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ERIK and Lyle Menendez have opened up about being violently beaten in prison in a rare update from behind bars.
The Menendez brothers faced vicious attacks in their early days in state prison after they were handed life sentences nearly three decades ago – and Lyle even had his jaw broken in a violent attack.
The notorious pair were convicted of first-degree murder for the 1989 shotgun murders of their parents, Kitty and Jose Menendez.
After being sentenced to life without parole in 1996, the brothers are both currently serving their sentences at the Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility near San Diego, California.
Erik, 54, has spent his time locked up at the San Diego prison, but Lyle, 57, was first sent to the Mule Creek State Prison in Ione after their sentencing.
While the brothers were apart, they faced relentless bullying from other inmates, they revealed on a recent episode of TMZ’s 2 Angry Men podcast.
“I remember the day I was told Lyle just got assaulted and got his jaw broken,” Erik said, saying he felt helpless as the two brothers were kept apart.
“At least we could protect each other maybe if we were together, but we were not together,” he added.
“I had no one to turn to for help.”
‘FACING THE TRUTH’
The brothers were reunited after 21 years when Lyle was transferred to Erik’s facility in February 2018.
But they each had to overcome various struggles in prison before that, Erik said.
The younger brother admitted on the podcast, “Prison was hard for me.”
“I faced a lot of bullying and trauma. It was a dangerous environment.”
On top of the violent attacks, Erik said he had to “grow and heal” after the alleged abuse the brothers suffered at the hands of their parents, which they’ve insisted led to the double murders.
“When I came to prison, I didn’t come to prison healed, I came to prison dealing with the traumatic wounds of my past,” Erik said.
“I had to face all of those truths and somehow journey through that dark place of prison and try to figure out my traumas.”
Timeline of the Menendez brothers case
Erik and Lyle Menendez’s case dates back more than three decades since their parents were found shot to death at their Beverly Hills mansion.
Below is a timeline of the brothers’ case, starting at the gruesome crime scene:
August 20, 1989 – José and Kitty Menendez are found dead from multiple shotgun wounds.
March 8, 1990 – Lyle is arrested outside his parents’ Beverly Hills mansion.
March 11, 1990 – Erik surrenders to police after flying back into Los Angeles from Israel.
December 1992 – Murder charges against the brothers are officially filed.
July 20, 1993 – The murder trial, highly publicized on Court TV, begins in Los Angeles with Erik and Lyle each having a separate jury.
January 28, 1994 – The first trial ends with two deadlocked juries.
October 11, 1995 – Lyle and Erik’s second trial begins with one jury.
March 20, 1996 – The Menendez brothers are convicted of two counts of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder.
July 2, 1996 – Lyle and Erik are sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole and sent to separate prisons.
February 22, 2018 – Lyle is transferred to the San Diego prison, where Erik is held.
April 4, 2018 – Lyle was moved into the same housing unit as Erik – the first time the brothers were reunited in over 20 years.
May 2023 – Lyle and Erik’s attorney files a habeas corpus petition after Roy Rosselló, a member of the Puerto Rican boy band Menudo, made sexual abuse allegations against Jose Menendez in a Peacock docuseries.
September 19, 2024 – Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story releases on Netflix.
October 3, 2024 – Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascón says his office is reviewing new evidence in connection with Lyle and Erik’s convictions.
October 7, 2024 – The Menendez Brothers documentary film comes out on Netflix.
October 16, 2024 – Family members of the Menendez brothers hold a press conference begging for the siblings to be released from prison.
October 24, 2024 – Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón recommends the brothers be resentenced.
November 25, 2024 – The Menendez brothers appear in court for a status hearing to learn their resentencing hearing is pushed back from December 11 to allow new DA Nathan Hochman more time to review the case.
January 30-31, 2025 – Erik and Lyle’s resentencing hearing was initially set but had to be rescheduled due to the California wildfires.
March 20-21, 2025 – The brothers are set to go before a judge for their resentencing hearing.
Erik said he never fought back when he was bullied at the state prison.
He added that he was targeted because he wasn’t part of a “gang structure.”
