in the mid-1980s.
He claimed the band’s manager set up a visit to José's house which is where he
drugged and raped him.
"I know what he did to me in his house," Rossello said in the doc while, in another scene, he pointed to José in a photograph and said: "That’s the man, here, that raped me. This guy. That’s the pedophile."
The other piece of evidence was a letter Erik wrote eight months before the murders.
The letter, written in 1988, was discovered by José's sister, Marta Cano, after being sent to her son, Andy, who was close friends with his cousins.
Andy also testified at their highly-publicised trials.
The heartbreaking letter details the sexual abuse Erik suffered at the hands of his father as it reads: "I’ve been trying to avoid dad. It’s still happening Andy, but it’s worse for me now.
"I can’t explain it. He [sic] so overweight that I can’t stand to see him. I never know. When it’s going to happen and it’s driving me crazy. Every night, I stay up thinking he might come in. I need to put it out of my mind."
The defence team allegedly stated that this should warrant a new trial because it's information they didn't have when the case was first presented to a jury.
Lyle and Erik still hope for an overturn in their convictions, though the LA County District Attorney's Office has yet to decide if they will retry the pair.
Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story is currently available to stream on Netflix.
If you have been affected by any of the issues in this article and wish to speak to someone in confidence, contact The Survivors Trust for free on 08088 010 818, available 10am-12.30pm, 1.30pm-3pm and 6pm-8pm Monday to Thursday, 10am-12.30pm and 1.30pm-3pm on Fridays, 10am-12.30pm on Saturdays and 6pm-8pm on Sundays.
Topics: Netflix, US News, True Crime, Menendez Brothers, TV And Film
Rhiannon Ingle