Warning: This article contains discussion of rape and sexual abuse which some readers may find distressing.
Audio from Erik Menendez’s hearing became publicly available online during Lyle’s parole date on Friday (August 22), causing distress within the family.
Erik and his brother, Lyle Menendez, were both handed two consecutive life sentences without parole in 1996 for the murders of their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez, in August 1989.
During the trial, both brothers contended that they had endured physical, emotional, and sexual abuse, predominantly at the hands of their father José, which they claimed drove them to a mental state where they felt compelled to kill their parents.
Despite their claims, Erik and Lyle received life sentences without parole. However, this year brought a glimmer of hope for the brothers after being resentenced, which opened a possibility for parole.
This development occurred after a letter surfaced, written by Erik to his cousin in 1988, which described the alleged abuse inflicted by his father.
The parole decision came last week, starting with Erik being denied parole on Thursday (August 21) by parole board commissioner Robert Barton due to his being considered an ‘unreasonable risk to public safety’.
Lyle faced a similar fate on Friday, though his hearing was marred by controversy.
As the proceedings were concluding on Friday, ABC 7 released an audio recording of Erik’s hearing through a public records request, igniting a heated response within the hearing room.
Tiffani Lucero Pastor, a relative of the brothers, expressed: “This is disgusting.”
The audio features Erik recounting the events of the night their parents were killed.
He stated: “Fear was driving me to that den, and rage. The idea that dad was going to come to my room.
“Dad was going to come to my room and rape me that night, that was going to happen one way or another…
“And so I just went and I ran and I got the gun in my room and went down to the car and I loaded it and I ran into that den before Lyle could.”
In another section, Erik elaborated on why their mother was also targeted in the attack.
“She was his [dad’s] victim, I should have known that, I should have separated it in my mind. But that night, I saw them as one person,” he explained.
“I was raised purposely without the moral foundation that I should not do wrong when I know the difference between right and wrong. I was raised to lie, to cheat, to steal, steal in a sense, in an abstract way.”
If you’ve been affected by any of the issues in this article, you can contact The National Sexual Assault Hotline at 800.656.HOPE (4673), available 24/7. Alternatively, you can chat online via online.rainn.org