1 00:00:00,391 --> 00:00:02,785 In the criminal justice system, 2 00:00:02,785 --> 00:00:05,309 detectives and prosecutors face daunting challenges 3 00:00:05,309 --> 00:00:07,790 when money is the motive for murder. 4 00:00:07,790 --> 00:00:10,184 [dramatic sting] 5 00:00:10,184 --> 00:00:12,925 Never thought 32-plus years later, 6 00:00:12,925 --> 00:00:15,493 we'd still be talking about the Menendez brothers. 7 00:00:15,493 --> 00:00:18,148 It was a case that captivated the nation. 8 00:00:18,148 --> 00:00:20,237 They've committed a heinous crime. 9 00:00:20,237 --> 00:00:22,457 This case was a phenomenon. 10 00:00:22,457 --> 00:00:25,373 A crime many believed had a clear-cut motive. 11 00:00:25,373 --> 00:00:27,114 They wanted the money and the lifestyle. 12 00:00:27,114 --> 00:00:28,898 It's as simple as that. 13 00:00:28,898 --> 00:00:31,770 My friend's going to spend the rest of his life in jail. 14 00:00:31,770 --> 00:00:34,643 A trial that recaptured the attention of millions 15 00:00:34,643 --> 00:00:37,472 across social media during the pandemic, 16 00:00:37,472 --> 00:00:40,083 which sparked a renewed call for justice. 17 00:00:40,083 --> 00:00:42,738 This younger generation is learning 18 00:00:42,738 --> 00:00:44,261 about the Menendez case. 19 00:00:44,261 --> 00:00:46,829 They believe this was an improper prosecution. 20 00:00:46,829 --> 00:00:49,701 They got what they deserve for a vicious crime. 21 00:00:49,701 --> 00:00:53,879 These men and women dedicate their lives to law and order. 22 00:00:53,879 --> 00:00:55,664 It's the toughest thing I've ever done. 23 00:00:55,664 --> 00:00:58,188 These are their true stories. 24 00:00:58,188 --> 00:01:01,278 ♪ 25 00:01:04,542 --> 00:01:07,676 On August 20, 1989, José and Kitty Menendez 26 00:01:07,676 --> 00:01:08,894 were brutally murdered. 27 00:01:08,894 --> 00:01:11,071 The Menendez brothers were convicted 28 00:01:11,071 --> 00:01:12,681 of first-degree murder. 29 00:01:12,681 --> 00:01:15,727 At the time, crime was this, like, black-and-white thing. 30 00:01:15,727 --> 00:01:18,121 They were sentenced to life without parole, 31 00:01:18,121 --> 00:01:20,950 and they've been in prison for more than 30 years now. 32 00:01:20,950 --> 00:01:24,171 Because these are highly notorious defendants, 33 00:01:24,171 --> 00:01:27,261 they think it's a free-for-all for inhumanity. 34 00:01:27,261 --> 00:01:30,264 [tense music] 35 00:01:30,264 --> 00:01:31,961 ♪ 36 00:01:31,961 --> 00:01:35,530 In 2021, I wrote a story about the Menendez brothers 37 00:01:35,530 --> 00:01:40,100 and the rise of a social media fanbase for them. 38 00:01:40,100 --> 00:01:42,450 It's pretty shocking, just the amount of engagement. 39 00:01:42,450 --> 00:01:44,408 I mean, some of these videos alone have 40 00:01:44,408 --> 00:01:46,280 2, 3, 4 million views on them. 41 00:01:46,280 --> 00:01:48,847 ♪ 42 00:01:48,847 --> 00:01:50,762 It can just really upend things 43 00:01:50,762 --> 00:01:53,548 that we might consider set in stone. 44 00:01:53,548 --> 00:01:55,550 What happened? 45 00:01:55,550 --> 00:01:57,726 [voice breaking] My dad-- 46 00:01:57,726 --> 00:02:00,207 - Can you answer the question? - Yes. 47 00:02:00,207 --> 00:02:02,165 OK. 48 00:02:02,165 --> 00:02:05,212 The young people that are making posts about this 49 00:02:05,212 --> 00:02:07,083 and talking about it online-- 50 00:02:07,083 --> 00:02:09,390 they're trying to, in their eyes, 51 00:02:09,390 --> 00:02:11,392 overturn a miscarriage of justice. 52 00:02:16,701 --> 00:02:18,616 [dramatic sting] 53 00:02:20,749 --> 00:02:23,143 [eerie music] 54 00:02:28,974 --> 00:02:30,411 [man shouts] 55 00:02:38,114 --> 00:02:40,160 [sobbing] 56 00:02:47,689 --> 00:02:51,388 [siren wailing] 57 00:02:51,388 --> 00:02:54,609 [dramatic music] 58 00:02:54,609 --> 00:02:56,306 ♪ 59 00:02:56,306 --> 00:02:57,829 I remember it was just before midnight. 60 00:02:57,829 --> 00:02:59,440 We were patrolling up in the north end 61 00:02:59,440 --> 00:03:02,182 and we got a call of a shooting at a residence, 62 00:03:02,182 --> 00:03:05,141 and the whole shift showed up. 63 00:03:05,141 --> 00:03:06,403 It was dark out. 64 00:03:06,403 --> 00:03:08,666 They had the house lights on. 65 00:03:08,666 --> 00:03:11,974 The brothers were ordered from their front door 66 00:03:11,974 --> 00:03:14,542 to the driveway area, 67 00:03:14,542 --> 00:03:18,981 where they were told to lay face down and were searched. 68 00:03:18,981 --> 00:03:21,766 Then once they were deemed to be not a threat, 69 00:03:21,766 --> 00:03:23,986 then we tried to figure out what was going on. 70 00:03:23,986 --> 00:03:27,250 ♪ 71 00:03:27,250 --> 00:03:29,731 People took turns going in to look at the crime scene, 72 00:03:29,731 --> 00:03:31,036 which was horrific. 73 00:03:31,036 --> 00:03:34,649 ♪ 74 00:03:34,649 --> 00:03:38,653 I saw what appeared to be the mom, on all fours 75 00:03:38,653 --> 00:03:41,177 between the couch and the coffee table with her hair 76 00:03:41,177 --> 00:03:43,005 slung over in front of her. 77 00:03:43,005 --> 00:03:47,052 I saw the father sitting on the couch, 78 00:03:47,052 --> 00:03:49,185 slumped back. 79 00:03:49,185 --> 00:03:51,535 ♪ 80 00:03:51,535 --> 00:03:54,886 It looked like they had been repeatedly shot 81 00:03:54,886 --> 00:03:56,410 with a shotgun. 82 00:03:56,410 --> 00:03:59,108 I'd never seen anything like that before. 83 00:03:59,108 --> 00:04:03,286 And then I'm back outside dealing with the two brothers. 84 00:04:03,286 --> 00:04:05,680 They seem to be very distraught. 85 00:04:05,680 --> 00:04:09,031 As a police officer, you're very compassionate. 86 00:04:09,031 --> 00:04:11,599 It was a horrible scene. 87 00:04:11,599 --> 00:04:13,557 Officer Angel learned that the victims were 88 00:04:13,557 --> 00:04:15,951 José and Kitty Menendez, 89 00:04:15,951 --> 00:04:17,474 and it was their sons, 90 00:04:17,474 --> 00:04:20,347 18-year-old Erik and 21-year-old Lyle, 91 00:04:20,347 --> 00:04:22,697 who had called 911. 92 00:04:22,697 --> 00:04:24,916 And I was detailed to find out who they were, 93 00:04:24,916 --> 00:04:26,570 who the people in the house were, 94 00:04:26,570 --> 00:04:30,052 and to report back to the supervisor inside. 95 00:04:30,052 --> 00:04:34,709 ♪ 96 00:04:34,709 --> 00:04:37,625 The detective sergeant told me to bring the two brothers 97 00:04:37,625 --> 00:04:39,888 down to the station to be interviewed 98 00:04:39,888 --> 00:04:43,805 by the detectives-- in this case, Tom Edmonds. 99 00:04:43,805 --> 00:04:46,416 He was just known as the ultimate 100 00:04:46,416 --> 00:04:50,725 in detectives, very dedicated to his craft. 101 00:04:50,725 --> 00:04:53,641 I got called after midnight to come in. 102 00:04:53,641 --> 00:04:57,340 I got a 20-minute briefing as to what we knew, 103 00:04:57,340 --> 00:04:59,603 and then went to talk to the boys 104 00:04:59,603 --> 00:05:01,779 to see if I could get more information 105 00:05:01,779 --> 00:05:06,262 so we could start putting an investigation together. 106 00:05:06,262 --> 00:05:08,177 I got Erik in there first. 107 00:05:08,177 --> 00:05:13,138 He was extremely distraught, crying, acting very fidgety. 108 00:05:13,138 --> 00:05:16,838 He said he had been to a movie and to the Taste of LA, 109 00:05:16,838 --> 00:05:19,231 which is an event in Santa Monica. 110 00:05:19,231 --> 00:05:23,105 They went home to get Erik's false identification 111 00:05:23,105 --> 00:05:25,890 that he had so they could go to a bar. 112 00:05:25,890 --> 00:05:28,719 That's when they discovered the murder. 113 00:05:28,719 --> 00:05:31,331 The interview was relatively short. 114 00:05:31,331 --> 00:05:33,768 I approached him with kid gloves 115 00:05:33,768 --> 00:05:36,379 and tried to be kind, because I know how 116 00:05:36,379 --> 00:05:38,425 I would have felt if I walked in 117 00:05:38,425 --> 00:05:41,428 and found both parents gunned down. 118 00:05:41,428 --> 00:05:43,473 His brother, Lyle Menendez, 119 00:05:43,473 --> 00:05:46,084 reiterated their whereabouts that evening. 