LOS ANGELES—Cousins of Erik and Lyle Menendez spoke out Thursday criticizing the Los Angeles district attorney’s recent decision to oppose a new trial for the brothers, who have spent nearly 30 years in prison for the 1989 killing of their parents.
The Menendez cousins applauded California Gov. Gavin Newsom for his decision a day earlier to order the state parole board to investigate whether the brothers would pose a risk to the public if they are released, the first step for the governor to eventually decide whether or not to grant clemency.
The brothers, 18 and 21 at the time, were found guilty in the murders of their mother, Kitty Menendez, and entertainment executive father, Jose, and sentenced to life in prison without parole. They began their latest bid for freedom in recent years after their attorneys said new evidence emerged about their father’s sexual abuse, and with the support of most of their extended family….