
Judge delays resentencing hearing for Menendez brothers
CNN
A judge in California has delayed a scheduled resentencing hearing for Lyle and Erik Menendez at the brothers’ first hearing since they were sentenced to life in prison for murdering their parents in 1989 and the latest step in their bid to regain freedom.
A judge in California has delayed a scheduled resentencing hearing for Lyle and Erik Menendez at the brothers’ first hearing since they were sentenced to life in prison for murdering their parents in 1989 and the latest step in their bid to regain freedom. Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Michael Jesic said at a Monday status hearing the resentencing date, originally scheduled for December 11, would be pushed to January 30. Jesic said he rescheduled the hearing to give the new district attorney time to review the case. The current Los Angeles County District Attorney, George Gascon, was resoundingly voted out of office earlier this month and will be replaced by Nathan Hochman next week. Gascon recommended resentencing for the brothers in October, which could allow them to be released from prison after almost 30 years. The brothers, currently incarcerated in San Diego, appeared virtually for the status hearing — their first court appearance since their 1996 conviction. Technical issues prevented them from being shown on video. The two men were last seen in public during the second trial for the murder of their parents. After their first trial ended with two deadlocked juries, they were found guilty in a second trial and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. The judge imposed strict restrictions on the courtroom for Monday’s hearing: No cameras were allowed in court.

More than two decades ago, on January 24, 2004, I landed in Baghdad as a legal adviser, assigned an office in what was then known as the Green Zone. It was raining and cold, and my duffle bag was thrown into a puddle off the C-130 aircraft that had just done a corkscrew dive to reach the runway without risk of ground fire. Young American soldiers greeted me as we piled into a vehicle, sped out of the airport complex and then along a road called the “Highway of Death” due to car bombs and snipers.