120 00:05:46,084 --> 00:05:47,956 Investigators then asked 121 00:05:47,956 --> 00:05:51,829 who had motive to kill their parents. 122 00:05:51,829 --> 00:05:54,745 They said their father was in a video business 123 00:05:54,745 --> 00:05:57,269 where there was unsavory characters 124 00:05:57,269 --> 00:05:59,968 that he worked with. 125 00:05:59,968 --> 00:06:02,927 I had never heard of José or Kitty Menendez. 126 00:06:02,927 --> 00:06:06,366 I later learned that he was a self-made millionaire 127 00:06:06,366 --> 00:06:07,845 kind of guy. 128 00:06:07,845 --> 00:06:10,195 Investigators delved into the couple's past 129 00:06:10,195 --> 00:06:12,589 to determine how they could have made enemies 130 00:06:12,589 --> 00:06:14,983 on their rise to riches. 131 00:06:14,983 --> 00:06:19,291 José Menendez came to Miami when he was 15 years old, 132 00:06:19,291 --> 00:06:20,641 a Cuban immigrant. 133 00:06:20,641 --> 00:06:24,166 [soft piano music] 134 00:06:24,166 --> 00:06:27,430 Kitty and Josie met at Southern Illinois University. 135 00:06:27,430 --> 00:06:30,259 And she was pretty and bright, 136 00:06:30,259 --> 00:06:33,131 and fell in love. 137 00:06:33,131 --> 00:06:36,439 José and Kitty had two sons, Erik and Lyle, 138 00:06:36,439 --> 00:06:40,791 who they raised in New Jersey. 139 00:06:40,791 --> 00:06:44,969 Uh, this is a Princeton Day School 140 00:06:44,969 --> 00:06:47,494 yearbook from 1983. 141 00:06:47,494 --> 00:06:49,147 Sixth grade. 142 00:06:49,147 --> 00:06:53,064 You can see here, there's Erik, and me next to him 143 00:06:53,064 --> 00:06:55,066 in our class picture. 144 00:06:56,981 --> 00:06:59,157 I was raised in Princeton, New Jersey, 145 00:06:59,157 --> 00:07:01,682 and I grew up with Erik Menendez. 146 00:07:01,682 --> 00:07:04,075 Erik was focused on tennis and we jokingly 147 00:07:04,075 --> 00:07:06,600 gave each other's autographs, because we had decided 148 00:07:06,600 --> 00:07:08,515 that we were both going to be competitors 149 00:07:08,515 --> 00:07:11,039 and win the gold medal in the '92 Olympics. 150 00:07:11,039 --> 00:07:13,345 Lyle had aspirations of going into politics. 151 00:07:13,345 --> 00:07:16,131 I'd been there for the dinner conversations where 152 00:07:16,131 --> 00:07:18,220 José had made the comments about, well, you know, 153 00:07:18,220 --> 00:07:20,875 if you want to be a senator, this is how you got to think 154 00:07:20,875 --> 00:07:23,225 about this, this, and this. 155 00:07:23,225 --> 00:07:27,359 José struck me as a typical immigrant father. 156 00:07:27,359 --> 00:07:29,405 You've come to this country to make a better life 157 00:07:29,405 --> 00:07:31,886 for yourself, for your family. 158 00:07:31,886 --> 00:07:35,063 You've got to do everything to the best of your ability. 159 00:07:35,063 --> 00:07:37,935 José Menendez ended up working at RCA Records, 160 00:07:37,935 --> 00:07:40,677 and then he got this job out here on the West Coast 161 00:07:40,677 --> 00:07:42,157 with Live Entertainment. 162 00:07:42,157 --> 00:07:45,073 [upbeat music] 163 00:07:45,073 --> 00:07:47,423 Erik called me and said, hey, guess what? 164 00:07:47,423 --> 00:07:49,556 I'm moving to LA. 165 00:07:49,556 --> 00:07:53,081 In the fall of 1986, 15-year-old Erik 166 00:07:53,081 --> 00:07:56,519 moved west with his parents, while 18-year-old Lyle 167 00:07:56,519 --> 00:07:59,653 stayed to attend Princeton University. 168 00:07:59,653 --> 00:08:01,524 It was all very positive. 169 00:08:01,524 --> 00:08:02,786 Like, there was nothing negative 170 00:08:02,786 --> 00:08:05,093 that he and I, in our conversation, 171 00:08:05,093 --> 00:08:07,748 saw in their family moving to California. 172 00:08:07,748 --> 00:08:09,619 By all accounts, 173 00:08:09,619 --> 00:08:11,795 the Menendez family found success-- 174 00:08:11,795 --> 00:08:13,928 until tragedy struck. 175 00:08:13,928 --> 00:08:16,713 The city of Beverly Hills has been rocked by 176 00:08:16,713 --> 00:08:19,020 a drama at once riveting and chilling. 177 00:08:19,020 --> 00:08:21,239 [tense music] 178 00:08:21,239 --> 00:08:23,503 Company might have been doing business 179 00:08:23,503 --> 00:08:25,113 with people in the mafia. 180 00:08:25,113 --> 00:08:27,942 One of this town's most ambitious, charming, 181 00:08:27,942 --> 00:08:30,510 promising new executives and his wife 182 00:08:30,510 --> 00:08:33,600 were savagely murdered in their home. 183 00:08:33,600 --> 00:08:37,865 I come home, and my mom and dad 184 00:08:37,865 --> 00:08:41,869 had this look on their face. 185 00:08:41,869 --> 00:08:45,220 And they were just like, "John..." 186 00:08:45,220 --> 00:08:49,485 ♪ 187 00:08:49,485 --> 00:08:51,661 "Erik's parents are dead." 188 00:08:51,661 --> 00:08:53,489 [breathes shakily] 189 00:08:53,489 --> 00:08:56,405 ♪ 190 00:08:56,405 --> 00:08:57,928 I couldn't process it. 191 00:08:57,928 --> 00:08:59,582 I--I could not wrap my mind around 192 00:08:59,582 --> 00:09:02,063 what could have happened. 193 00:09:02,063 --> 00:09:05,283 ♪ 194 00:09:05,283 --> 00:09:08,112 Throughout the house, there were no shotgun rounds, 195 00:09:08,112 --> 00:09:11,072 no bloody clothes, no bloody footprints. 196 00:09:11,072 --> 00:09:14,858 The detectives conducted a search looking for a shotgun, 197 00:09:14,858 --> 00:09:17,644 and we didn't find what we were looking for. 198 00:09:17,644 --> 00:09:20,298 We had policemen all over the place 199 00:09:20,298 --> 00:09:22,692 trying to find witnesses. 200 00:09:22,692 --> 00:09:24,999 They found a girl down the street 201 00:09:24,999 --> 00:09:27,436 that said she saw a car pull up, 202 00:09:27,436 --> 00:09:30,439 and two individuals get out and go to the trunk, 203 00:09:30,439 --> 00:09:32,746 and then go in the house. 204 00:09:32,746 --> 00:09:34,182 There was no evidence that 205 00:09:34,182 --> 00:09:36,706 this was a residential robbery. 206 00:09:36,706 --> 00:09:39,666 So it was strictly a hit. 207 00:09:39,666 --> 00:09:42,233 Kill José, kill Kitty. 208 00:09:42,233 --> 00:09:47,369 ♪ 209 00:09:47,369 --> 00:09:49,676 It came my way because there were allegations 210 00:09:49,676 --> 00:09:52,243 that it was a mob hit. 211 00:09:52,243 --> 00:09:54,332 It had me questioning a lot things, 212 00:09:54,332 --> 00:09:57,205 my awareness of people around me. 213 00:09:57,205 --> 00:10:00,034 Perfect family to the outside world. 214 00:10:00,034 --> 00:10:03,907 But inside that home, it was a disaster. 215 00:10:08,433 --> 00:10:11,349 [tense music] 216 00:10:11,349 --> 00:10:14,788 ♪ 217 00:10:14,788 --> 00:10:17,181 In 1989, as I was driving to work, 218 00:10:17,181 --> 00:10:18,661 I heard about a murder that had taken place 219 00:10:18,661 --> 00:10:20,141 in Beverly Hills. 220 00:10:20,141 --> 00:10:22,186 And then I got to work, and they said, it's yours. 221 00:10:22,186 --> 00:10:24,449 ♪ 222 00:10:24,449 --> 00:10:26,103 And at the time, I was working in 223 00:10:26,103 --> 00:10:28,976 the organized crime unit of the district attorney's office. 224 00:10:28,976 --> 00:10:32,240 Most murder cases are put together by the police 225 00:10:32,240 --> 00:10:34,503 and given to the DA to prosecute. 226 00:10:34,503 --> 00:10:37,288 Occasionally, when you're in a special unit, 227 00:10:37,288 --> 00:10:39,290 you get a murder case at the get-go. 228 00:10:39,290 --> 00:10:41,597 It came my way because there were allegations 229 00:10:41,597 --> 00:10:43,381 that it was a mob hit, 230 00:10:43,381 --> 00:10:45,862 and I met with the detectives pretty early on. 231 00:10:47,472 --> 00:10:51,955 ♪ 232 00:10:51,955 --> 00:10:54,523 One of the questions we asked the family 233 00:10:54,523 --> 00:10:56,351 was for enemies. 