New DA Opposes Menendez Resentencing

Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman is pushing back against efforts to free the Menendez brothers. Hochman, who was elected in November, has asked a court to withdraw a resentencing motion that his predecessor, George Gascon, filed last year. Hochman said Monday that Erik and Lyle Menendez have lied for decades about the murders of their parents in 1989 and still display a "lack of acceptance of responsibility for their murderous actions," CNN reports. Last month, Hochman urged a judge to reject a request for a new trial.

• Hochman's motion. "The Menendez brothers have continued to lie for over 30 years about their self-defense—that is, their purported actual fear that their mother and their father were going to kill them the night of the murders," Hochman wrote in the motion," per the Los Angeles Times. "Also, over those 30 years, they have failed to accept responsibility for the vast number of lies they told in connection with that defense."

• Move is "largely symbolic." Hochman's announcement and court motion are "largely symbolic," according to the New York Times. Hochman said Monday that court-initiated resentencing proceedings separate from Gascon's motion are going ahead, with a hearing scheduled for March 20. If the brothers are resentenced to 50 years to life, they will be immediately eligible for parole. The brothers might also receive clemency from California Gov. Gavin Newsom. Last month, he ordered the state parole board to carry out a "comprehensive risk assessment," a possible step toward releasing the brothers.
• Relatives speak out. "District Attorney Hochman made it clear today he is holding Erik, Lyle, and our family hostage," the family-led Justice for Erik and Lyle Coalition said in a statement. "He appears fixated on their trauma-driven response to the killings in 1989 with blinders on to the fact they were repeatedly abused, feared for their lives, and have atoned for their actions." Tamara Goodell, a cousin of the brothers, acted in an aggressive and dismissive way in a recent meeting with two dozen family members, TMZ reports.
• Relative most opposed to release has died. Many Menendez relatives have spoken in support of releasing the brothers. Milton Anderson, Kitty Menendez's brother, was strongly opposed, but he died last Monday, NBC News reports.

(More Menendez brothers stories.)