I’m a retired psychiatrist…I worked for many years in a mental health facility, particularly in the children’s division (I only dealt with children at that point), many of my patients had been removed from some very horrifically abusive environments, and more often than not, the brunt of the severe abuse was sexual in nature. I can tell you that most, if not all of my patients, had been so scarred and traumatized that it will always live with them. Once a child has been abused, especially to the degree that I’m talking about, where they’re robbed of everything…their childhood, their peace of mind, their feelings of being safe and loved, their self worth, their dignity, and the list goes on and on, it’s highly unlikely that they will be able to go on to live a normal life without some kind of mental health therapy. The scarring runs so deep that it’s unfathomable to anyone who has never experienced such abuse. In the case of these two brothers, I personally feel that they are in no way a threat to society and should be released from prison to try and live as normal of a life as they can considering all they suffered at the hands of their parents. However, I do believe that they should have mental health therapy for the remainder of their lives.
Yes and I am concerned about them acclimating to the modern world of cell phones hyper stimulation and being triggered by videos of themselves popping up all over social media and being retraumatized
I work in child protection and have for 15 years and wholeheartedly agree. This is also the issue with prison systems in the western world. It’s all about punishment (which has a place), but statistics in my country do not lie.. in Canada high statistics of inmate populations reflect that majority have diagnosed FASD (fetal alcohol syndrome disorder) and almost all inmates score high on the ACEs assessment (adverse childhood experiences.. like neglect and abuse). High ACEs scores reflect an adult’s likelihood of struggling in many areas of life and many fall to criminality. And in Canada, indigenous populations represent majority of inmates which is a whole other topic about the history of indigenous peoples in this country. Sentences need to better support inmates in terms of addictions, mental health, intergenerational abuse, childhood abuse, systemic oppression etc Instead many governments just want to lock you up and throw away the key and forget about you.
I'm fed up with monsters that abuse children!!! These abused children are destroyed mentally and emotionally. So sad how people don't believe them when they finally get the courage to speak out and ask for help. Why can't people sympathize and realize the prison that these children have lived in, most of them for years. Just cus your parents are rich doesn't mean that they can't be monsters. When our abuser finally left us, all the weight of the world lifted but the engraved nightmares will always be there for the rest of our lives. We're now waiting for the trial. Please pray for me and my children that he gets the punishment he deserves!!!
Exactly! You are right, when your abuser finally leaves you alone or is not their it’s not easy nightmares are there. It’s worst for man, cause usually nobody believes a man. They were going through this and with a rich father they new nothing was going to be done.
I pray for them. They deserve an appeal... they have served enough time for being sexually abused by their cruel, abusive father.... and their mother who did nothing to protect them
@@derekweinerttv4163 they’ve been spending money lavishly since they were young, plus their mother always spent money lavishly. Spending money lavishly wasn’t a new thing to them. Plus if you watched the trials, you would know that Eirk and Lyle had no idea and felt guilt about all the money they were about to inherit.
Their mother sexually abused Lyle as well.. so did his father. I’m not sure about their mother sexually abusing Erik tho, I know she liked him more according to the brothers, but I do not know about sexual abuse from the mother to Erik
I believe that if the exact same crime happened today, with incest and sexual abuse being so much more understood it would’ve turned out so differently. Such a tragedy all the way around …
@Peb Kit lol there are plenty of murderers who are free right now who already served their time. Ive seen someone gets 5 years for a murder charge lol. Life in prison for killing 2 child predators is ridiculous this case was completely politicized, it was right after the OJ trial & they wanted to make an example of them. That is NOT justice. Its afreaking joke 😂
@Peb Kit OH they are so much welcome in my home! I believe they are no cold blooded murderers as the media portray them to be. And you clearly haven't watch their testimony / interviews enough.
I've always believed all the abuse accusations. I think they should have gotten manslaughter charges and not murder. They didn't leave because they were trauma bonded to their abusers and their brain development was stunted by years of neglect and abuse.
Something I noticed... when one of the brothers was testifying about the abuse while the other brother sat and listened you could see the pain in his face. It was so real, you could see the veins in his neck popping out , you could see the the anger in his neck the fear. That couldn't be faked.
I was a teen, and I have recently revisited this trial [ now as an adult ] and i have no doubt in my mind, these boys would be dead, if they hadnt killed their parents FIRST. So much abuse. I truly hope the case is open and reconsidered.
@@fernfunk how Erik was almost out of the house if José told Erick that he was still gonna live in the house while doing college? He was still being abused, i dont know wich abuser would want the victm to simply get away
If there was any evidence of sex abuse, they shouldn’t even be found guilty of anything. It’s ridiculous that people are allowed to be sexually and physically abused as children, and the moment the victim snaps, they go from victim to criminal. We need to protect people better than this. It bothers me that we live in a nation where a man is justified for killing his cheating wife in the heat of the moment, but a teenager that kills their rapist, is unjustifiable and labeled a murder.
I felt and still feel even immense sorrow for these two boys! They planned to murder to end the abuse ... their your minds were not mature enough to understand the severity of their decisions! I felt rehabilitation and psychotherapy should have been the decisions the courts made but it's so sad that the victims were criminalized 😪😔🥺
Sure, the brothers got the money but I don’t think that was anything they truly cared about. I see it as freedom. If I was abused, I can see why they had fun buying anything they wanted. I’d feel free and happy. To know my abusers would never hurt me again had to be such a relief! And if they felt happy and bought material things with their abuser’s money, well that’s pretty satisfying too! All I ever saw from them was the feeling of, ”make it stop!” But the prosecution turned it into a case of money. A case of how could you do that to your parents. A case of their father being an upstanding, successful man. But when the lights went off in the house and night fell around them, their sadistic, perverted father would invade their security and safety and force them into horrific sexual acts. The saying couldn’t be more true-you never know what goes on behind closed doors.
Also, he had it drilled into him regularly in front of the round mirror , naked after being r*pd. "What will happen if you tell anyone Lyle?" " you will.kill me" "Correct".
@@tipsygypsy711your question suggests that you're the "well then they shouldn't have killed their parents if you didn't" type of person 🙄 just because someone was abused doesn't mean they WILL murder but do you really expect for a child not to eventually snap and either kill themselves or their parents if said parents aka ABUSERS sexually, verbally and emotionally abused their CHILD for YEARS while they're helpless, while they were basically still a baby? Is that victim supposed to just suffer for the rest of their life while their abuser lives a guilt free life?
@@AT-iy8mf Because there is evidence of the abuse. Now, another victim of Jose Menendez has come forward. These boys were SA. Who has pictures of their children’s genitalia? It’s disgusting. It was shown at trial.
@@LauRa-re9un The cousin told in court that as kids one of the brothers told him about abuse by his father and not to tell anyone. The tipical from an abused chids.
@@kaydeblair4283 You are too young to remember how these guys were when they were arrested. The whole abuse thing never even came up until the end of the trial because they couldn’t find any defense for them.
She wasn't protecting them either sothere would have been a great deal of bad feelings toward her as to why mom didn't protect them. I had nobody to protect me and it sucks when you're abused and nobody stops it but I didn't speak out like I said until I was 32.
AMEN sister. As a fellow survivor, I agree that it's hell when, as a child, you have to regularly protect yourself from someone the family stands by whole-hartedly. It's disturbing how many people "shoulda/ woulda" something of this nature when they can't possibly imagine the fear the victim carries with them.
@@danni1993 it’s never too late and trauma never really leaves. I hope you are well and I hope you have someone to talk to now no matter how much time has passed ♥️
I understand why the jury was hung, by the law yes the brothers murdered their parents, but listening to the abuse, it's hard to punish someone who went through that.
Being abused isn’t a justification for murder. Obviously they were going to be punished for it. But it should have been voluntary manslaughter which is 22 years.
