On Friday, April 11, a Los Angeles judge authorised a resentencing hearing for Lyle and Erik Menendez, delivering a blow to prosecutors who have resisted any effort to lessen the brothers’ life sentences for the 1989 fatal shooting of their parents.
Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman attempted to halt the resentencing process, arguing that it could lead to the brothers becoming eligible for parole after serving more than 35 years. Despite this, Superior Court Judge Michael Jesic dismissed Hochman’s request to withdraw an earlier motion for resentencing, clearing the way for the hearing to proceed on April 17 and 18.
"Today is a good day. Justice won over politics," said the attorney, Mark Geragos, following the hearing.
The Menendez brothers were convicted in 1996 of first-degree murder for the fatal shooting of their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez, in the family’s Beverly Hills home on August 20, 1989. The case drew widespread national attention in the 1990s due to the brothers' privileged upbringing as sons of a successful music industry executive.
Interest in the case was recently renewed by a Netflix documentary series, which presented evidence bolstering the brothers' claims that they endured abuse from their parents. That development led Gascon to push for a lesser charge and consider the possibility of their release.
In the early stages of the investigation, the brothers denied involvement and staged the scene to look like an organized crime hit. They later admitted to the killings, explaining that they acted in fear after years of abuse. Their first trial ended in a hung jury, but a second trial resulted in convictions and life sentences without parole.
Over the years, some members of the Menendez family—including the sisters of Jose and Kitty—have expressed support for the brothers’ release. One notable exception was Kitty Menendez’s brother, Milton Anderson, a vocal opponent of their release who rejected the abuse claims; he passed away recently.
Separately, California Governor Gavin Newsom has asked the state parole board to assess whether the brothers would pose a risk to public safety if released, as he holds the power to commute their sentences.
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Officials in Azerbaijan have said they have stopped terror attacks in Azerbaijan including on an Israeli Embassy, the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline and a Synagogue. Tensions between regional and global powers escalate. Military activity, security alerts and travel disruptions continue.
U.S. President Donald Trump warned Iran to expect further strikes on Saturday (7 March). In a post on social media, he said Iran would be 'hit very hard'. His comments came a week into the conflict with Iran, which has spread across the Middle East.
Lebanon's Hezbollah warned Israeli residents to evacuate towns within 5 km (3.11 miles) of the border between the countries in a message posted on its Telegram channel in Hebrew early on Friday.
The Azerbaijani State Security Service has said it has stopped Iran committing terror attacks against four targets in the country: Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline, the Israeli Embassy in Azerbaijan, a leader of the Mountain Jews religious community and the "Ashkenazi" synagogue.
The Israeli military says it has destroyed an underground bunker beneath Iran’s leadership complex in Tehran that it claims was built for former supreme leader Ali Khamenei.
Russian attacks on Ukraine’s second largest city in the early hours of Saturday (7 March) killed 10 people, including two children. Kharkiv mayor, Ihor Terekov, said 10 residents died after a Russian ballistic missile hit a five storey apartment block in the city.
A 35-year-old former rapper is on track to become Nepal’s next prime minister. Early counting in the elections on Friday (7 March) showed Balendra Shah’s Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) was leading in around 100 seats, far ahead of rivals.
Newly released FBI records summarising interviews with an unidentified woman contain allegations that U.S. President Donald Trump attempted to force her to perform a sexual act when she was a teenager, according to documents published by the U.S. Justice Department.
Australia’s move to ban social media access for children under 16 has intensified a global debate, as governments around the world weigh tougher rules amid growing concerns over mental health, safety and screen addiction.
Indonesia will restrict access to social media platforms for children under 16, its communications and digital ministry said on Friday (6 March), becoming the latest country to introduce online guardrails aimed at reducing the risks of addiction and cyberbullying.
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