OPINION:
The Menendez brothers will now be eligible for parole for the cold-blooded execution of their parents in 1989–but their self-defense claim at trial that they had been molested by their father for years is disingenuous for at least two reasons (“Menendez brothers’ murder sentences reduced, putting them a step closer to freedom,” Web, May 13).
First, Erik and Lyle Menendez were 18 and 21 years old, respectively, when the horrific murders took place. They were no longer being molested and were old enough to resist any molestation. Second, their mother posed no danger to them; she would have been a witness if she had been spared. The brothers’ lavish spending spree after the killings, using their new inheritance, revealed their debased characters.
While the Menendezes may be ideal prisoners now and are likely to be released on parole, it would be in the public interest if the conditions for parole barred them from cashing in on their notoriety, or at least required that any profits went to a fund for victims of crime.
PAUL KAMENAR
Counsel, National Legal and Policy Center
Chevy Chase, Maryland
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