I pray for these two to be freed. 🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻 After their horrific childhood they deserve a few happy moments in this earth, it was not their fault in which household they were born into.
Yeah... Especially when you’re raised by your abusers. Also, it’s weird to me that the justice system acquits grown ass women for stabbing and killing their abusive partner’s while they’re sleeping but these boys couldn’t freak out after telling their dad to stop touching them several times... Completely dismissive and duplicitous of the public... I hate that.
@@samieD22 . And don’t forget it was the MEN on the jury that wanted the murder sentence, none of the women did. So it’s men and male judges giving women less harsh sentences than men. Women get blamed for that, but I have found that women are way tougher on other women in court.
Exactly, their abusers were their own parents. The boys were groomed to belive they would not survive if they go against them. It is so astonishing that people ask this question, why didnt they leave. Ask any victim how difficult it is to move out of an abusive relationship.
That’s why many women stay in abusive relationships especially if they have children. Where should they go? Who will help them? That’s why women should make sure that they have their own money. So if the situation becomes abusive they can get away from it. Children should not ever have to see their mother being abused. I would never have allowed my children to be abused. I would have lived on the street with them rather than allowed them to be abused
That terrible judge engineered that second trial to find them guilty. This is such a tragedy and injustice. And people brag about the u.s. justice system.
I always believed these brothers. I am not sure about murdering their parents bc that's not the way to handle it but I understand the inclination. I've lived it and it's not something people would understand or how people would react if you lived in that nightmare. It's something only another abused person can see if that makes sense. This case has always haunted me and even though I'm retired and older I remember the abuse like yesterday especially watching this and it triggers the recesses of your soul. I hope they get out they've served their time and prison that's another can of worms and sexual abuse.
It makes a lot of sense that their development and emotional intelligence had been stunted through years of abuse. This in turn supports the notion of feeling they couldn't OUTWARDLY go to the powers that be, accusing their parents of abuse, the trial proved that! Makes a lot of sense! Them going on a spending spree, probably in their minds had them feeling free for the first time in their lives! If this case is tried TODAY, it's a different outcome!
They had stockholm syndrome. Same reason women don't leave their abusers. Fear is their prison. They have been beat down to feel helpless and hopeless.
I think these 2 guys have served enough time. I'm not saying that murdering the parents was the answer, but when nobody's listening I can see how these 2 did what they did. Stop the Abuse of children!!!
@@tipsygypsy711 Would you have told on your abusive father? He threatened them, told them not to tell. Where’s your empathy? They were scared of him. & embarrassed. Wouldn’t you be? Fortunately for you your parent didn’t sexually abuse you, it seems. But theirs did. The looks on their faces as they had to relive the telling of their ordeals was unmistakable.
@@tipsygypsy711outside family were told, they told the mom and kitty told them to ignore them and to not go to their rooms. They were shut down from a young age. They also told cousins, even adults at the school knew, tons of ppl knew.
Ive seen so many people say why didnt they speak about the abuse before. Some people dont like to talk about it. As a survivor of child abuse I've never actually spoken about it. Im sitting here behind a screen telling a bunch of stranger's and that is so much easier than telling a family member or someone you know. Because you fear they wont believe you or a number of other reasons you wouldn't understand if you've never gone tru it.
I'm so sorry you were a victim too. Now you are a survivor and I wish you much strength. I lived in a chaotic household as a child and it stays with you your entire life. It requires a lot of therapy and resilience to get through.
They did tell some family members, they brought the concerns to Kitty and she told them to ignore it and not to go near their rooms, many ppl knew things weren’t right, but many ppl didn’t act and tell ppl to get them help. What most ppl fail to realize is the Jose was rich and most ppl do not want to speak out against someone with his wealth, what could he do to you if you did!?! Their own mother knew and protected Jose, not her own children. They only found out later that she knew the entire time and did nothing to help them.
It's really sad that the court/jury don't have enough knowledge about sexual abuse and its consequences. Read David J Pelzers’ book A Child Called "It" and then you might understand the profound impact of sexual, physical, mental and emotional abuse.
These guys has suffered enough! People that haven't been living in such dysfunctional home, don't always understand how much the abused suffer, both mentally, emotionally and physically. It's like the normal development of the brain stops. As a survivor of attempted murder (by my mother) I know how much it breaks a human being. My mom suicided 6 months after she tried to kill me. First as an adult and through many many hours in therapy, I know that it wasn't my fault as well as my mom's. She was suffering herself and she didn't want me and my sister be with our dad. He was extremely abusive and beat her up so many times. She tried to get out of the marriage, but he always managed to find us, if we went into hiding. He had a private detective finding us. If he had only let her divorce him, I don't believe she would have been on a downwards spiral with alcohol, medicine and death:
Ugh, it is so hard to read about what you have gone through. I totally understand the victims' minds, pain and torture, plus the terror and fear all the time. I wish you all well, and remember, yoy are stronger, more beautiful and more courages now. Not many people have your beauty and wisdom. This makes you very special in my book.
@@StellaGizzi Do they have wives waiting for them? When did they get married? Was it right after they killed the parents? Those weren’t “parents” they should never have had kids. Anyone, Anyone who abuses others is doing the work of the devil.
my cousins dad was lyle's friend and said that lyle and erik were super smiley and happy. i feel bad for them 31 years of their lives gone in prison for being victims. more erik which was just 18 years old btw my cousins dad is 54 years old :)
I pray that men in today's society are more enlightened about physical, mental, and sexual abuse. It seems that the women on the juries would have convicted with voluntary manslaughter. There time would have ended long ago. I wish the new evidence would be the realization that we've achieved a higher level of consciousness and awareness. This travesty of injustice has prevailed far too long, seems they were born to suffer, one way or another.
Wow so they are in prison since 35 years because the male jurors didnt understand that murder vs manslaughter needed to be proven by prosecution? Maybe have some experts additionally not just random jurors with opinions to decide over other peoples life?
10-15 years with therapy and rehabilitation would have made sense. The injustice they have endured is unbearable. When they got seperated on top of it became another symbol of unnecessary cruelty towards them and that there were power dynamics at play.
There was so much evidence and the first trial was a mistrial. The second trial was a travesty of justice. It is just gut wrenching to think about what these brothers have gone through.
They both should be released. They did their time. Child abuse is what causes a lot of our problems in the justice system. It's the underlying cause of so much violence.
What a hard life they will continue to live. Bc they will be recognized wherever they go. & stupid ppl will probably be cruel. How much more can they put up with? Maybe they need some compassion.
Release them, for God's sake! Prosecutors who were quick to charge murder for insurance money, should have been a red flag. Now I really know what they mean by "hindsight is always 2020". Also, give them their damn money back!
They were charged of murder for the inheritance because of the lavish shopping spree the brothers did 4 days after. You got understand that people who have not been abused in any way would find that a bit suspicious.
@@kaylinwhite6584anyone with a logical brain wouldn't just conclude that spending money after death of relative means anything. Erik didn't even spend much and Lyle also bought a business and had apperantly always spend more. With advice from relatives. I found it weird that people obsess over their money so much. Them being rich was used as argument of them being spoiled (inspite of severe abuse) and as argument for their motive and lack of emotions (inspite of showing trauma repsonse after their death). It made no sense and actually shows how prejudiced people are.
perhaps if their dad was.a nobody, I say perhaps , he might have got a 2-3 year senfence and been out in 18 months to do what he threatened to do. But, he was Jose Menedez , a rich , influential and powerfuly connected man. Nah, aint nobody gonna try and take him down.
They had lots of money beforehand and the father was just going to be richer. There was zero need to do it for money. And no, suing the father wouldn't have gotten them money and possibly no acknowledged or safety from him either.
I have suffered abuse myself and lying and hiding the family secret gets you to live in lies and being scared for life! I have suffered lesser abused and I can understand the fact that your stuck in a circle of terror and it becomes you or them.
