Two Los Angeles County deputy district attorneys prosecuting the Menendez brothers have caused a stir in the District Attorney’s office – just weeks after Lyle and Erik Menendez’s highly anticipated trial was delayed because of devastating wildfires.
Prosecutors Brock Lunsford and Nancy Theberge announced Monday they were suing for damages from D.A. Nathan Hochman’s office for “harassment, discrimination, and retaliation following their recommended re-sentencing of convicted murderers Erik and Lyle Menendez”, in a letter seen by The Los Angeles Times.
The infamous brothers were convicted in 1989 of killing their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez, and have been embroiled in countless appeals for freedom after alleging the murders were prompted by years of sexual abuse.
Both were sentenced to life in prison without parole and are now in their fifties, having already served 35 years behind bars.
The disgruntled prosecutors believe the pair should be resentenced and ultimately released. They say they are outraged at Hochman’s response to a memorandum they submitted in October 2024, which recommended resentencing.
The prosecutors stated that just two weeks after submitting, the retaliation from Hochman and Deputy D.A. John Lewin began.
They allege they were quickly demoted to lower roles in the D.A.’s office and jeered at online by Lewin for their memorandum – a submission they were “obligated to recommend” on the facts that emerged on the convictions, reported KTLA5.
Together, they are reportedly suing for over $250,000 in economic damages, demanding a further $5 million, in “non-economic damages”, according to their attorney Justin Shegerian to the outlet.
The Independent contacted Shegerian for comment and to request the letter.
In October 2024, former LA County prosecutor George Gascón pledged a case for the brother’s freedom stating: "I believe the brothers were subject to a tremendous amount of dysfunction in their home and molestation.
Defending that while there was no excuse for murder, "I believe they have paid their debt to society", he added.
Whereas prosecutors painted the pair as heinous and calculated killers, spoilt, and motivated by their parents' $14 million fortune.
Kitty and Jose Menendez were gunned down in their home August 20 1989. Lyle was the one to report someone had killed his parents during a frenzied 911 call.
In the beginning, the pair strung out a lie and attempted to lead authorities away from the scent by suggesting the murders may have been linked to their father’s work.
But law enforcement never found any evidence to support such claims and instead, honed in on the brothers.
In the days that followed, money trails revealed the brothers had been splashing out under the assumption they were set to lose the inheritance from the family’s multimillion-dollar estate. But on and around March 8, 1990 – the two of them were arrested.
Their revised hearing is scheduled to be held on 20 and 21 March.
The Independent contacted the LA D.A’s office for comment.