234 00:10:56,351 --> 00:11:00,790 And they mentioned a man named Noel Bloom, 235 00:11:00,790 --> 00:11:04,489 and a business deal that went sour with José. 236 00:11:04,489 --> 00:11:07,536 Noel Bloom was president of Live Entertainment. 237 00:11:07,536 --> 00:11:11,496 He preceded José Menendez in that job, 238 00:11:11,496 --> 00:11:16,153 and who did have some mafia connections in his life. 239 00:11:16,153 --> 00:11:17,981 And so his name was put out there 240 00:11:17,981 --> 00:11:21,811 early on in the investigation, probably within days. 241 00:11:21,811 --> 00:11:24,031 Noel Bloom had a pretty good alibi, 242 00:11:24,031 --> 00:11:26,816 and that didn't go anywhere once they looked into it. 243 00:11:26,816 --> 00:11:28,905 Once Noel Bloom was ruled out, 244 00:11:28,905 --> 00:11:30,951 investigators continued to explore 245 00:11:30,951 --> 00:11:34,171 José's business dealings. 246 00:11:34,171 --> 00:11:38,001 I had heard that he was just a nightmare to work with. 247 00:11:38,001 --> 00:11:41,483 He yelled and screamed a lot. He was brutal to people. 248 00:11:41,483 --> 00:11:44,660 I had been told that right after his murder, 249 00:11:44,660 --> 00:11:49,012 people were pretty pleased that he was no longer on the Earth. 250 00:11:49,012 --> 00:11:50,971 He was brutal in business. 251 00:11:50,971 --> 00:11:54,061 And we found out that José had bought 252 00:11:54,061 --> 00:11:57,412 a pornographic film operation 253 00:11:57,412 --> 00:12:00,676 from some people that were connected to the mafia 254 00:12:00,676 --> 00:12:04,027 back in New York, New Jersey area. 255 00:12:04,027 --> 00:12:06,900 We found out who he had purchased it from, 256 00:12:06,900 --> 00:12:09,990 and we were able to locate this man 257 00:12:09,990 --> 00:12:12,906 in a hospital in Newark. 258 00:12:18,650 --> 00:12:20,261 When I interviewed him, 259 00:12:20,261 --> 00:12:23,177 he admitted being connected to the underworld. 260 00:12:23,177 --> 00:12:26,920 We told him about this murder scene, and he said, 261 00:12:26,920 --> 00:12:29,618 we would have not made it so messy. 262 00:12:29,618 --> 00:12:31,359 ♪ 263 00:12:31,359 --> 00:12:33,361 We wouldn't have killed the wife. 264 00:12:33,361 --> 00:12:38,192 And he said José and them did a standard business operation. 265 00:12:38,192 --> 00:12:40,760 José made money, they made money, 266 00:12:40,760 --> 00:12:43,501 and they parted as great friends. 267 00:12:43,501 --> 00:12:46,591 While detectives hadn't fully eliminated the mafia, 268 00:12:46,591 --> 00:12:49,594 they began looking into Menendez family connections 269 00:12:49,594 --> 00:12:53,076 while in New Jersey and made an unexpected discovery 270 00:12:53,076 --> 00:12:54,774 about Erik and Lyle. 271 00:12:54,774 --> 00:12:58,255 There were rumors throughout--among the family, 272 00:12:58,255 --> 00:12:59,909 the whole Menendez family-- 273 00:12:59,909 --> 00:13:04,000 that the boys were going to be disinherited. 274 00:13:04,000 --> 00:13:07,787 This was a red flag all the way. 275 00:13:07,787 --> 00:13:10,659 According to family members, José had grown wary 276 00:13:10,659 --> 00:13:12,879 of his inheritance ending up in the hands 277 00:13:12,879 --> 00:13:14,489 of his sons' girlfriends. 278 00:13:14,489 --> 00:13:17,840 He was also disappointed in his sons' recent brush 279 00:13:17,840 --> 00:13:21,191 with criminal behavior. 280 00:13:21,191 --> 00:13:23,367 We did a background check on them 281 00:13:23,367 --> 00:13:26,631 and learned that they had had a problem out in Calabasas, 282 00:13:26,631 --> 00:13:31,114 doing residential burglaries of their friends. 283 00:13:31,114 --> 00:13:34,988 They stole, like, $100,000 in cash and jewelry, 284 00:13:34,988 --> 00:13:37,947 and they got caught doing that. 285 00:13:37,947 --> 00:13:39,688 That's weird. 286 00:13:39,688 --> 00:13:41,472 I mean, that's a weird thing to do when your father is making 287 00:13:41,472 --> 00:13:43,300 the kind of money he was. 288 00:13:43,300 --> 00:13:45,607 José Menendez, he was embarrassed that his sons 289 00:13:45,607 --> 00:13:48,001 were involved in this-- these burglaries, 290 00:13:48,001 --> 00:13:50,612 and he made a deal with the district attorney's office. 291 00:13:50,612 --> 00:13:53,745 He fixed it so that Erik would plead guilty 292 00:13:53,745 --> 00:13:55,312 to these burglaries, 293 00:13:55,312 --> 00:13:59,316 and then Erik would only face juvenile charges. 294 00:13:59,316 --> 00:14:00,752 And he ended up getting probation 295 00:14:00,752 --> 00:14:03,320 and had to see a psychologist for six months, 296 00:14:03,320 --> 00:14:06,367 and Lyle was not mentioned in it at all. 297 00:14:06,367 --> 00:14:08,804 Lyle was supposed to be the golden child. 298 00:14:08,804 --> 00:14:10,371 And it was protect Lyle, 299 00:14:10,371 --> 00:14:12,590 which I'm sure was hard on Erik. 300 00:14:12,590 --> 00:14:17,247 ♪ 301 00:14:17,247 --> 00:14:19,641 Investigators also learned that José had 302 00:14:19,641 --> 00:14:22,905 a $650,000 life insurance policy 303 00:14:22,905 --> 00:14:26,256 that the brothers inherited right after his death. 304 00:14:26,256 --> 00:14:29,651 They just went shopping immediately. 305 00:14:29,651 --> 00:14:33,916 They bought a Porsche Carrera motorcar, 306 00:14:33,916 --> 00:14:36,745 and they bought Rolexes. 307 00:14:36,745 --> 00:14:39,182 They bought a Jeep. 308 00:14:39,182 --> 00:14:41,445 Erik hired a tennis coach. 309 00:14:41,445 --> 00:14:42,882 He was going to go to UCLA, 310 00:14:42,882 --> 00:14:45,275 but then he decided, well, he wouldn't go to UCLA. 311 00:14:45,275 --> 00:14:47,538 He was this hot tennis player, and he hired a guy 312 00:14:47,538 --> 00:14:50,759 for $60,000 a year to be his coach. 313 00:14:50,759 --> 00:14:55,372 This didn't show signs of very deep sadness, 314 00:14:55,372 --> 00:14:57,113 in our mind. 315 00:14:57,113 --> 00:14:58,723 People were trying to make a big deal about 316 00:14:58,723 --> 00:15:00,856 when they went on this big spending spree. 317 00:15:00,856 --> 00:15:02,553 They were spending money before, 318 00:15:02,553 --> 00:15:06,122 but just somebody else was signing the check. 319 00:15:06,122 --> 00:15:09,430 Lyle went to Princeton, 320 00:15:09,430 --> 00:15:12,955 and Lyle bought a restaurant there after the murders, 321 00:15:12,955 --> 00:15:16,263 a Buffalo wings restaurant. 322 00:15:16,263 --> 00:15:17,568 He spent half a million dollars 323 00:15:17,568 --> 00:15:19,440 and he thought this would be the beginning 324 00:15:19,440 --> 00:15:22,443 of him being a big businessman like his father. 325 00:15:22,443 --> 00:15:24,575 Erik and Lyle were never people to just 326 00:15:24,575 --> 00:15:26,447 sit there and do nothing. 327 00:15:26,447 --> 00:15:28,840 It was, you've got to stay active. 328 00:15:28,840 --> 00:15:31,495 You've got to be productive. 329 00:15:31,495 --> 00:15:34,585 ♪ 330 00:15:34,585 --> 00:15:36,326 They wanted away from their parents, 331 00:15:36,326 --> 00:15:38,067 but they wanted the money and the lifestyle. 332 00:15:38,067 --> 00:15:39,634 It's as simple as that. 333 00:15:39,634 --> 00:15:42,376 And I kept saying to the cops, find me those guns. 334 00:15:42,376 --> 00:15:44,639 Because once we can hook them up with any guns, 335 00:15:44,639 --> 00:15:46,032 we can prove that they're the killers, 336 00:15:46,032 --> 00:15:47,816 and not somebody else. 337 00:15:47,816 --> 00:15:50,036 Investigators pushed together evidence 338 00:15:50,036 --> 00:15:51,733 to implicate the brothers. 339 00:15:51,733 --> 00:15:53,778 But seven months after the murders, 340 00:15:53,778 --> 00:15:56,781 no new leads had been released by police, 341 00:15:56,781 --> 00:15:59,262 creating more questions than answers 342 00:15:59,262 --> 00:16:02,439 for the public and the media. 