Menendez Brothers Research Paper

Imagine if you or one of your siblings decided to murder your parents for financial gain and went through with it. The Menendez brothers were faced with the fact that they could be tried and convicted for exactly that. With the false evidence the brothers created to plead self defense, the conviction was going to be a lot harder than expected. It took 2 trials to finally sentence them to life in different prisons without the possibility parole. Lyle and Erik Menendez were found guilty of murdering their parents for 14 million dollars of inheritance money.

On the night of August 20th, 1989, Jose and Kitty Menendez were bushwhacked in the family room at 10:00 PM by their two children. Mrs. Menendez was filling out a UCLA application for her

Without evidence, the Menendez brothers may not be incarcerated today. Although most of the statements provided by Lyle and Erik Menendez were false, detectives found ways to lead to the conviction of the criminals. When questioned, the brothers stated they were at the movie theater when the slaughtering of their parents occurred. The police discovered that the brothers had lied about their whereabouts that night. They were not seen in the movie theater and did not have any record of a ticket. Also, The brothers went on a spending spree after the tragic death of their parents. Lyle purchased a Porsche for $60,000, $40,000 dollars worth of clothes, a Rolex watch for $5,000, and a restaurant in Princeton, New Jersey. Erik attempted to pursue a career as a professional tennis player, so he hired a personal coach for 50,000 a year. No one could prove the Menendez brothers fully guilty until March of 1990. Judalon Smyth told police that the brother’s psychologist, Jerome Oziel, told her to eavesdrop outside the door when he had a session scheduled with a Menendez brother. She informed the police that Lyle and Erik Menendez confessed to killing their parents, and told them about Oziel taping his sessions with the Menendez brothers. Police investigators rushed to Oziel’s office to take possession of the tapes. After the Menendez brothers got away with the first trial, this evidence was enough to take the

Each day, the courtroom was filled with reporters, writers, and friends who camped out at 2 am with hopes of getting a seat. At the first trial, they had brought up sexual molestation and the self-defense plea. Lyle falsely testified that his father violated him when he was 7 years old, and 13 when his mom stopped. Erik dishonestly explained Lyle and he shared that their parents were abusing them when Kitty slapped Lyle, and Erik was shocked when his brother’s hair fell off. Lyle’s old girlfriend, Jamie Pisarcik, testified that Erik couldn’t have been shocked when Lyle’s baldness was revealed because Erik had told her the previous spring about Lyle wearing a toupee. Jamie also stated that Lyle tried to persuade her to testify that Jose tried to hit on her. The defense formed a split jury with many people very mad with the brothers getting away with the ‘abuse excuse’ to keep their money. However, the second trial was a success. At the retrial, the brothers were ruled guilty with special circumstances, meaning they could possibly be sentenced to death. The second time, Lyle never took the stand, and his attorney, Charles Gessler, backed him up saying there was “no need.” They were both aware about the prosecutor, David Conn, having new evidence that could maximize his penalty. The Prosecution had gotten hold of a letter about the crime that Lyle had written. They also found out