I read the book titled “A Boy Called It” How his own mother abused him mercilessly while treating his siblings better. & how the father never put a stop to any of it. Yet David grew up to be a motivational speaker.
Yes imagine being a scared son but a growing man & having to go through this when he got home. Horrible. I don't blame them to be honest, all child molesters should be 6ft under. And the mother knew & did nothing! She's as bad for allowing it. Disgusting!
It wasn’t because they were abused. It was because they had an unreasonable belief that their lives were in danger. They have never said that what they did was justified.
@@kaylinwhite6584 they have to say it because the justice system calls abuse an excuse i do believe that the continuous abuse for 12 yrs and then not letting go erik played a huge part. No doubt they were scared for their lives too because he always threatened to kill them so i guess there were more than one reason to kill
Jesus christ this comment section really shows you who has watched the trial and who hasn't. Half of you are middle aged people who have no knowledge whatsoever about the intricate details of the case or the psychology of abuse
Very true. I have never seen so much ignorance! I think most people cannot compute that an upper middle class family would sexual abuse their children.
So true! People should really stop relying purely on the media and biased documentaries and actually watch the first trial and read the transcripts of the second. Then they will understand why the conviction happened - miscarriage of justice.
@@kaylinwhite6584 Ignorant - lacking knowledge or awareness in general; uneducated or unsophisticated. I think ignorant is apt seeing as a lot of people make judgements about this case based on what they saw in the media 30 years ago. I would also hazard a guess that most people also aren't particularly educated on the true psychological effects of abuse and trauma on children
I watched every single moment of this trial. Their father was a living nightmare but so was my and I did tell her even though there was plenty of money to be had if she died. I lived poor off and on for many years and she just passed away. Was I happy? Know! Was I relieved? Yes! And I feel guilty for feeling relieved!
@@January. due to voice typing 100% of the time and having to do that it didn't exactly sound off and on like I meant it to. I guess you got my drift anyway! :-)
I believe them. Roy from Menudo has no reason to lie about Jose Menendez drugging and raping him as well. They should’ve never been in jail. It’s very sad. With all the privileges they had the parents ruined their lives.
Yah I mean I think the sexual abuse was pretty thoroughly corroborated to the point that I take it as a fact of this case. But even if you remove the sexual abuse from the equation, they still lived a tortured life. The tennis schedule they were forced through was abusive enough to drive someone insane imo.
Maybe, but that doesnt justify the crimes, that they are guilty of murder 1. Many abused children do not murder their parents. They were old enough to leave & make a life of their own. But they wanted the millions of money they knew they would inheritate plus the life ins. Which they got.
This is sad. I don't even understand how people looked at this and didn't feel immense sorrow and empathy. I'm not sorry to say that I don't and never will feel sympathy over the death of child abusers. Their own father. The man who was meant to love and protect them...It's tragic.
@Jacob Lewis No, I would not but if you have an interest in true crime you would know that many people do. Some of them even have children by their parents and stay with them until something happens. It's kind of what victims do...not all of them, but a lot.
@Jacob Lewis People like you who say that there was zero evidence get on my nerves. There is a shit ton of evidence to prove that they were being abused to 58+ witnesses, letters, and even photographic evidence.
@Jacob Lewis Actually half of the jury believed them which is why they had to have a retrial. The only reason they were found guilty was because the judge ruled out very important evidence regarding the abuse during the second trial. Several jurors have said years later after the brothers were sentenced that if they were allowed to hear their family history and see the evidence the judge ruled out they would have not sentenced them to life in prison. If you think they killed for money you know nothing about their case.
@Jacob Lewis You love to mention the the fact that they went on a spending spree after the murders and because of that it proves they killed them for money when family and friends have said countless times they spent money like that all the time. They used shopping as a coping mechanism like their mother did. Their lawyers did everything they could during the second trial since the judge ruled out very important evidence. And again the jurors themselves said they would have not sentenced them to life if they were allowed to hear and see all the evidence from the first trial. Its obvious that their father had been molesting them from the pictures he took of their genitals when they were toddlers (that's child pornography and there is no good explanation as to why he had those photos or even took them in the first place) to the letter Erik wrote to his cousin in '88 a year prior to the murders about how the abuse was still happening and I quote "I can't stand to see him, I never know when it's going to happen and it's driving me crazy. Every night I stay up thinking he might come in. I need to put it out of my mind, I know what you said before but I'm afraid. You just don't know dad like I do. Hes crazy! Hes warned me a thousand times about telling anyone especially Lyle" To Lyle telling a friend he and Erik had been molested months prior to the murder. 58+ witnesses including family, friends, coaches, teachers, etc, etc. All these people testified about the different types of abuse the brothers had endured at the hands of their parents. But are they all lying too?
We talk about the failure of the justice system. We talk about the endless abuse of these two boys. And, absolutely, these horrors are 100% true... But, do we ever truly step into these boys' skins and actually experience the whole process as they would have lived it? Just imagine your life in this scenario: You are born into a family who, from the day you arrive, you are considered second rate. A spare. A failure. Completely insignificant. And, you are never told why. You just know that's what it has been decided you are, and you have to live with it. You are rejected. Taunted. Tormented. Ridiculed. Seen as below everyone else in the family. You are hit. Beaten. Cut. Poked. Abused the second you fail at something, or when your efforts were just slightly less than perfect. You are hated because you are made to believe, from the earliest age, that nothing you do can or will ever please your parents or ever come close enough to being a performance worthy enough of winning their approval or their unconditional love and affection. You grow into believing that you are defective. Deformed. Unworthy. Stupid. Weak. Ugly. Every time you fail at your parents' unachievable and inconsistent expectations, you are made to hit yourself in the head as punishment. No one loves you. Nothing about you can ever meet the levels that have been set, and then continually raised. You feel that you were put here to "not be loved". Then, one day, for no particular reason that you can understand, you are shown some approval. Finally. Your father decides to show you his affection by being sexual with you. Showing you sex at your early age and grooming you for ongoing sexual episodes at his calling. And, this is not explained to you either. No reason. No context. Just forced onto you when your father sees fit. You are confused. You are treated like total and utter filth, yet you are shown some attention and approval at random, by the same people who have made it clear that they hate you. The approval you are given is sexual. Emotional, psychological rejection...sexual, physical approval. Again. And again. Over. And over. On a daily repeat. And a never-ending cycle. Rejection...sex...rejection...sex... Your delicate child mind is destroyed. Your self-perception and self-image are completely shattered. The two absolutely most important, valuable people in your life; the ones who are absolutely vital and essential to your psychological and emotional growth, are your haters. Your detractors. Your critics. Your abusers. Your destroyers. You have no one to turn to. There is not a single person in whom you feel you can confide with this horrific, unthinkable apocalypse that is living inside you, every single day, every single minute. You begin to feel suicidal. You hate yourself for all the pain you're experiencing and for all of the filth you feel crawling beneath your skin and throughout your body because of the sexual abuse. Eventually, after a whole, entire childhood denied to you, stolen from you, never shown to you, never having been allowed to you, you snap. Your offenders, your rapists, your soul-destroyers have to be punished. You have no choice to end what has been done to you your whole life other than by ending their lives. Then, you are suspected, captured, taken into custody and brought to trial. Your nation, and the world, watch your trial from the comforts of their living rooms. You are questioned relentlessly by teams of lawyers who pry into your personal life - and suddenly, your whole, entire childhood, and every single moment of abuse, pain, agony, torment, rape, torture and rejection you ever suffered, is layed out bare...and the world