343 00:16:02,439 --> 00:16:05,355 It was just in the news constantly. 344 00:16:05,355 --> 00:16:06,878 I couldn't escape it. 345 00:16:06,878 --> 00:16:08,663 I don't know who killed them, 346 00:16:08,663 --> 00:16:11,144 but I know it wasn't Erik and Lyle. 347 00:16:11,144 --> 00:16:12,841 Erik stopped by my parents' house, 348 00:16:12,841 --> 00:16:14,843 and he was like, I just wanted to say hi to you 349 00:16:14,843 --> 00:16:16,671 and let you know I'm OK. 350 00:16:16,671 --> 00:16:20,022 And my dad told me when he, you know-- 351 00:16:20,022 --> 00:16:21,676 when he talked to Erik, he was like, all he wanted to do 352 00:16:21,676 --> 00:16:25,419 was give him a hug 'cause he just felt so horrible. 353 00:16:25,419 --> 00:16:26,855 Um... 354 00:16:26,855 --> 00:16:30,163 ♪ 355 00:16:30,163 --> 00:16:32,426 During the investigation, 356 00:16:32,426 --> 00:16:34,906 the case was on the back burner 357 00:16:34,906 --> 00:16:37,909 because we didn't have any good information going. 358 00:16:37,909 --> 00:16:41,087 This investigation wasn't easy at all, 359 00:16:41,087 --> 00:16:44,220 up until the point where a young lady 360 00:16:44,220 --> 00:16:46,527 by the name of Judalon Smyth 361 00:16:46,527 --> 00:16:48,920 appeared in the detective bureau 362 00:16:48,920 --> 00:16:52,489 and dropped an atomic bombshell on us. 363 00:16:56,580 --> 00:16:59,148 While investigators hit a dead end 364 00:16:59,148 --> 00:17:01,020 trying to build a case against the Menendez brothers 365 00:17:01,020 --> 00:17:03,065 in March 1990, 366 00:17:03,065 --> 00:17:05,981 a woman named Judalon Smyth came forward 367 00:17:05,981 --> 00:17:09,071 with explosive information. 368 00:17:09,071 --> 00:17:12,857 She said that she was the girlfriend of a psychologist 369 00:17:12,857 --> 00:17:17,123 named Dr. Jerome Oziel, and she had been dating him, 370 00:17:17,123 --> 00:17:19,342 and she did not like him anymore. 371 00:17:19,342 --> 00:17:22,737 But he had told her that the boys had confessed 372 00:17:22,737 --> 00:17:25,000 that they had murdered their parents. 373 00:17:25,000 --> 00:17:27,437 And not only had they confessed to it, 374 00:17:27,437 --> 00:17:29,787 he had it on audiotape. 375 00:17:29,787 --> 00:17:31,572 [dramatic music] 376 00:17:31,572 --> 00:17:35,315 When the brothers did the burglary in Calabasas, 377 00:17:35,315 --> 00:17:37,621 their attorney said, go talk to Oziel, 378 00:17:37,621 --> 00:17:39,493 and it will be better for you that you're 379 00:17:39,493 --> 00:17:40,668 trying to deal with your problems 380 00:17:40,668 --> 00:17:42,278 in a therapeutic setting. 381 00:17:42,278 --> 00:17:43,671 So that's what they did. 382 00:17:43,671 --> 00:17:45,760 And then after the murders, Erik went back. 383 00:17:45,760 --> 00:17:48,458 Because Erik, emotionally, had a lot tougher time 384 00:17:48,458 --> 00:17:50,547 with what he'd done than his brother, 385 00:17:50,547 --> 00:17:53,855 or at least he felt the need to go see Dr. Oziel. 386 00:17:53,855 --> 00:17:58,773 Dr. Oziel actually violated client-doctor relationships, 387 00:17:58,773 --> 00:18:01,428 but I also knew there was good potential 388 00:18:01,428 --> 00:18:03,343 that it would help our case. 389 00:18:03,343 --> 00:18:07,347 And the key, in my book, was Judalon Smyth 390 00:18:07,347 --> 00:18:12,178 told us that the shotguns were bought in San Diego. 391 00:18:12,178 --> 00:18:15,137 ♪ 392 00:18:15,137 --> 00:18:18,880 There's only so many gun stores in San Diego. 393 00:18:18,880 --> 00:18:22,884 Les and I went to the Big Five as our second store, 394 00:18:22,884 --> 00:18:26,540 and when you buy a gun, it's in a big ledger. 395 00:18:26,540 --> 00:18:28,846 And we went to the proper date sequence, 396 00:18:28,846 --> 00:18:32,763 and we noticed the name Donovan Goodreau. 397 00:18:34,722 --> 00:18:37,333 We knew Donovan Goodreau was Lyle's friend from Princeton. 398 00:18:37,333 --> 00:18:38,726 He didn't go there, 399 00:18:38,726 --> 00:18:41,207 but he hung out with the Princeton kids. 400 00:18:41,207 --> 00:18:44,166 Goodreau had called police right after the murders 401 00:18:44,166 --> 00:18:45,733 to ask what had happened, 402 00:18:45,733 --> 00:18:48,823 which is when they learned who he was. 403 00:18:48,823 --> 00:18:50,825 Donovan Goodreau was interviewed by the police 404 00:18:50,825 --> 00:18:54,045 and quickly ruled out as the purchaser of the guns. 405 00:18:54,045 --> 00:18:55,743 He was back east when the guns were purchased. 406 00:18:55,743 --> 00:18:58,398 So no, he was not in San Diego that day. 407 00:18:58,398 --> 00:19:01,314 We learned that Donovan Goodreau lost his ID, 408 00:19:01,314 --> 00:19:03,316 or it was stolen. 409 00:19:03,316 --> 00:19:05,361 Goodreau said he had last seen his ID 410 00:19:05,361 --> 00:19:07,058 in Lyle's dorm room that spring 411 00:19:07,058 --> 00:19:09,757 and suspected the brothers still had it. 412 00:19:09,757 --> 00:19:13,152 The Menendez boys had bought two shotguns, 413 00:19:13,152 --> 00:19:15,371 two Mossberg 12-gauges, 414 00:19:15,371 --> 00:19:17,591 and a box of ammunition 415 00:19:17,591 --> 00:19:22,596 using Donovan Goodreau's stolen or found identification. 416 00:19:22,596 --> 00:19:25,120 That's enough to file the case. 417 00:19:25,120 --> 00:19:27,992 ♪ 418 00:19:27,992 --> 00:19:30,169 [dramatic sting] 419 00:19:30,169 --> 00:19:33,607 ♪ 420 00:19:33,607 --> 00:19:37,045 The day of the arrest, Lyle and his pals 421 00:19:37,045 --> 00:19:39,047 were going to lunch in the Jeep, 422 00:19:39,047 --> 00:19:41,963 and they were southbound from his house. 423 00:19:41,963 --> 00:19:44,487 But we had a radio car pull them over 424 00:19:44,487 --> 00:19:49,144 and take him into custody in a full felony pullover-- 425 00:19:49,144 --> 00:19:52,495 face down on the pavement and the whole number. 426 00:19:52,495 --> 00:19:54,497 [sirens whoop, wail] 427 00:19:54,497 --> 00:19:56,804 My immediate response was, this is bogus. 428 00:19:56,804 --> 00:19:58,632 And how are they accusing, you know, 429 00:19:58,632 --> 00:20:01,025 my buddy and his brother for this? 430 00:20:01,025 --> 00:20:03,114 This is ridiculous. 431 00:20:03,114 --> 00:20:05,421 I tried to call Erik after I got the news. 432 00:20:05,421 --> 00:20:07,858 [phone ringing] I got voicemail. 433 00:20:09,904 --> 00:20:12,472 Erik is a world-class tennis player 434 00:20:12,472 --> 00:20:14,691 and had been playing in tournaments. 435 00:20:14,691 --> 00:20:16,302 And in this present tournament, 436 00:20:16,302 --> 00:20:19,000 we'd learned that he was, in fact, in Israel, 437 00:20:19,000 --> 00:20:20,393 from his attorney, 438 00:20:20,393 --> 00:20:23,352 and the attorney set it up for him to come back. 439 00:20:26,312 --> 00:20:32,100 Erik Menendez was taken into custody on the tarmac at LAX 440 00:20:32,100 --> 00:20:33,710 by our detectives. 441 00:20:36,887 --> 00:20:39,020 People kill their parents all the time. 442 00:20:39,020 --> 00:20:40,978 Rich people from Beverly Hills don't. 443 00:20:42,589 --> 00:20:45,505 And that's why this case was a phenomenon. 444 00:20:45,505 --> 00:20:47,420 [energetic music] 445 00:20:58,909 --> 00:21:01,260 I've heard of very few murders that were 446 00:21:01,260 --> 00:21:03,349 more savage than this one was. 447 00:21:03,349 --> 00:21:07,570 [tense music] 448 00:21:07,570 --> 00:21:10,138 We had to have two juries because 449 00:21:10,138 --> 00:21:11,966 if defendant number one confesses 450 00:21:11,966 --> 00:21:14,490 and implicates defendant number two, 451 00:21:14,490 --> 00:21:17,624 you can't put that statement on unless you can clean it up, 452 00:21:17,624 --> 00:21:18,886 or he has his own jury. 453 00:21:18,886 --> 00:21:20,801 So both Lyle and Erik had made 454 00:21:20,801 --> 00:21:24,152 all these statements that implicated the other, 455 00:21:24,152 --> 00:21:26,676 so we had two juries. 