However, life behind bars has gotten easier for the duo as they’ve found communities through rehabilitation programs in the state prison.
‘SPOILED BRAT’
Erik admitted he was a “spoiled brat” when he first arrived at prison.
“I look back and I’m so ashamed and embarrassed of little things that I did in life,” he said.
The brothers were ripped apart as spoiled and arrogant during their highly publicized court case – especially after they went on a lavish spending spree with their family’s fortune after killing their parents.
However, Erik said he and Lyle have evolved into empathetic people through their time in prison, Erik said.
When I came to prison, I didn’t come to prison healed, I came to prison dealing with the traumatic wounds of my past…I had to face all of those truths and somehow journey through that dark place of prison and try to figure out my traumas.”
Erik Menendez
“I’m striving to be a better person every day,” he said.
Now, the brothers are fighting for freedom in a resentencing bid that will see an update at a hearing next month.
The resentencing hearing was pushed to March due to the California wildfires after being initially slated for the end of January.
The brothers’ case has come back into the spotlight after Ryan Murphy’s limited series Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story delved into the high-profile murders.
In their interview on the TMZ podcast, Erik and Lyle also gave credit to the Netflix series for bringing attention to their side of the story.
Their appreciation of the show comes as a surprise after Erik previously slammed the show for its “dishonest portrayal” of their crime.
Erik Menendez’s full statement
Erik Menendez shared his response to Ryan Murphy’s Netflix series Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story through his wife, who posted Erik’s statement on X.
“I believed we had moved beyond the lies and ruinous character portrayals of Lyle, creating a caricature of Lyle rooted in horrible and blatant lies rampant in the show.
“I can only believe they were done so on purpose. It is with a heavy heart that I say, I believe Ryan Murphy cannot be this naive and inaccurate about the facts of our lives so as to do this without bad intent.”
“It is sad for me to know that Netflix’s dishonest portrayal of the tragedies surrounding our crime have taken the painful truths several steps backward — back through time to an era when the prosecution built a narrative on a belief system that males were not sexually abused, and that males experienced rape trauma differently than women.
“Those awful lies have been disrupted and exposed by countless brave victims over the last two decades who have broken through their personal shame and bravely spoken out.
“So now Murphy shapes his horrible narrative through vile and appalling character portrayals of Lyle and of me and disheartening slanger.
“Is the truth not enough? Let the truth stand as the truth. How demoralizing is it to know that one man with power can undermine decades of progress in shedding light on childhood trauma.
“Violence is never an answer, never a solution, and is always tragic. As such, I hope it is never forgotten that violence against a child creates a hundred horrendous and silent crime scenes darkly shadowed behind glitter and glamor and rarely exposed until tragedy penetrates everyone involved.
“To all those who have reached out and supported me. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.”
The case also reemerged in the public eye after former Menudo star Roy Rosselló shared explosive testimony revealing Jose Menendez’s alleged sexual abuse in a Peacock documentary in 2023.
Rosselló’s account of abuse, plus a chilling letter Erik reportedly wrote months before the murders to his late cousin Andy Cano surfaced as crucial evidence in the brothers’ fight for freedom.
The evidence appears to prove the brothers’ claims they committed the murders in self-defense after years of abuse from their parents.
Karen Vandermullen, Kitty Menendez’s niece, said that the abuse “trapped” Erik and Lyle.
“I forgive my cousins. I know they were acting out of fear and desperation,” Vandermullen said at a press conference in October.
FAMILY’S HOPE
Dozens of the brothers’ family members have hope that Erik and Lyle will be released after years of being praised as perfect prisoners.
The brothers’ cousin, Anamaria Baralt, told The U.S. Sun she’d pay any price to free them.
“I’m a believer in redemption,” Baralt said.
“Resentencing is designed for people like them who have done the work and changed their lives.
“The amount of personal growth is stunning. I hope that’s what matters at the end of the day.”
The brothers will go before a judge on March 20.
If you or someone you know is affected by any of the issues raised in this story, call or text the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 800 422 4453 or live chat at https://www.childhelphotline.org/.
If a child or other person is in immediate danger, contact 911 immediately.