gets to see it. All for free. And, then, after six long, arduous, painful years of your story and your soul being layed naked for the perverse pleasures of the world, and with every intricate detail of every act of abuse committed on you recounted, recalled and retold countless times, as you are put through the harrowing process of reliving every second of it during your interrogations, a jury of twelve random citizens hands down their verdict. GUILTY. Suddenly, in the blink of an eye, EVERY SINGLE MOMENT OF TERROR you suffered as a child is wiped from existence. As though not one single second of it ever happened. Twelve absolute strangers have decided for YOU, on YOUR behalf, that you are a spoilt, money-hungry, greedy, cold, calculating murderer, who took their parents' lives to claim an inheritance. You were NEVER rejected. You were NEVER patronised. You were NEVER beaten. You were NEVER made to hit yourself. You were NEVER raped. As written in stone by twelve strangers. And, then, the WORLD decides the exact same thing: that it was all an act. All a show. All a poor, desperate and elaborate hoax created to appeal to the public's pity. Even after evidence has been shown to support your REAL experience. Even after witnesses have testified, under oath, that you were suffering throughout your entire childhood. All ERASED. It never happened. Twelve people. But, you know that you were raped as a child. And, now, you've been raped again. By the system. By the law. By an ignorant public. By a live broadcast, whoring your life out to the entire globe. And, where do you go from here? Straight to a cell. No sunshine. Not a second's freedom after the verdict. Just a cell. For the rest. of. your. life. Where do you end up inside yourself now? What ACTUALLY becomes of your mental state? How do you cope? You are now living in a cell with these as your companions: Your parents' hatred. The beatings. The belittling. The crushed sense of self-worth. The rapes. The sexual abuse. The psychological torture. The physical scars. The emotional scars. The mental scars. The abused trust. The orphan inside you. The recurring feelings of suicide. The constant nightmares. The distorted sense of reality. The dismantling of of your life by a line of legal representatives. The betrayal of twelve people. The disowning by a community. The ignorance of every neighbouring country across the globe. The self-doubt. The trepidation about your future in prison. ...and, every day, your memories of this complete timeline. The suffering that Lyle and Erik Menendez endured is beyond the average person's comprehension. Only those who've experienced a similar plight can truly understand the depths of just how penetrative the poison of this kind of horror really is. Our global view is merely an assessment from an armchair perspective. We are the third person. But, those of us who support them with an understanding and a compassion for abuse-sufferers KNOW that they are innocent victims. The Menendez brothers were already imprisoned LONG before their trial began. Their childhood was lived inside the walls of emotional discord, sexual torture and psychological battering. What they've been forced to endure has been punishment enough. TIME HAS BEEN SERVED. FREE. THE. MENENDEZ. BROTHERS.
I've watched the full trial, and I guarantee what you have written is absolute garbage. You have to be careful when you portray Lyle and Erik as poor victims, and José and Kitty as horrible monsters because by doing so you might just be reflecting your own stupidity.
Thanks for your empathy and taking time to capture the abuse and betrayal from birth to present. It captures how I felt about it, the injustice is unbearable.
I think it's disgusting that a juror is allowed to profit from this crime. When I served on s jury, we had to swear an oath that we would not discuss the case outside the jury room and would never discuss it in the future.
Thankyou and that's all hazel the lunatic Thornton has been doing like Robert rand lieing to profit ,robert rand is disgusting and he k ows both brothers are liars
That rich, powerful father not only sexually assaulted his sons but he abused them physically & emotionally. Til they couldn’t take it anymore. Others knew about some of the abuse; but didn’t dare stand up to that powerful, rich monster either.
Los hermanos Menéndez han sufrido desde que llegaron a este mundo, con unos padres que en realidad eran MONSTRUOS, desalmados, violentos, abusivos, pedófilos. El hecho de que el padre fuera un hombre con dinero, no significó nada en sus vidas, pues no les dio lo más importante que todo hijo necesita : amor, comprensión, respeto, guías y ambiente familiar adecuado. La Fiscalía y el juez Stanley, fallaron en contra de estos chicos, revictimizaton a las verdaderas víctimas que fueron Erick and Lyle. La sociedad y la justicia norteamericana, le quedan debiendo a estos muchachos. LIBERTAD PARA ELLOS, SIN CONDICIONES, ellos actuaron en defensa propia y si eso no es entendido de una vez por todas, quedará un terrible estigma para la justicia norteamericana que se jacta de ser justa, técnica y profesional. ¡LIBERTAD PARA LOS HERMANOS MENÉNDEZ! AYÚDENLOS A TRANSITAR EL RESTO DE SUS VIDAS CON AYUDA PROFESIONAL, EMPATÍA, CARIÑO Y SIN CARGAR CADENAS NI GRILLETES CONDICIONALES.
My brother who was 10 years younger than me molested me between the ages of 4 and 6 years. I didn't speak out until I was thirty-two and the reaction was devastating!
They didn’t walk away and leave home either because they were so threatened by their father Erik especially was terrified of him and that’s a trauma abuse response, look at women who stay with men who beat them they were such young children when it started imagine living your whole life in a home like that my heart hurts for them I hope they get out and can live normal lives and really begin to heal
I watched the original trial and I believed them then and I definitely still believe them. It is unspeakable what they went through. And now we know that there was at least one other victim of Jose M. I think there are probably more we do not know about at this time.
I’m a retired psychiatrist…I worked for many years in a mental health facility, particularly in the children’s division (I only dealt with children at that point), many of my patients had been removed from some very horrifically abusive environments, and more often than not, the brunt of the severe abuse was sexual in nature. I can tell you that most, if not all of my patients, had been so scarred and traumatized that it will always live with them. Once a child has been abused, especially to the degree that I’m talking about, where they’re robbed of everything…their childhood, their peace of mind, their feelings of being safe and loved, their self worth, their dignity, and the list goes on and on, it’s highly unlikely that they will be able to go on to live a normal life without some kind of mental health therapy. The scarring runs so deep that it’s unfathomable to anyone who has never experienced such abuse. In the case of these two brothers, I personally feel that they are in no way a threat to society and should be released from prison to try and live as normal of a life as they can considering all they suffered at the hands of their parents. However, I do believe that they should have mental health therapy for the remainder of their lives.
Yes and I am concerned about them acclimating to the modern world of cell phones hyper stimulation and being triggered by videos of themselves popping up all over social media and being retraumatized
I work in child protection and have for 15 years and wholeheartedly agree. This is also the issue with prison systems in the western world. It’s all about punishment (which has a place), but statistics in my country do not lie.. in Canada high statistics of inmate populations reflect that majority have diagnosed FASD (fetal alcohol syndrome disorder) and almost all inmates score high on the ACEs assessment (adverse childhood experiences.. like neglect and abuse). High ACEs scores reflect an adult’s likelihood of struggling in many areas of life and many fall to criminality. And in Canada, indigenous populations represent majority of inmates which is a whole other topic about the history of indigenous peoples in this country.
Sentences need to better support inmates in terms of addictions, mental health, intergenerational abuse, childhood abuse, systemic oppression etc
Instead many governments just want to lock you up and throw away the key and forget about you.
They are so brave, talking about it
😢
I'm fed up with monsters that abuse children!!! These abused children are destroyed mentally and emotionally. So sad how people don't believe them when they finally get the courage to speak out and ask for help. Why can't people sympathize and realize the prison that these children have lived in, most of them for years. Just cus your parents are rich doesn't mean that they can't be monsters. When our abuser finally left us, all the weight of the world lifted but the engraved nightmares will always be there for the rest of our lives. We're now waiting for the trial. Please pray for me and my children that he gets the punishment he deserves!!!
Exactly! You are right, when your abuser finally leaves you alone or is not their it’s not easy nightmares are there. It’s worst for man, cause usually nobody believes a man. They were going through this and with a rich father they new nothing was going to be done.
I have no mercy for child abusers!
Love & Light to you Veronica💗thank you for sharing your courageous beliefs of justice for children!
Gee, if you know it all, why do we have juries? You should decide for everyone. 🙄
@@taffycat93 protecting an abuser?