456 00:21:26,676 --> 00:21:29,592 Leslie Abramson was the lead counsel for Erik. 457 00:21:29,592 --> 00:21:32,247 A lot of people in LA that will tell you that, I mean-- 458 00:21:32,247 --> 00:21:36,164 that Leslie Abramson was one of the best attorneys to have 459 00:21:36,164 --> 00:21:38,645 if you have a homicide case. 460 00:21:38,645 --> 00:21:42,257 When modern audiences are encountering 461 00:21:42,257 --> 00:21:44,085 the footage of the trial, 462 00:21:44,085 --> 00:21:45,739 one of the main stars of that footage 463 00:21:45,739 --> 00:21:46,957 is Leslie Abramson. 464 00:21:46,957 --> 00:21:50,439 You owe us as jurors one thing only-- 465 00:21:50,439 --> 00:21:53,268 that you must entertain the possibility 466 00:21:53,268 --> 00:21:55,923 that we're telling the truth. 467 00:21:55,923 --> 00:21:59,318 Jill Lansing was the lead counsel for Lyle. 468 00:21:59,318 --> 00:22:01,972 She was a well-respected public defender 469 00:22:01,972 --> 00:22:04,105 and went into private practice. 470 00:22:04,105 --> 00:22:07,935 And the first line out of the mouth of Jill Lansing was... 471 00:22:09,153 --> 00:22:12,766 Lyle and Erik Menendez 472 00:22:12,766 --> 00:22:15,856 killed their parents. 473 00:22:15,856 --> 00:22:18,467 You don't hear that much from a defense attorney. 474 00:22:18,467 --> 00:22:21,383 We're not disputing where it happened, 475 00:22:21,383 --> 00:22:24,125 how it happened, who did it. 476 00:22:24,125 --> 00:22:26,301 The only thing that you are going 477 00:22:26,301 --> 00:22:30,131 to have to focus on in this trial is why it happened. 478 00:22:30,131 --> 00:22:35,397 What we will prove to you is it was done out of fear. 479 00:22:35,397 --> 00:22:37,573 When the defense made their opening statement, 480 00:22:37,573 --> 00:22:39,619 you could hear the judge breathing. 481 00:22:39,619 --> 00:22:41,142 It was that quiet in the courtroom. 482 00:22:41,142 --> 00:22:44,014 And I thought, oops, we're in trouble. 483 00:22:48,758 --> 00:22:53,154 On July 20, 1993, the Menendez trial began. 484 00:22:58,942 --> 00:23:00,901 There was so much public interest in this trial 485 00:23:00,901 --> 00:23:02,903 because of all the elements-- rich kids 486 00:23:02,903 --> 00:23:04,426 killing their parents, Beverly Hills. 487 00:23:04,426 --> 00:23:06,907 You know, there was an unbelievable amount 488 00:23:06,907 --> 00:23:09,736 of interest, much more than a normal murder trial. 489 00:23:09,736 --> 00:23:11,999 [dramatic music] 490 00:23:11,999 --> 00:23:17,570 In this particular case, they had already confessed. 491 00:23:17,570 --> 00:23:22,357 But I said, I will go in with an open mind 492 00:23:22,357 --> 00:23:27,144 and listen to what they present and be fair. 493 00:23:27,144 --> 00:23:31,758 Certain incidents happened right before the parents died 494 00:23:31,758 --> 00:23:33,934 which led these children to believe 495 00:23:33,934 --> 00:23:37,154 that they were about to be killed. 496 00:23:37,154 --> 00:23:40,593 And they acted. 497 00:23:40,593 --> 00:23:43,247 The argument on why the Menendez brothers 498 00:23:43,247 --> 00:23:46,250 did what they did was quite likely the first time 499 00:23:46,250 --> 00:23:48,035 that many Americans had ever heard 500 00:23:48,035 --> 00:23:50,124 this sort of argument being made. 501 00:23:50,124 --> 00:23:53,127 This trial will take you behind the façade 502 00:23:53,127 --> 00:23:56,478 of the rich houses, the fancy cars, 503 00:23:56,478 --> 00:23:58,262 the wealthy friends, 504 00:23:58,262 --> 00:24:00,134 and impressive social engagements. 505 00:24:00,134 --> 00:24:02,615 It will take you to the life 506 00:24:02,615 --> 00:24:04,921 that was experienced by Lyle Menendez 507 00:24:04,921 --> 00:24:07,837 and his brother as they grew up. 508 00:24:07,837 --> 00:24:11,232 Perfect family to the outside world. 509 00:24:11,232 --> 00:24:16,498 But inside that home, it was a disaster. 510 00:24:16,498 --> 00:24:21,634 Lyle's father grabbed him and socked him square in the face, 511 00:24:21,634 --> 00:24:26,856 and said, if you ever embarrass me again, I will kill you. 512 00:24:26,856 --> 00:24:29,598 There is a jury instruction that says that if you have 513 00:24:29,598 --> 00:24:31,818 an honest but unreasonable belief 514 00:24:31,818 --> 00:24:33,341 and the need for self-defense, 515 00:24:33,341 --> 00:24:35,735 you get a voluntary manslaughter. 516 00:24:35,735 --> 00:24:37,519 ♪ 517 00:24:37,519 --> 00:24:40,261 You're not convicted of either first or second-degree murder. 518 00:24:40,261 --> 00:24:42,306 So I knew that's what they were going for. 519 00:24:42,306 --> 00:24:44,961 ♪ 520 00:24:44,961 --> 00:24:50,532 What do you believe was the originating cause 521 00:24:50,532 --> 00:24:53,796 of you and your brother ultimately winding up 522 00:24:53,796 --> 00:24:56,538 shooting your parents? 523 00:24:56,538 --> 00:25:00,411 Um, me telling... 524 00:25:02,979 --> 00:25:04,459 You telling what? 525 00:25:04,459 --> 00:25:06,940 Me telling Lyle that, uh... 526 00:25:06,940 --> 00:25:11,074 [breathes shakily] 527 00:25:11,074 --> 00:25:13,642 - OK. - [crying] 528 00:25:13,642 --> 00:25:16,906 My dad... 529 00:25:18,778 --> 00:25:20,910 - Can you answer the question? - Yes. 530 00:25:20,910 --> 00:25:22,999 OK. It was you telling Lyle what? 531 00:25:22,999 --> 00:25:26,307 That my dad had been molesting me. 532 00:25:26,307 --> 00:25:32,400 ♪ 533 00:25:32,400 --> 00:25:35,969 I was completely caught off guard. 534 00:25:35,969 --> 00:25:39,059 Um, I was devastated. 535 00:25:39,059 --> 00:25:42,192 Were you seeking help from your brother? 536 00:25:42,192 --> 00:25:45,544 Yes. 537 00:25:45,544 --> 00:25:48,198 I didn't doubt that. Families keep dark secrets, 538 00:25:48,198 --> 00:25:51,550 and there are secrets that every family has. 539 00:25:51,550 --> 00:25:55,249 But it had me questioning a lot of things about myself, 540 00:25:55,249 --> 00:25:58,644 my awareness of people around me. 541 00:25:58,644 --> 00:26:01,037 I went all the way down that path of, like, 542 00:26:01,037 --> 00:26:02,648 could I have done something? 543 00:26:02,648 --> 00:26:06,652 Should I have noticed something to have prevented this? 544 00:26:06,652 --> 00:26:09,829 I believed every word he said. 545 00:26:11,308 --> 00:26:15,574 Lyle said that he was sexually assaulted 546 00:26:15,574 --> 00:26:18,011 and even raped by his father 547 00:26:18,011 --> 00:26:20,927 between the ages of four and six. 548 00:26:20,927 --> 00:26:22,624 [crying] I just told him, I don't-- 549 00:26:22,624 --> 00:26:24,408 I don't... 550 00:26:27,237 --> 00:26:30,632 I just told him that I didn't want to do this, 551 00:26:30,632 --> 00:26:33,853 and that it hurt me. 552 00:26:37,421 --> 00:26:40,903 And he said that he didn't mean to hurt me, 553 00:26:40,903 --> 00:26:44,298 that he loved me. 554 00:26:44,298 --> 00:26:48,302 And that was astounding because Lyle was, you know, 555 00:26:48,302 --> 00:26:50,870 presented as kind of a hard guy, the tough guy, 556 00:26:50,870 --> 00:26:52,480 the guy who wouldn't break down. 557 00:26:52,480 --> 00:26:54,917 Now you had tears flowing down his eyes, 558 00:26:54,917 --> 00:26:58,312 and I thought, you know, it was believable. 559 00:26:58,312 --> 00:27:03,926 It stopped for you with your dad when you were eight. 560 00:27:03,926 --> 00:27:07,626 When you were about 13, 561 00:27:07,626 --> 00:27:11,760 did you think that it might be happening to someone else? 562 00:27:11,760 --> 00:27:13,501 Yes. 563 00:27:13,501 --> 00:27:15,764 And who did you think it was happening to? 564 00:27:15,764 --> 00:27:17,636 Erik. 565 00:27:17,636 --> 00:27:23,119 I told him that I knew what was going on with him and Erik, 566 00:27:23,119 --> 00:27:26,383 and that I heard noises, 567 00:27:26,383 --> 00:27:32,041 and that I wanted him to leave Erik alone. 