Netflix’s “The Menendez Brothers” documentary features Erik and Lyle Menendez revisiting their shocking trial for their parents’ murders.
Netflix is set to unveil a gripping new documentary on the Menendez Brothers next month, featuring real-life accounts from Erik and Lyle Menendez themselves.
For the first time in nearly 30 years, Erik and Lyle Menendez, in their own words, revisit the trial that stunned the nation. They share their story together from the Donovan Correctional Facility in California.
“Everyone asks why we killed our parents”, one of the brothers interjects as The Menendez Brothers trailer begins. “Maybe now people can understand the truth.”
Lyle, then 21, and Erik, then 18, admitted to fatally shooting their parents but claimed they acted out of fear their father, who had sexually abused Erik for years, was about to kill them to keep the abuse a secret.
Initially, the brothers blamed the mob due to their father’s connections as a high profile entertainment executive, but the brutal nature of the crime suggested a more personal and emotionally driven motive.
In the first Menendez brothers’ trial, which began in 1993, Lyle and Erik Menendez were charged with the 1989 murders of their parents. The trial ended with two deadlocked juries, unable to agree on whether the brothers were guilty of murder or acted out of fear. This led to a mistrial and set the stage for a second trial in 1995.
Unlike the first trial, where claims of sexual abuse were central, the judge in the second trial significantly limited the defense’s use of the abuse allegations.
The jury convicted both Lyle and Erik Menendez of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder. They were sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