I pray for them. They deserve an appeal... they have served enough time for being sexually abused by their cruel, abusive father.... and their mother who did nothing to protect them
They premeditated the murders and bought lots of shit after they killed them.... Guilty as hell
@@derekweinerttv4163 they’ve been spending money lavishly since they were young, plus their mother always spent money lavishly. Spending money lavishly wasn’t a new thing to them. Plus if you watched the trials, you would know that Eirk and Lyle had no idea and felt guilt about all the money they were about to inherit.
Their mother sexually abused Lyle as well.. so did his father. I’m not sure about their mother sexually abusing Erik tho, I know she liked him more according to the brothers, but I do not know about sexual abuse from the mother to Erik
Absolutely!
I believe that if the exact same crime happened today, with incest and sexual abuse being so much more understood it would’ve turned out so differently. Such a tragedy all the way around …
They should be released they have served MORE than enough time 😡
Yes there a lot in prison that should not be in there. 😠
@Peb Kit why would they come to my home lol
@Peb Kit lol there are plenty of murderers who are free right now who already served their time. Ive seen someone gets 5 years for a murder charge lol. Life in prison for killing 2 child predators is ridiculous this case was completely politicized, it was right after the OJ trial & they wanted to make an example of them. That is NOT justice. Its afreaking joke 😂
@Peb Kit there are murderers running free in ur neighborhood right now nothing u can do about it.
@Peb Kit OH they are so much welcome in my home! I believe they are no cold blooded murderers as the media portray them to be. And you clearly haven't watch their testimony / interviews enough.
I truly detest the young female prosecutor of this case.She is more like a monster to me than these poor boys!
@@zahrap2110
She still is.
@@pitalitta8814 what's her name?
@@RenegadeSolutionsPamela bozanich
Yes. She is horrific. Special place in hell for her
Yes
I've always believed all the abuse accusations. I think they should have gotten manslaughter charges and not murder.
They didn't leave because they were trauma bonded to their abusers and their brain development was stunted by years of neglect and abuse.
Something I noticed... when one of the brothers was testifying about the abuse while the other brother sat and listened you could see the pain in his face. It was so real, you could see the veins in his neck popping out , you could see the the anger in his neck the fear. That couldn't be faked.
@@Monalisa0622 I agree. I watched the trial when it was happening back then and the pain on their faces was so obvious. 😔
@@Monalisa0622 Agreed. That was gut wrenching. You could tell that Lyle felt extreme guilt over not having protected Eric from it.
Thank you. Finally someone with a brain who knows a thing or two about the psychology of abuse in this comment section
Correct heidi
I was a teen, and I have recently revisited this trial [ now as an adult ] and i have no doubt in my mind, these boys would be dead, if they hadnt killed their parents FIRST. So much abuse. I truly hope the case is open and reconsidered.
You are not thinking clearly
@@bford5899clearly you are the one not thinking and overruled
@@hollyfabiani actually, both juries came to the same conclusion I did. Yours just doesn’t make sense
nah they wouldn’t be dead…. they were already 22 and 19…. they managed to survive the entire miserable childhood and were almost out of the house…
@@fernfunk how Erik was almost out of the house if José told Erick that he was still gonna live in the house while doing college? He was still being abused, i dont know wich abuser would want the victm to simply get away
If there was any evidence of sex abuse, they shouldn’t even be found guilty of anything. It’s ridiculous that people are allowed to be sexually and physically abused as children, and the moment the victim snaps, they go from victim to criminal. We need to protect people better than this. It bothers me that we live in a nation where a man is justified for killing his cheating wife in the heat of the moment, but a teenager that kills their rapist, is unjustifiable and labeled a murder.
And sometimes guess what ? Lies are made up to justify brutal killings.
There was tons of evidence including photos, 60+ witnesses, and letters. They had more evidence than most sexual abuse cases
Being abused is not an justification for murder it is a mitigating factor for a lesser sentence. But they still would get jail.
@@soph5669 Guess what? They murdered their abusers and not anyone else! Loving parents don't get killed, period.
@@melisentiapheiffer3034 exactly!
I felt and still feel even immense sorrow for these two boys! They planned to murder to end the abuse ... their your minds were not mature enough to understand the severity of their decisions! I felt rehabilitation and psychotherapy should have been the decisions the courts made but it's so sad that the victims were criminalized 😪😔🥺
Riight...not mature enough
They were adults ...
They were mature enough to join the Marines.
Sure, the brothers got the money but I don’t think that was anything they truly cared about. I see it as freedom. If I was abused, I can see why they had fun buying anything they wanted. I’d feel free and happy. To know my abusers would never hurt me again had to be such a relief! And if they felt happy and bought material things with their abuser’s money, well that’s pretty satisfying too!
All I ever saw from them was the feeling of, ”make it stop!” But the prosecution turned it into a case of money. A case of how could you do that to your parents. A case of their father being an upstanding, successful man. But when the lights went off in the house and night fell around them, their sadistic, perverted father would invade their security and safety and force them into horrific sexual acts. The saying couldn’t be more true-you never know what goes on behind closed doors.
@@JulieannsSerenity well said!
dude i got abused not sexually and i told people and they said i lied so thats why people dont tell people dummy
Did you kill anyone?
@@tipsygypsy711like he would tell u
Also, he had it drilled into him regularly in front of the round mirror , naked after being r*pd.
"What will happen if you tell anyone Lyle?"
" you will.kill me"
"Correct".
@@tipsygypsy711your question suggests that you're the "well then they shouldn't have killed their parents if you didn't" type of person 🙄
just because someone was abused doesn't mean they WILL murder but do you really expect for a child not to eventually snap and either kill themselves or their parents if said parents aka ABUSERS sexually, verbally and emotionally abused their CHILD for YEARS while they're helpless, while they were basically still a baby?
Is that victim supposed to just suffer for the rest of their life while their abuser lives a guilt free life?
You obviously have no idea how abuse makes a person feel. There's a point when you'd do anything to be free of it.
Incredibly painful to watch this. Those brothers must be freed.
anybody who has ever done any research into this case can see they were telling the truth
How so?
@@AT-iy8mf Because there is evidence of the abuse. Now, another victim of Jose Menendez has come forward. These boys were SA. Who has pictures of their children’s genitalia? It’s disgusting. It was shown at trial.
Because there was enough evidence for sexual abuse. It wasn't allowed in court... -_-
No evidence whatsover of the abuse! Only their lies
@@ritaeichler2066 Do your research.
I find it sickening jurors making money out of this, they shouldn't be allowed
Or the prosecution making money to appear on the documentaries, same thing
Free The Menendez Brothers 2021! 💯
FREE THE MENENDEZ BROTHERS 2024!!
@@menelikburnett4738 They deserve LIFE in PRISON NO PAROLE>
That case was a god damn travesty! Seriously its pretty obvious they were abused! Damn.
These brothers are liars. They were spoiled and entitled.
Anybody knows the truth. But if there are witnesses of the abuse, why they didn´t take them to the trial?
Finally someone said it
@@LauRa-re9un The cousin told in court that as kids one of the brothers told him about abuse by his father and not to tell anyone. The tipical from an abused chids.
@@kaydeblair4283 You are too young to remember how these guys were when they were arrested. The whole abuse thing never even came up until the end of the trial because they couldn’t find any defense for them.
She wasn't protecting them either sothere would have been a great deal of bad feelings toward her as to why mom didn't protect them. I had nobody to protect me and it sucks when you're abused and nobody stops it but I didn't speak out like I said until I was 32.
AMEN sister. As a fellow survivor, I agree that it's hell when, as a child, you have to regularly protect yourself from someone the family stands by whole-hartedly. It's disturbing how many people "shoulda/ woulda" something of this nature when they can't possibly imagine the fear the victim carries with them.
Thats a good point i didnt even consider that 😢
I never told anyone until I was 60.