568 00:27:32,041 --> 00:27:34,914 Did he tell you it stopped? 569 00:27:34,914 --> 00:27:37,133 He did. 570 00:27:37,133 --> 00:27:39,701 [pensive music] 571 00:27:39,701 --> 00:27:42,356 On August 15, 1989, 572 00:27:42,356 --> 00:27:45,620 Lyle learned the abuse had never stopped. 573 00:27:45,620 --> 00:27:49,537 When Lyle came home that summer, 574 00:27:49,537 --> 00:27:53,889 Erik confessed to Lyle that the molestation 575 00:27:53,889 --> 00:27:57,023 was still going on. 576 00:27:57,023 --> 00:28:00,200 And Lyle got infuriated, and he-- 577 00:28:00,200 --> 00:28:02,942 very protective with his younger brother. 578 00:28:02,942 --> 00:28:07,163 So he confronted José. 579 00:28:07,163 --> 00:28:09,209 He said, um, 580 00:28:09,209 --> 00:28:11,907 "What I do with my son is none of your business." 581 00:28:11,907 --> 00:28:14,214 Then he--he said that, uh, 582 00:28:14,214 --> 00:28:16,477 "Let me tell you what's going to happen. 583 00:28:16,477 --> 00:28:19,393 He said, "You're going back to Princeton 584 00:28:19,393 --> 00:28:23,005 "and your brother's going to UCLA, like we planned. 585 00:28:23,005 --> 00:28:26,356 And we're going to forget this conversation ever took place." 586 00:28:26,356 --> 00:28:31,274 And, uh, I swore and told him he was a----ing sick person. 587 00:28:31,274 --> 00:28:34,277 And I told him no, and that he wasn't going 588 00:28:34,277 --> 00:28:38,064 to touch my brother again, and I threatened him. 589 00:28:38,064 --> 00:28:39,500 How did you threaten him? 590 00:28:39,500 --> 00:28:42,155 I told him that I would tell everybody 591 00:28:42,155 --> 00:28:43,809 everything about him. 592 00:28:43,809 --> 00:28:45,854 And, uh, that was a mistake. 593 00:28:45,854 --> 00:28:48,291 ♪ 594 00:28:50,685 --> 00:28:53,122 When the Menendez brothers took the stand, 595 00:28:53,122 --> 00:28:55,429 they testified that fear and tension 596 00:28:55,429 --> 00:28:57,387 exploded in the household 597 00:28:57,387 --> 00:29:00,260 after José was threatened about the abuse. 598 00:29:00,260 --> 00:29:02,610 [dramatic sting] 599 00:29:04,133 --> 00:29:07,136 You were confronted by your father in your bedroom? 600 00:29:07,136 --> 00:29:08,529 Yes. 601 00:29:08,529 --> 00:29:10,923 Uh, he was banging on my door saying, 602 00:29:10,923 --> 00:29:12,707 open the goddamn door now. 603 00:29:12,707 --> 00:29:15,405 He was saying that he had told me never to tell Lyle, 604 00:29:15,405 --> 00:29:16,929 and that he had warned me not to do that. 605 00:29:16,929 --> 00:29:18,800 And now Lyle was going to tell everyone, 606 00:29:18,800 --> 00:29:21,542 and he was not going to let that happen. 607 00:29:21,542 --> 00:29:24,763 And did he ever tell you what the consequence 608 00:29:24,763 --> 00:29:26,329 would be of telling anyone? 609 00:29:26,329 --> 00:29:28,810 He would kill me. 610 00:29:28,810 --> 00:29:32,118 The brothers testified that on Friday, August 18, 611 00:29:32,118 --> 00:29:34,381 they bought two shotguns for protection. 612 00:29:34,381 --> 00:29:36,687 In the subsequent days, they planned 613 00:29:36,687 --> 00:29:39,473 to stay out of the house as much as possible. 614 00:29:39,473 --> 00:29:43,607 But on Sunday, August 20, everything came to a head. 615 00:29:43,607 --> 00:29:46,306 They were going to go to a movie that night, 616 00:29:46,306 --> 00:29:49,570 and they were told they couldn't go out, which-- 617 00:29:49,570 --> 00:29:52,834 they always went out different places, 618 00:29:52,834 --> 00:29:55,010 but they were told they had to stay home. 619 00:29:55,010 --> 00:29:58,840 Mom said something like, you ruined this family. 620 00:29:58,840 --> 00:30:00,755 It was clear that something was going to happen. 621 00:30:00,755 --> 00:30:02,757 Why? What did you see? 622 00:30:02,757 --> 00:30:05,412 Just from my mom's face, if you know her different looks. 623 00:30:05,412 --> 00:30:07,283 And she has many different looks. 624 00:30:07,283 --> 00:30:09,242 What was this look, Mr. Menendez? 625 00:30:09,242 --> 00:30:12,419 It was just a stone, resolved look. 626 00:30:12,419 --> 00:30:16,249 And I just freaked out. 627 00:30:16,249 --> 00:30:18,077 Did you go get your gun? 628 00:30:18,077 --> 00:30:20,731 I did. 629 00:30:20,731 --> 00:30:23,256 What did you do? 630 00:30:23,256 --> 00:30:24,953 I got my gun. 631 00:30:24,953 --> 00:30:27,782 They broke in the doors to the den, 632 00:30:27,782 --> 00:30:31,264 and Erik went first. 633 00:30:31,264 --> 00:30:34,354 What do you remember happened? 634 00:30:34,354 --> 00:30:36,443 I just remember firing. 635 00:30:36,443 --> 00:30:38,662 And then Lyle went in. 636 00:30:38,662 --> 00:30:40,795 You could hear things breaking, 637 00:30:40,795 --> 00:30:42,753 and you could hear the ringing noises from the booms, 638 00:30:42,753 --> 00:30:46,018 and there was the smoke from the guns. 639 00:30:46,018 --> 00:30:51,023 And, uh, it was basically just chaos. 640 00:30:51,023 --> 00:30:53,329 The brothers testified that after the shooting, 641 00:30:53,329 --> 00:30:56,245 they thought the police would come because of the noise-- 642 00:30:56,245 --> 00:30:57,899 but no one showed up. 643 00:30:57,899 --> 00:31:00,467 We talked about the fact that nobody had come, 644 00:31:00,467 --> 00:31:05,907 so then we started to talk about what we wanted to do. 645 00:31:05,907 --> 00:31:08,083 The brothers decided to hide the truth, 646 00:31:08,083 --> 00:31:10,999 not wanting to reveal what prompted the killings 647 00:31:10,999 --> 00:31:12,958 or what they had done. 648 00:31:12,958 --> 00:31:16,439 They started thinking about fingerprints on the shells, 649 00:31:16,439 --> 00:31:18,528 so they picked them all up. 650 00:31:18,528 --> 00:31:20,487 And the weapons, they had ditched them 651 00:31:20,487 --> 00:31:22,532 on a hill up in Mulholland. 652 00:31:22,532 --> 00:31:24,752 They weren't overly sophisticated, 653 00:31:24,752 --> 00:31:26,928 so they got caught. 654 00:31:26,928 --> 00:31:29,322 ♪ 655 00:31:29,322 --> 00:31:30,976 [stereo clicks] 656 00:31:30,976 --> 00:31:32,716 The cross-examination dealt a lot 657 00:31:32,716 --> 00:31:35,502 with their preparation, which shows premeditation, 658 00:31:35,502 --> 00:31:37,373 and the lies they told to people. 659 00:31:44,903 --> 00:31:47,383 [stereo clicks] 660 00:31:53,824 --> 00:31:55,261 Yes. 661 00:31:59,395 --> 00:32:01,006 Um, yes. 662 00:32:01,006 --> 00:32:04,923 You emphasize that they are pathological, practiced liars. 663 00:32:04,923 --> 00:32:07,403 And therefore, ladies and gentlemen of the jury, 664 00:32:07,403 --> 00:32:09,405 they're lying to you, too. 665 00:32:09,405 --> 00:32:11,712 I didn't believe the prosecution. 666 00:32:11,712 --> 00:32:14,889 I believed the testimony of all the people 667 00:32:14,889 --> 00:32:17,805 that were connected to the family. 668 00:32:17,805 --> 00:32:19,459 And Lyle would have been about 669 00:32:19,459 --> 00:32:21,374 five years old at this time? - Yes, yes. 670 00:32:21,374 --> 00:32:25,378 José stood up, uh, grab him. 671 00:32:25,378 --> 00:32:27,206 How did he hit Lyle? 672 00:32:27,206 --> 00:32:29,164 With his closed fist. 673 00:32:29,164 --> 00:32:31,210 [somber music] 674 00:32:31,210 --> 00:32:35,562 There was an avalanche of family members and coaches 675 00:32:35,562 --> 00:32:37,651 and family acquaintances on the stand 676 00:32:37,651 --> 00:32:39,914 who all pushed this fact 677 00:32:39,914 --> 00:32:42,177 that the boys were molested and mistreated 678 00:32:42,177 --> 00:32:43,526 their whole life. 679 00:32:43,526 --> 00:32:45,920 - He was afraid. - Why? 680 00:32:45,920 --> 00:32:48,662 Because he and his dad had been touching each other, 681 00:32:48,662 --> 00:32:52,753 and he indicated that it was in his genital area. 682 00:32:52,753 --> 00:32:55,582 And it drew great sympathy, I think, 683 00:32:55,582 --> 00:32:59,760 from people watching the trial, and a lot of emotion. 