Netflix Monsters, an American crime TV series anthology, second edition following Dahmer, presents a true story of murder, incest, rape, and court trial, the Lyle and Erik Menendez story.
The credibility of some of the events in this biographical drama series is subject to dispute. The series goes parallel with the real-life story of two brothers of the Menendez family who killed their parents. A trial conducted earlier has charged and convicted the brothers as first-degree offenders and life imprisonment, respectively. Moreover, Erik Menendez seems questioning the credibility of the drama series while referring to it as “blatant lies”. A social media campaign is being run for the fair retrial of two brothers and NewsZemi is here for it.
Table of Contents
Netflix Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story
The Murder of Jose and Ketty
In 1898, two brothers, Erik and Lyle were arrested for the murder of their parents Jose and Ketty in Los Angeles. At first, murders were perceived as happening as a result of a mob attack as described by the sons. However, as the police got the lowdown and circumstances pointed towards the sons, they got arrested and have been behind bars since then, in California. The first trial revealed a large context of longtime emotional, physical, and mental abuse from the parents.
Lyle and Erik Menendez Trials
The first trial of the Menendez brothers was conducted separately by different juries, but it couldn’t lead to the depth and eventually led to a mistrial. A unanimous second trial was conducted in which Lyle and Erik Menendez were presented before one jury. Yet, the brothers couldn’t get any relief as the prosecution refused the evidence of abuse while referring to them as ‘excuse abuse’. These two brothers’ lawyers tried to prove the act as manslaughter that could shorten their jail time. Instead, the culprit brothers were pronounced guilty in charge of first-degree crime, and they were convicted of life imprisonment.
Evidence and Allegations
Three decades ago, during the course of their first legal trial, both of the brothers have already confessed to the murder of their parents. Therefore, there is no confusion and entailing discussion regarding this subject rather the under-discussion subject is Why they did do what they did?
The defense presented multiple pieces of evidence such as a letter from Erik to his cousin, Andy Cano that was written long ago in 1988, concerning the physical abuse from his father Jose Menendez, and the claim of another victim of Jose’s sexual abuse and rape, Roy Rossello. Erik’s letter written to Cano was discovered by his mother in 2003 after Cano’s death. The chunk of the letter states the fear of abuse and warning that Erick endured as a kid, as it says,
“I have been trying to avoid dad. It is still happening, Andy, but it is worse for me now…. Every night I stay up thinking he might come in….I am afraid… He is crazy, He has warned me a hundred times about telling anyone, especially Lyle.”
As for the other evidence, Roy Rosello signed an affidavit to confirm the sexual abuse by Jose Menendez at the time in the 80s as a minor.
The Habeas Petition
In 2023, After the discovery of Erik’s letter to Cano and the statement regarding rape issued by Rossello, the Menendez brothers’ lawyer, Cliff Gardner filed a Habeas petition. The petition demanded some relief in a conviction for Lyle and Erik Menendez, given to the evidence of the authenticity of abuse in the case. Cliff Gardner while presenting his stance on the matter stated that, “The boys were abused as children. They were abused their whole life…And this is a manslaughter case, not a murder case. It is just that simple.”
According to a report published in 48 hours, Gardner expressed his hope for the best and a different decision from the jury owing to the remarkable progress in terms of evidence of the toxic and abusive environment of Menendez’s house. Cliff says,
“My hope in the case is that the judge will realize that this new evidence is indeed credible and persuasive, and he will vacate the convictions.”
Netflix Monsters not only spotlighted but also broadcast Lyle and Erik Menendez’s story, and trial news all over the world. As the story coupled with its context reached the public, the tidings of the retrial of the Menendez brothers are being awaited fidgety.