@@danni1993 it’s never too late and trauma never really leaves. I hope you are well and I hope you have someone to talk to now no matter how much time has passed ♥️
@@soph5669
Thank you for your kind words.
I understand why the jury was hung, by the law yes the brothers murdered their parents, but listening to the abuse, it's hard to punish someone who went through that.
Being abused isn’t a justification for murder. Obviously they were going to be punished for it. But it should have been voluntary manslaughter which is 22 years.
@@kaylinwhite6584 cant use emotions. It clearly was premidated, planned & not self defense. That is murder not manslaughter.
@@ritaeichler2066 I agree.
@@ritaeichler2066omg right they werent abused 🥹
GOD BLESS YOU MR. RAND these brothers should be RELEASED!!!!
I pray for these two to be freed. 🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻 After their horrific childhood they deserve a few happy moments in this earth, it was not their fault in which household they were born into.
Justice for Lyle and Erik 🙏🏻💞💞💞🙏🏻FREE THE BROTHERS...!!!!
Some people have asked why did they just not go to the police?
Clearly, some people do not understand about C.A.
Yeah... Especially when you’re raised by your abusers. Also, it’s weird to me that the justice system acquits grown ass women for stabbing and killing their abusive partner’s while they’re sleeping but these boys couldn’t freak out after telling their dad to stop touching them several times... Completely dismissive and duplicitous of the public... I hate that.
@@samieD22 . And don’t forget it was the MEN on the jury that wanted the murder sentence, none of the women did. So it’s men and male judges giving women less harsh sentences than men. Women get blamed for that, but I have found that women are way tougher on other women in court.
Right, plus in this case, the parents were wealthy and that means power.
@@UKImmigrationLawGeek
What is CA?
@@UKImmigrationLawGeek
Could it be they knew the wealthy guy had the police in his pocket? That no good would come from telling the police?
American jail terms are too long and inhumane. They have served enough time, and should be released.
Well...if they were abused this bad I agree. Otherwise two ppl won’t get undead
Except when they need to be (long sentences)
Wrong they need to be longer no parole for murder.
Exactly, their abusers were their own parents. The boys were groomed to belive they would not survive if they go against them. It is so astonishing that people ask this question, why didnt they leave. Ask any victim how difficult it is to move out of an abusive relationship.
That’s why many women stay in abusive relationships especially if they have children. Where should they go? Who will help them? That’s why women should make sure that they have their own money. So if the situation becomes abusive they can get away from it. Children should not ever have to see their mother being abused. I would never have allowed my children to be abused.
I would have lived on the street with them rather than allowed them to be abused
🎯
That terrible judge engineered that second trial to find them guilty. This is such a tragedy and injustice. And people brag about the u.s. justice system.
So true!!
I truly hope they are released soon.
I believe them
I always believed these brothers. I am not sure about murdering their parents bc that's not the way to handle it but I understand the inclination. I've lived it and it's not something people would understand or how people would react if you lived in that nightmare. It's something only another abused person can see if that makes sense. This case has always haunted me and even though I'm retired and older I remember the abuse like yesterday especially watching this and it triggers the recesses of your soul. I hope they get out they've served their time and prison that's another can of worms and sexual abuse.
❤❤❤❤❤❤
The mother knew & did nothing, she is just as guilty. Horrible !
Gosh I hate that they use the word sex for rape in this trial
The word rape would trigger erik
I think it's what Erik called it himself
My heart goes out to them.
Sicko
@@stormiemarie6997is what you and their parents were
My aunt Terry was Erics penpal&sent care packages to him:)
That is so sweet! Did he ever respond?
AWWWWW ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤ I hope your aunt terry knows they will be released soon! God bless her!
It makes a lot of sense that their development and emotional intelligence had been stunted through years of abuse.
This in turn supports the notion of feeling they couldn't OUTWARDLY go to the powers that be, accusing their parents of abuse, the trial proved that!
Makes a lot of sense!
Them going on a spending spree, probably in their minds had them feeling free for the first time in their lives!
If this case is tried TODAY, it's a different outcome!
This trial should never have been televised. Imagine having to reaccount SA for the world to judge.
STOP ASKING WHY DIDNT THEY LEAVE. JESUS CHRIST!!!!
They had stockholm syndrome. Same reason women don't leave their abusers. Fear is their prison. They have been beat down to feel helpless and hopeless.
I think these 2 guys have served enough time. I'm not saying that murdering the parents was the answer, but when nobody's listening I can see how these 2 did what they did. Stop the Abuse of children!!!
They never told anyone until the second trial... what is your point?
@@tipsygypsy711
Would you have told on your abusive father? He threatened them, told them not to tell. Where’s your empathy? They were scared of him. & embarrassed. Wouldn’t you be? Fortunately for you your parent didn’t sexually abuse you, it seems. But theirs did. The looks on their faces as they had to relive the telling of their ordeals was unmistakable.
@@tipsygypsy711outside family were told, they told the mom and kitty told them to ignore them and to not go to their rooms. They were shut down from a young age. They also told cousins, even adults at the school knew, tons of ppl knew.
My heart aches hearing what happened to them and I wish that they were free.
New Trial 2021 Please set them free!! They have suffered enough!!
Ive seen so many people say why didnt they speak about the abuse before. Some people dont like to talk about it. As a survivor of child abuse I've never actually spoken about it. Im sitting here behind a screen telling a bunch of stranger's and that is so much easier than telling a family member or someone you know. Because you fear they wont believe you or a number of other reasons you wouldn't understand if you've never gone tru it.
I'm so sorry you were a victim too. Now you are a survivor and I wish you much strength. I lived in a chaotic household as a child and it stays with you your entire life. It requires a lot of therapy and resilience to get through.
They did tell some family members, they brought the concerns to Kitty and she told them to ignore it and not to go near their rooms, many ppl knew things weren’t right, but many ppl didn’t act and tell ppl to get them help. What most ppl fail to realize is the Jose was rich and most ppl do not want to speak out against someone with his wealth, what could he do to you if you did!?! Their own mother knew and protected Jose, not her own children. They only found out later that she knew the entire time and did nothing to help them.
It's really sad that the court/jury don't have enough knowledge about sexual abuse and its consequences. Read David J Pelzers’ book A Child Called "It" and then you might understand the profound impact of sexual, physical, mental and emotional abuse.
@@soultraffics
I don’t rmmbr reading that David Pelzer was sexually abused. His mother did do a number on him emotionally, & physically.
These guys has suffered enough! People that haven't been living in such dysfunctional home, don't always understand how much the abused suffer, both mentally, emotionally and physically. It's like the normal development of the brain stops.
As a survivor of attempted murder (by my mother) I know how much it breaks a human being. My mom suicided 6 months after she tried to kill me. First as an adult and through many many hours in therapy, I know that it wasn't my fault as well as my mom's. She was suffering herself and she didn't want me and my sister be with our dad. He was extremely abusive and beat her up so many times. She tried to get out of the marriage, but he always managed to find us, if we went into hiding. He had a private detective finding us. If he had only let her divorce him, I don't believe she would have been on a downwards spiral with alcohol, medicine and death:
I am so sorry for what happened. I truly hope and pray that everything is going well now, and that you're healing. Stay safe and God bless you
@@vonamir2000 Thank you for your kindness ❤️
Ugh, it is so hard to read about what you have gone through. I totally understand the victims' minds, pain and torture, plus the terror and fear all the time. I wish you all well, and remember, yoy are stronger, more beautiful and more courages now. Not many people have your beauty and wisdom. This makes you very special in my book.
@@Dzanarika1 your kind words makes me wanna push through even more. Thanks ❤
You are obviously an extremely strong person and a survivor. Sending all my best wishes to you and strength and hope for a positive future.
Let them go home to their wives and families. Enough already.
@@StellaGizzi
Do they have wives waiting for them? When did they get married? Was it right after they killed the parents?
Those weren’t “parents” they should never have had kids.