684 00:32:59,760 --> 00:33:04,852 He told me his father was massaging his [BLEEP]. 685 00:33:04,852 --> 00:33:07,507 - He used that word? - Yes, he did. 686 00:33:07,507 --> 00:33:09,944 How could that many people 687 00:33:09,944 --> 00:33:14,862 give the same synopsis of what was going on in that household? 688 00:33:14,862 --> 00:33:16,777 He was saying it very seriously, 689 00:33:16,777 --> 00:33:20,476 and I took it very seriously. 690 00:33:22,304 --> 00:33:24,045 ♪ 691 00:33:24,045 --> 00:33:25,916 The uncertainty of their youth 692 00:33:25,916 --> 00:33:28,049 that came across, because of what a monster 693 00:33:28,049 --> 00:33:30,834 that their father was-- I believed it. 694 00:33:30,834 --> 00:33:34,795 But that said, you know, you talk to Pam Bozanich, 695 00:33:34,795 --> 00:33:37,232 and she didn't believe it from the get-go. 696 00:33:37,232 --> 00:33:40,061 One of the relatives came to me before the trial started. 697 00:33:40,061 --> 00:33:42,455 And this relative said that she had been to visit Lyle 698 00:33:42,455 --> 00:33:44,457 in the county jail, and that Lyle had told her 699 00:33:44,457 --> 00:33:46,502 what the defense was going to be. 700 00:33:46,502 --> 00:33:49,375 And she said, "But, Lyle, you know that's not true." 701 00:33:49,375 --> 00:33:52,639 And he says to her, "Well, that's how it's going to be." 702 00:33:52,639 --> 00:33:53,988 So she looks at me, and I said, 703 00:33:53,988 --> 00:33:56,512 "Well, I can't call you as a witness, right?" 704 00:33:56,512 --> 00:33:58,645 And she said, "No, I won't testify to that, 705 00:33:58,645 --> 00:34:00,125 but that's what he told me." 706 00:34:00,125 --> 00:34:04,259 ♪ 707 00:34:04,259 --> 00:34:08,176 They didn't get together and make this story up. 708 00:34:08,176 --> 00:34:12,137 And the main thing that convinced me 709 00:34:12,137 --> 00:34:14,008 was the grandmother. 710 00:34:14,008 --> 00:34:19,448 Grandmother Maria Menendez sat in the courtroom every day 711 00:34:19,448 --> 00:34:21,798 for the whole time we were there, 712 00:34:21,798 --> 00:34:27,761 and she was there to support the boys 100%. 713 00:34:27,761 --> 00:34:32,679 If one of my grandchildren did that to one of my children, 714 00:34:32,679 --> 00:34:34,681 I would disown them. 715 00:34:34,681 --> 00:34:38,815 Why would that woman be so supportive? 716 00:34:38,815 --> 00:34:43,081 She knew they were telling the truth. 717 00:34:43,081 --> 00:34:44,908 In December of 1993, 718 00:34:44,908 --> 00:34:48,825 after five months of trial and 101 witnesses, 719 00:34:48,825 --> 00:34:52,699 jury deliberations began. 720 00:34:52,699 --> 00:34:55,484 We took a first vote. 721 00:34:55,484 --> 00:34:57,660 Six women, manslaughter. 722 00:34:57,660 --> 00:35:02,012 Six men, first-degree. 723 00:35:02,012 --> 00:35:04,711 The men said the boys were lying. 724 00:35:04,711 --> 00:35:08,323 Women believed totally different. 725 00:35:08,323 --> 00:35:13,807 I think Erik's jury went 16 days of deliberation 726 00:35:13,807 --> 00:35:16,549 and Lyle's went, like, 25 days, 727 00:35:16,549 --> 00:35:18,768 which was the longest deliberation 728 00:35:18,768 --> 00:35:21,510 in the history of a jury in California. 729 00:35:21,510 --> 00:35:23,425 We were so far apart. 730 00:35:23,425 --> 00:35:29,214 One man pounded on the table and called me a white bitch. 731 00:35:29,214 --> 00:35:31,999 We were hopelessly deadlocked. 732 00:35:31,999 --> 00:35:36,612 ♪ 733 00:35:36,612 --> 00:35:40,050 It came down that they have a hung jury, 734 00:35:40,050 --> 00:35:43,445 and so it's being declared a mistrial. 735 00:35:45,186 --> 00:35:47,623 We didn't have a chance to talk to the jurors 736 00:35:47,623 --> 00:35:49,016 at any length at all. 737 00:35:49,016 --> 00:35:50,757 They merely told us that at one point 738 00:35:50,757 --> 00:35:52,933 it was nine for voluntary manslaughter 739 00:35:52,933 --> 00:35:54,674 and three for second-degree murder, 740 00:35:54,674 --> 00:35:57,111 and it switched and ended up as it did. 741 00:35:57,111 --> 00:36:00,070 And Erik's jury broke not entirely on gender lines, 742 00:36:00,070 --> 00:36:02,899 but all five first-degree votes were men. 743 00:36:02,899 --> 00:36:05,250 I just couldn't process that. 744 00:36:05,250 --> 00:36:07,469 How was it a hung jury? 745 00:36:07,469 --> 00:36:09,123 I believed the defense. 746 00:36:12,170 --> 00:36:14,737 There was a lot of criticism of the fact 747 00:36:14,737 --> 00:36:16,478 that the jury hadn't convicted. 748 00:36:16,478 --> 00:36:19,264 I'm angered and frustrated and all of that at the outcome 749 00:36:19,264 --> 00:36:21,048 of the last, uh, two juries. 750 00:36:21,048 --> 00:36:24,138 An awful lot of people, when they heard the abuse excuse, 751 00:36:24,138 --> 00:36:26,967 they did not buy it, they did not at all. 752 00:36:26,967 --> 00:36:30,188 There was a lot of money to conjure up 753 00:36:30,188 --> 00:36:32,277 a very fancy defense. 754 00:36:32,277 --> 00:36:34,279 [dramatic sting] 755 00:36:34,279 --> 00:36:37,891 [pensive music] 756 00:36:41,024 --> 00:36:43,113 Second trial, which was totally different 757 00:36:43,113 --> 00:36:45,681 from the first trial, was not televised. 758 00:36:45,681 --> 00:36:47,944 There were no cameras. They had one jury. 759 00:36:47,944 --> 00:36:49,381 There were very few witnesses called 760 00:36:49,381 --> 00:36:52,253 in the prosecution case, and then a number of motions 761 00:36:52,253 --> 00:36:54,342 were filed by the other DAs 762 00:36:54,342 --> 00:36:57,650 to limit the scope of the defense case. 763 00:36:57,650 --> 00:37:00,087 For one thing, the judge is already making 764 00:37:00,087 --> 00:37:02,829 indications he's going to severely limit the defense. 765 00:37:02,829 --> 00:37:05,310 He's going to limit our right to put on the facts, 766 00:37:05,310 --> 00:37:07,094 which is quite extraordinary. 767 00:37:07,094 --> 00:37:09,183 While the brothers remained in jail 768 00:37:09,183 --> 00:37:11,272 the year and a half between trials, 769 00:37:11,272 --> 00:37:14,449 aspects of the justice system changed. 770 00:37:14,449 --> 00:37:16,843 In between trial number one and trial number two, 771 00:37:16,843 --> 00:37:19,106 the chief justice of the California Supreme Court 772 00:37:19,106 --> 00:37:22,022 issued a decision that your fear 773 00:37:22,022 --> 00:37:24,981 and your use of self-defense has to be immediate. 774 00:37:24,981 --> 00:37:26,331 Like, right now. 775 00:37:26,331 --> 00:37:28,594 Not, we went to the car and loaded the guns. 776 00:37:28,594 --> 00:37:31,031 There was no self-defense 777 00:37:31,031 --> 00:37:33,903 that was really applicable in this case. 778 00:37:33,903 --> 00:37:36,950 Given the effectiveness of the defense 779 00:37:36,950 --> 00:37:38,821 in the initial trial, 780 00:37:38,821 --> 00:37:41,607 the prosecutors were able to kind of plan for that. 781 00:37:41,607 --> 00:37:46,046 One thing that we have asked the judge to do is to limit 782 00:37:46,046 --> 00:37:49,267 the so-called abuse excuse, to limit evidence 783 00:37:49,267 --> 00:37:51,443 that has nothing to do with this case. 784 00:37:51,443 --> 00:37:54,707 From what I understand and what I heard, 785 00:37:54,707 --> 00:37:57,927 the jurors on the second trial 786 00:37:57,927 --> 00:38:03,542 didn't hear half of what we heard on the first trial. 787 00:38:03,542 --> 00:38:05,805 The second trial wasn't covered heavily 788 00:38:05,805 --> 00:38:07,285 like the first trial. 789 00:38:07,285 --> 00:38:10,505 But there were 30 or 40 cameras outside in Van Nuys 790 00:38:10,505 --> 00:38:13,334 waiting that day when they announced the verdict. 