Lyle and Erik Menendez’s family gathers for press conference. What they’ve previously said about the brothers

You May Be Interested In:Art Garfunkel “Cried At Reunion Lunch With Former Musical Partner Paul Simon After 20 Years’ Silence”



Nearly two dozen of Lyle and Erik Menendez’s family members gathered for a press conference and what they describe as a “show of unity” in front of an Los Angeles criminal courthouse on Oct. 16.

They were joined by the brothers’ defense attorney, Mark Geragos, and Rosie O’Donnell, who are both listed among the speakers, per a press release.

Erik and Lyle Menendez are serving a life sentence without the possibility of parole for the murder of their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez, in 1989.

The press conference comes almost a month after the release of “Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story,” a controversial Ryan Murphy-produced Netflix series that takes a kaleidoscopic look at the murders.

Further, the brothers’ case is being reviewed by the L.A. District Attorney’s office in light of new evidence. Geragos told NBC Los Angeles on Oct. 14 that the brothers were feeling “cautiously optimistic” about the evidence’s impact on their case.

The Menendez brothers were first tried before two separate juries in a televised trial that ended in 1993 with two hung juries. Lyle and Erik Menendez’s testimony about their father’s alleged sexual abuse was deemed inadmissible at the second trial, which ended in a conviction in 1996.

Which family members were at the press conference?

A press release listed who among Lyle and Erik Menendez’s family members will gather outside of the Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center in LA for the press conference.

Speakers include Anamaria Baralt, the niece of Jose Menendez; Joan Andersen VanderMolen, sister of Kitty Menendez; Karen VanderMolen, niece of Kitty Menendez; and Brian A. Andersen Jr., nephew of Kitty Menendez.

Defense attorney Geragos and co-counsel Gardener will speak, as will Rosie O’Donnell.

Other attendees from the Menendez brothers’ family include:

  • Natascha Leonardo, niece of Jose Menendez
  • Arnold VanderMolen, nephew of Kitty Menendez
  • Kathleen Simonton, niece of Kitty Menendez
  • Karen Copley, niece of Kitty Menendez
  • Diane Hernandez, niece of Kitty Menendez
  • Alicia Barbour, niece of Jose Menendez
  • Erik VanderMolen, great nephew of Kitty Menendez
  • Sarah Mallas, great niece of Kitty Menendez
  • Alexander Hernandez, great niece of Kitty Menendez

Also listed are Sylvia Bolock, Rebecca Frascone and Tamara Goodell.

Joan VanderMolen, Kitty Menendez’s sister, and Diane VanderMolen, Kitty Menendez’s niece and the brothers’ cousin, both participated in the recent Netflix documentary “The Menendez Brothers.” They were also interviewed in the Peacock documentary “Menendez + Menudo: Boys Betrayed.” Peacock is owned by NBCUniversal, TODAY’s parent company.

Of the two, only Joan VanderMolen will be at the press conference.

Many family members testified at their televised first trial in 1992 and 1993, but Diane VanderMolen was the first defense witness to tell jurors about Jose Menendez’s alleged sexual abuse of the brothers, journalist Robert Rand wrote in his book “The Menendez Murders.”

She said during her testimony that Lyle, then 8, came to her basement room and told her that “he and his dad had been touching each other in the genitals.” Diane VanderMolen then told her aunt Kitty, whom she said didn’t believe her.

“It was never discussed after that,” VanderMolen said. “‘I convinced myself I was in the wrong.”

Diane VanderMolen also testified that “unusual things” happened between the boys and their mother, Rand reported.

Other family members testified to Jose and Kitty Menendez’s character. Teresa Baralt, Jose Menendez’s sister, during the first trial said Jose could be “harsh” but did not see him “being abusive to the children.”

“I just saw their ways of parenting to be completely different than mine,” she testified, according to Rand’s book.

What have the Menendez brothers’ family members shared recently?

Family members previously shared their thoughts on “Monsters,” a dramatized Netflix series about the killings, in a Sept. 25 statement.

Like Erik Menendez, who had a scathing response to the show, 24 family members condemned the Ryan Murphy-produced series. The Sept. 27 statement, shared by Erik Menendez’s wife Tammi Menendez, did not identity which family members had written or agreed with its sentiments.

The family members called the show “a phobic, gross, anachronistic, serial episodic nightmare.” 

Murphy responded to the family’s criticism in an interview with People, calling the series the “the best thing that has happened to the Menéndez brothers in 30 years.”

“I don’t know what story they would want to be told,” Murphy said. “How do you assassinate the character of two people who killed their own parents? I find that an interesting choice of words, and I don’t agree with it.”

He said the show thrust the case back into the spotlight, and before a more sympathetic public.

“A lot of people think that they were dealt a bad hand in that second trial, a lot of people think they should get a new trial, and I think having those conversations are good. And I know that from prison, the boys have told people in prison that they’re glad about this show because it is launching so many conversations. So, if we’re doing anything that can further a conversation about abuse and also ask the question is, ‘Was that second trial fair?’ then I did my job,” he said.

In response to the press conference, Kitty Menendez’s brother, Milton Anderson, released a statement on Oct. 15 through his lawyer to the Los Angeles District Attorney saying he was “opposed to any resentencing.”

“Kitty Menendez’ brutal murder was not political. Jose Menendez’ vicious murder was not political. Erik and Lyle Menendez’ motive was pure greed,” Milton Anderson said.

share Paylaş facebook pinterest whatsapp x print

Similar Content

‘The View’ Election Reactions: Sunny Hostin “Profoundly Disturbed”, Ana Navarro Has “No Regrets”, And Whoopi Still Won’t Say His Name
‘The View’ Election Reactions: Sunny Hostin “Profoundly Disturbed”, Ana Navarro Has “No Regrets”, And Whoopi Still Won’t Say His Name
‘Outer Banks’ stars unpack ending of Season 4, Part 1 — and hint at what’s next
‘Outer Banks’ stars unpack ending of Season 4, Part 1 — and hint at what’s next
Stevie Nicks Pitched An Idea To Reese Witherspoon & Riley Keough For ‘Daisy Jones & The Six’ Season 2: “They Loved It”
Stevie Nicks Pitched An Idea To Reese Witherspoon & Riley Keough For ‘Daisy Jones & The Six’ Season 2: “They Loved It”
Jenna hilariously rants about feeling 'dumped' by Hoda
Jenna hilariously rants about feeling ‘dumped’ by Hoda
In ‘The Six Triple Eight’, H.E.R. Sings “Whitney Level” Song, Says Diane Warren – Sound & Screen Film
In ‘The Six Triple Eight’, H.E.R. Sings “Whitney Level” Song, Says Diane Warren – Sound & Screen Film
Sound & Screen Film Underway With Hans Zimmer, Diane Warren, Harry Gregson-Williams, Kris Bowers, John Debney & More
Sound & Screen Film Underway With Hans Zimmer, Diane Warren, Harry Gregson-Williams, Kris Bowers, John Debney & More
Super Tiger News | © 2024 | News