Anyone, Anyone who abuses others is doing the work of the devil.
my cousins dad was lyle's friend and said that lyle and erik were super smiley and happy.
i feel bad for them 31 years of their lives gone in prison for being victims. more erik which was just 18 years old
btw my cousins dad is 54 years old :)
They are not the victims! The parents were the victims. What is wrong with everyone? Do we condone double murder ???
@@ritaeichler2066For people who abuse children? Absolutely!
@@ritaeichler2066 I believe they indeed are victims of the abuse and they should be freed now. There are numerous evidence about the abuse.
@@ritaeichler2066get a grip. They were sexual predators!!!!
@@ritaeichler2066 You don't know much about the case do you?
Absolute travesty - total miscarriage of justice for those poor young men.
I pray that men in today's society are more enlightened about physical, mental, and sexual abuse. It seems that the women on the juries would have convicted with voluntary manslaughter. There time would have ended long ago. I wish the new evidence would be the realization that we've achieved a higher level of consciousness and awareness. This travesty of injustice has prevailed far too long, seems they were born to suffer, one way or another.
Breaks my heart so much.
Wow so they are in prison since 35 years because the male jurors didnt understand that murder vs manslaughter needed to be proven by prosecution? Maybe have some experts additionally not just random jurors with opinions to decide over other peoples life?
Those are tears are painful, please release them, support from india.
10-15 years with therapy and rehabilitation would have made sense. The injustice they have endured is unbearable. When they got seperated on top of it became another symbol of unnecessary cruelty towards them and that there were power dynamics at play.
The treatment they received was barbaric, both in their childhood and youth, and in the justice system.
This is appalling. There was plenty of evidence that these brothers were severely mistreated.
There was so much evidence and the first trial was a mistrial. The second trial was a travesty of justice. It is just gut wrenching to think about what these brothers have gone through.
They both should be released. They did their time. Child abuse is what causes a lot of our problems in the justice system. It's the underlying cause of so much violence.
Child molesters should never be released from jail.
If only Eric hadn't told the therapist!
The boys would not be able to live with their deed a long time. They are human not psychos
@@jilross4892 im weirdly afraid that lyle would be able to live on
idk why
@@thedykewitch it depends on how strong his Dissoziation was. It was probably much stronger than his brothers
@@thedykewitch I agree
Yeah and that Dr's mistress being on the other side listening,she went to the police
Please free the MENENDEZ BROTHERS
What a hard life they will continue to live. Bc they will be recognized wherever they go. & stupid ppl will probably be cruel. How much more can they put up with? Maybe they need some compassion.
Release them, for God's sake! Prosecutors who were quick to charge murder for insurance money, should have been a red flag. Now I really know what they mean by "hindsight is always 2020". Also, give them their damn money back!
@Diamondgirl
Yes! Absolutely. I remember watching that trial... those young men were damaged... to this day, I cannot believe the outcome.
They were charged of murder for the inheritance because of the lavish shopping spree the brothers did 4 days after. You got understand that people who have not been abused in any way would find that a bit suspicious.
@@kaylinwhite6584anyone with a logical brain wouldn't just conclude that spending money after death of relative means anything. Erik didn't even spend much and Lyle also bought a business and had apperantly always spend more. With advice from relatives. I found it weird that people obsess over their money so much. Them being rich was used as argument of them being spoiled (inspite of severe abuse) and as argument for their motive and lack of emotions (inspite of showing trauma repsonse after their death). It made no sense and actually shows how prejudiced people are.
If they wanted money all they would have had to do is sue their parents for all that "abuse" they had endured.....
perhaps if their dad was.a nobody, I say perhaps , he might have got a 2-3 year senfence and been out in 18 months to do what he threatened to do.
But, he was Jose Menedez , a rich , influential and powerfuly connected man.
Nah, aint nobody gonna try and take him down.
They had lots of money beforehand and the father was just going to be richer. There was zero need to do it for money. And no, suing the father wouldn't have gotten them money and possibly no acknowledged or safety from him either.
Please free these boy and let them find a way to heal and have some kind of happy life if they can. What horrible, horrible parents!
The parents were out of a horror film. I will never be able to accept what they did to their children.
Those jurors and the judge who excluded evidence should be ashamed. Manslaughter was the only fair verdict.
They need an appeal
I have suffered abuse myself and lying and hiding the family secret gets you to live in lies and being scared for life! I have suffered lesser abused and I can understand the fact that your stuck in a circle of terror and it becomes you or them.
I'm so sorry that happened to you, I hope you're healing🤍
My heart goes out to you. I lived in a chaotic household as a child and it is very traumatic. It literally changes your brain.
I didn't even know CourtTV was back!! Love Vinnie!
I read the book titled “A Boy Called It”
How his own mother abused him mercilessly while treating his siblings better. & how the father never put a stop to any of it. Yet David grew up to be a motivational speaker.
So sad to see eric say "i hated it , i hated it , i hated it ." @10.35 U can see why it made him snap at them and shoot them to death
Yes imagine being a scared son but a growing man & having to go through this when he got home. Horrible.
I don't blame them to be honest, all child molesters should be 6ft under. And the mother knew & did nothing! She's as bad for allowing it. Disgusting!
It wasn’t because they were abused. It was because they had an unreasonable belief that their lives were in danger. They have never said that what they did was justified.
@@kaylinwhite6584 they have to say it because the justice system calls abuse an excuse i do believe that the continuous abuse for 12 yrs and then not letting go erik played a huge part. No doubt they were scared for their lives too because he always threatened to kill them so i guess there were more than one reason to kill
everytime I see photos of them I wish I could hug them.😢❤
They have no business being in prison. The fact that these poor brothers are doing time for this is appalling.
I always felt very sorry for the Menéndez brother, I believed they paid already far enough they deserved freedom
Jesus christ this comment section really shows you who has watched the trial and who hasn't. Half of you are middle aged people who have no knowledge whatsoever about the intricate details of the case or the psychology of abuse
Very true. I have never seen so much ignorance! I think most people cannot compute that an upper middle class family would sexual abuse their children.
So true! People should really stop relying purely on the media and biased documentaries and actually watch the first trial and read the transcripts of the second. Then they will understand why the conviction happened - miscarriage of justice.
People are entitled to their beliefs. It doesn’t mean that they are ignorant.
@@kaylinwhite6584 Ignorant - lacking knowledge or awareness in general; uneducated or unsophisticated.
I think ignorant is apt seeing as a lot of people make judgements about this case based on what they saw in the media 30 years ago. I would also hazard a guess that most people also aren't particularly educated on the true psychological effects of abuse and trauma on children
@@kaylinwhite6584 oh, it absolutely does. Stop spewing nonsense.
Robert Rand lit the match of the fire that we're starting now - he found the letter to Andy in 2018. GOD BLESS THAT MAN
I watched every single moment of this trial. Their father was a living nightmare but so was my and I did tell her even though there was plenty of money to be had if she died. I lived poor off and on for many years and she just passed away. Was I happy? Know! Was I relieved? Yes! And I feel guilty for feeling relieved!
same situation
@@January. due to voice typing 100% of the time and having to do that it didn't exactly sound off and on like I meant it to. I guess you got my drift anyway! :-)
With family members testify that they were abused, that says they didn't lie
There should never be a case listening to this story It sounds horrific what they went through with “Their Father “. Unthinkable,,
As a woman, i dont know if i can talk about my sexual abuse, these boys are sooooooooo brave! GODSPEED THEIR RELEASE!!! ❤
The father was rich and got away with it
I believe them. Roy from Menudo has no reason to lie about Jose Menendez drugging and raping him as well. They should’ve never been in jail. It’s very sad. With all the privileges they had the parents ruined their lives.
Lies! Lyle bribed him to lie just like he did with his xgirlfriend Amy prior to trial
She refused to lie for him.