791 00:38:13,334 --> 00:38:16,032 ♪ 792 00:38:19,862 --> 00:38:21,560 [tense music] 793 00:38:21,560 --> 00:38:23,866 On March 20, 1996, 794 00:38:23,866 --> 00:38:26,956 the verdict for the second trial of the Menendez brothers 795 00:38:26,956 --> 00:38:29,611 was announced. 796 00:38:29,611 --> 00:38:31,918 I really can't comment upon, uh-- 797 00:38:31,918 --> 00:38:34,224 Excuse us. Move out of the way, please. 798 00:38:34,224 --> 00:38:36,357 Lyle and Erik Menendez, both guilty 799 00:38:36,357 --> 00:38:39,012 of the first-degree murders of their mother and father. 800 00:38:39,012 --> 00:38:40,970 The jury recommended life in prison 801 00:38:40,970 --> 00:38:43,364 without parole for gunning down their parents 802 00:38:43,364 --> 00:38:44,931 6 and 1/2 years ago. 803 00:38:44,931 --> 00:38:47,063 People throughout this country wondered why 804 00:38:47,063 --> 00:38:49,370 the defendants were not convicted in the first trial. 805 00:38:49,370 --> 00:38:51,416 It's very gratifying to see to it 806 00:38:51,416 --> 00:38:53,679 that justice was done in this case. 807 00:38:53,679 --> 00:38:57,117 ♪ 808 00:38:57,117 --> 00:39:00,860 I was--I was devastated. 809 00:39:00,860 --> 00:39:02,905 [somber music] 810 00:39:02,905 --> 00:39:05,386 All I kept thinking was, 811 00:39:05,386 --> 00:39:08,868 my friend's going to spend the rest of his life in jail. 812 00:39:08,868 --> 00:39:12,393 He and I are never going to hang ever again. 813 00:39:12,393 --> 00:39:14,003 The probation department recommends 814 00:39:14,003 --> 00:39:15,701 that they can be kept together, 815 00:39:15,701 --> 00:39:19,835 and that they will be an asset to any institution they are in. 816 00:39:19,835 --> 00:39:21,750 Whether you agreed with the verdict 817 00:39:21,750 --> 00:39:23,665 and the sentence or not, 818 00:39:23,665 --> 00:39:28,278 the bottom line is they did murder their parents. 819 00:39:30,106 --> 00:39:34,241 I still believe that the Menendez brothers 820 00:39:34,241 --> 00:39:37,200 did what they did out of fear, 821 00:39:37,200 --> 00:39:41,248 because they felt that they were going to be killed. 822 00:39:41,248 --> 00:39:43,859 I certainly never felt that what I did 823 00:39:43,859 --> 00:39:46,079 was justified or right. 824 00:39:46,079 --> 00:39:48,473 It was just a question of, how wrong was it? 825 00:39:50,997 --> 00:39:52,999 While opinions remained divided 826 00:39:52,999 --> 00:39:55,175 after the Menendez brothers' conviction, 827 00:39:55,175 --> 00:39:58,134 their story was far from over. 828 00:39:59,527 --> 00:40:01,529 In 2017, 829 00:40:01,529 --> 00:40:06,447 a television network runs a tell-all documentary 830 00:40:06,447 --> 00:40:09,972 with Erik Menendez describing the case 831 00:40:09,972 --> 00:40:12,061 from his point of view in prison. 832 00:40:12,061 --> 00:40:14,455 And then that ends up on a major streaming service 833 00:40:14,455 --> 00:40:18,981 a few years later, and it really started catching on 834 00:40:18,981 --> 00:40:20,635 for a lot of younger viewers, 835 00:40:20,635 --> 00:40:23,290 especially in the wake of the MeToo movement 836 00:40:23,290 --> 00:40:26,162 and the notion that sexual abuse victims 837 00:40:26,162 --> 00:40:29,427 had not been treated fairly by culture, 838 00:40:29,427 --> 00:40:31,516 and by the criminal justice system. 839 00:40:31,516 --> 00:40:34,127 As Millennials and Gen Z were introduced 840 00:40:34,127 --> 00:40:37,304 to the Menendez murders during the COVID pandemic, 841 00:40:37,304 --> 00:40:38,827 the brothers were catapulted 842 00:40:38,827 --> 00:40:41,439 into the social media limelight. 843 00:40:41,439 --> 00:40:44,790 And when this younger generation 844 00:40:44,790 --> 00:40:47,967 is learning about the Menendez case, 845 00:40:47,967 --> 00:40:51,274 they're able to draw on 846 00:40:51,274 --> 00:40:54,147 a very kind of vivid primary source, 847 00:40:54,147 --> 00:40:56,323 which is the recording of this trial. 848 00:40:56,323 --> 00:40:57,803 All right. You may proceed. 849 00:40:57,803 --> 00:40:59,239 Thank you. 850 00:40:59,239 --> 00:41:02,938 Court TV put the trial on their streaming service 851 00:41:02,938 --> 00:41:04,810 during the pandemic. 852 00:41:04,810 --> 00:41:07,682 The Menendez TikTok defenders believe that 853 00:41:07,682 --> 00:41:09,510 even though this case has been adjudicated 854 00:41:09,510 --> 00:41:12,208 and they've been through appeals, 855 00:41:12,208 --> 00:41:15,516 they should have been convicted of manslaughter 856 00:41:15,516 --> 00:41:17,605 rather than first-degree murder. 857 00:41:17,605 --> 00:41:19,999 Because if they had been convicted of manslaughter, 858 00:41:19,999 --> 00:41:21,566 they would be out of prison by now. 859 00:41:21,566 --> 00:41:24,525 A problem at the trial was the gender bias. 860 00:41:24,525 --> 00:41:27,615 That because we were dealing with males 861 00:41:27,615 --> 00:41:29,356 in an incest family, that-- 862 00:41:29,356 --> 00:41:32,838 the sort of perception is that, well, maybe 863 00:41:32,838 --> 00:41:35,014 it was, uh, something that he wanted, 864 00:41:35,014 --> 00:41:36,972 something that he allowed to happen. 865 00:41:36,972 --> 00:41:41,890 Um, that he shouldn't be allowed to feel afraid. 866 00:41:41,890 --> 00:41:44,414 There are letter-writing campaigns 867 00:41:44,414 --> 00:41:48,027 to California politicians and prosecutors 868 00:41:48,027 --> 00:41:50,508 to revisit their sentence. 869 00:41:50,508 --> 00:41:52,379 Supporters also bring attention 870 00:41:52,379 --> 00:41:54,120 to the good the brothers are doing 871 00:41:54,120 --> 00:41:56,514 as cause for their release. 872 00:41:56,514 --> 00:41:59,560 They are leading therapy groups in prison 873 00:41:59,560 --> 00:42:02,041 for, you know, their fellow inmates, 874 00:42:02,041 --> 00:42:04,913 trying their best to make amends 875 00:42:04,913 --> 00:42:07,612 and to do some good in the world. 876 00:42:07,612 --> 00:42:11,224 In the world of prisons and life without parole, 877 00:42:11,224 --> 00:42:13,487 we've learned that life without parole 878 00:42:13,487 --> 00:42:15,750 certainly does not necessarily mean that. 879 00:42:15,750 --> 00:42:19,798 Uh, things get changed, you know, down the line. 880 00:42:19,798 --> 00:42:21,713 As far as I understand, the Menendez brothers 881 00:42:21,713 --> 00:42:26,587 do know about the support and continue to make various moves 882 00:42:26,587 --> 00:42:29,329 in the criminal justice system, and their supporters 883 00:42:29,329 --> 00:42:33,072 see some sliver of hope for having 884 00:42:33,072 --> 00:42:35,944 a real, actionable outcome. 885 00:42:38,077 --> 00:42:40,209 I believe as a society, 886 00:42:40,209 --> 00:42:43,735 we need to continue moving forward in our understanding 887 00:42:43,735 --> 00:42:47,086 of human nature, and I applaud the TikTokers 888 00:42:47,086 --> 00:42:49,871 for their desire for that. 889 00:42:49,871 --> 00:42:51,917 I'm not afraid of the Menendez brothers, 890 00:42:51,917 --> 00:42:55,529 but my sense of justice would be offended if they got out. 891 00:42:57,139 --> 00:42:59,098 They've committed a heinous crime 892 00:42:59,098 --> 00:43:01,404 and they don't, in my opinion, 893 00:43:01,404 --> 00:43:04,756 deserve to be released on parole. 894 00:43:04,756 --> 00:43:06,235 Justice was served. 895 00:43:06,235 --> 00:43:09,325 They got what they deserve for a vicious crime 896 00:43:09,325 --> 00:43:12,546 where two people got murdered. 897 00:43:12,546 --> 00:43:14,635 I don't think they'll get out. 898 00:43:14,635 --> 00:43:16,855 They've tried appeals several times. 899 00:43:16,855 --> 00:43:20,859 But it would be nice if they had a little good part 900 00:43:20,859 --> 00:43:23,165 of this life we're in. 901 00:43:23,165 --> 00:43:28,997 My hope is that Erik and Lyle find peace, 902 00:43:28,997 --> 00:43:31,347 in whatever that means for them.