@@ritaeichler2066The ex-girlfriend you are referring to is Jamie, not Amy.
@@ritaeichler2066he wanted her to lie about what?!
Free the Menendez brothers!!!!!
It's a crime that they're still in jail. Their parents were monsters.
The dispatcher wasn’t a good one. She was screaming at him saying WHATS THE PROBLEM, WHATS THE PROBLEM.
I feel horrible for them.
Bless Hazel Thornton. Loved her book!
FREE THEM
They should have never went to jail
Honestly, even if they are lying about the abuse (which I doubt) I still have sympathy for them. Even without abuse, I’m sure it was hell for them
Yah I mean I think the sexual abuse was pretty thoroughly corroborated to the point that I take it as a fact of this case. But even if you remove the sexual abuse from the equation, they still lived a tortured life. The tennis schedule they were forced through was abusive enough to drive someone insane imo.
Maybe, but that doesnt justify the crimes, that they are guilty of murder 1. Many abused children do not murder their parents. They were old enough to leave & make a life of their own. But they wanted the millions of money they knew they would inheritate plus the life ins. Which they got.
THIS IS HORRIBLE WHAT THEY WENT THRU !! 😭
I honestly would have said voluntary manslaughter.
I hope the jury feel guilty & ashamed of themselves
I hope the brothers get released. It’s way overdue.
This is sad. I don't even understand how people looked at this and didn't feel immense sorrow and empathy. I'm not sorry to say that I don't and never will feel sympathy over the death of child abusers. Their own father. The man who was meant to love and protect them...It's tragic.
@Jacob Lewis No, I would not but if you have an interest in true crime you would know that many people do. Some of them even have children by their parents and stay with them until something happens. It's kind of what victims do...not all of them, but a lot.
@Jacob Lewis People like you who say that there was zero evidence get on my nerves. There is a shit ton of evidence to prove that they were being abused to 58+ witnesses, letters, and even photographic evidence.
@Jacob Lewis Actually half of the jury believed them which is why they had to have a retrial. The only reason they were found guilty was because the judge ruled out very important evidence regarding the abuse during the second trial. Several jurors have said years later after the brothers were sentenced that if they were allowed to hear their family history and see the evidence the judge ruled out they would have not sentenced them to life in prison. If you think they killed for money you know nothing about their case.
@Jacob Lewis You love to mention the the fact that they went on a spending spree after the murders and because of that it proves they killed them for money when family and friends have said countless times they spent money like that all the time. They used shopping as a coping mechanism like their mother did. Their lawyers did everything they could during the second trial since the judge ruled out very important evidence. And again the jurors themselves said they would have not sentenced them to life if they were allowed to hear and see all the evidence from the first trial. Its obvious that their father had been molesting them from the pictures he took of their genitals when they were toddlers (that's child pornography and there is no good explanation as to why he had those photos or even took them in the first place) to the letter Erik wrote to his cousin in '88 a year prior to the murders about how the abuse was still happening and I quote "I can't stand to see him, I never know when it's going to happen and it's driving me crazy. Every night I stay up thinking he might come in. I need to put it out of my mind, I know what you said before but I'm afraid. You just don't know dad like I do. Hes crazy! Hes warned me a thousand times about telling anyone especially Lyle" To Lyle telling a friend he and Erik had been molested months prior to the murder. 58+ witnesses including family, friends, coaches, teachers, etc, etc. All these people testified about the different types of abuse the brothers had endured at the hands of their parents. But are they all lying too?
We talk about the failure of the justice system. We talk about the endless abuse of these two boys. And, absolutely, these horrors are 100% true...
But, do we ever truly step into these boys' skins and actually experience the whole process as they would have lived it?
Just imagine your life in this scenario:
You are born into a family who, from the day you arrive, you are considered second rate. A spare. A failure. Completely insignificant. And, you are never told why. You just know that's what it has been decided you are, and you have to live with it.
You are rejected. Taunted. Tormented. Ridiculed. Seen as below everyone else in the family.
You are hit. Beaten. Cut. Poked. Abused the second you fail at something, or when your efforts were just slightly less than perfect.
You are hated because you are made to believe, from the earliest age, that nothing you do can or will ever please your parents or ever come close enough to being a performance worthy enough of winning their approval or their unconditional love and affection.
You grow into believing that you are defective. Deformed. Unworthy. Stupid. Weak. Ugly.
Every time you fail at your parents' unachievable and inconsistent expectations, you are made to hit yourself in the head as punishment.
No one loves you. Nothing about you can ever meet the levels that have been set, and then continually raised. You feel that you were put here to "not be loved".
Then, one day, for no particular reason that you can understand, you are shown some approval. Finally. Your father decides to show you his affection by being sexual with you. Showing you sex at your early age and grooming you for ongoing sexual episodes at his calling. And, this is not explained to you either. No reason. No context. Just forced onto you when your father sees fit.
You are confused. You are treated like total and utter filth, yet you are shown some attention and approval at random, by the same people who have made it clear that they hate you. The approval you are given is sexual. Emotional, psychological rejection...sexual, physical approval. Again. And again. Over. And over. On a daily repeat. And a never-ending cycle. Rejection...sex...rejection...sex...
Your delicate child mind is destroyed. Your self-perception and self-image are completely shattered.
The two absolutely most important, valuable people in your life; the ones who are absolutely vital and essential to your psychological and emotional growth, are your haters. Your detractors. Your critics. Your abusers. Your destroyers.
You have no one to turn to. There is not a single person in whom you feel you can confide with this horrific, unthinkable apocalypse that is living inside you, every single day, every single minute.
You begin to feel suicidal. You hate yourself for all the pain you're experiencing and for all of the filth you feel crawling beneath your skin and throughout your body because of the sexual abuse.
Eventually, after a whole, entire childhood denied to you, stolen from you, never shown to you, never having been allowed to you, you snap.
Your offenders, your rapists, your soul-destroyers have to be punished.
You have no choice to end what has been done to you your whole life other than by ending their lives.
Then, you are suspected, captured, taken into custody and brought to trial.
Your nation, and the world, watch your trial from the comforts of their living rooms. You are questioned relentlessly by teams of lawyers who pry into your personal life - and suddenly, your whole, entire childhood, and every single moment of abuse, pain, agony, torment, rape, torture and rejection you ever suffered, is layed out bare...and the world gets to see it. All for free.
And, then, after six long, arduous, painful years of your story and your soul being layed naked for the perverse pleasures of the world, and with every intricate detail of every act of abuse committed on you recounted, recalled and retold countless times, as you are put through the harrowing process of reliving every second of it during your interrogations, a jury of twelve random citizens hands down their verdict.
GUILTY.
Suddenly, in the blink of an eye, EVERY SINGLE MOMENT OF TERROR you suffered as a child is wiped from existence. As though not one single second of it ever happened. Twelve absolute strangers have decided for YOU, on YOUR behalf, that you are a spoilt, money-hungry, greedy, cold, calculating murderer, who took their parents' lives to claim an inheritance.
You were NEVER rejected. You were NEVER patronised. You were NEVER beaten. You were NEVER made to hit yourself. You were NEVER raped.
As written in stone by twelve strangers.
And, then, the WORLD decides the exact same thing: that it was all an act. All a show. All a poor, desperate and elaborate hoax created to appeal to the public's pity.
Even after evidence has been shown to support your REAL experience. Even after witnesses have testified, under oath, that you were suffering throughout your entire childhood.
All ERASED. It never happened.
Twelve people.
But, you know that you were raped as a child. And, now, you've been raped again. By the system. By the law. By an ignorant public. By a live broadcast, whoring your life out to the entire globe.
And, where do you go from here? Straight to a cell. No sunshine. Not a second's freedom after the verdict.
Just a cell. For the rest. of. your. life.
Where do you end up inside yourself now? What ACTUALLY becomes of your mental state? How do you cope?
You are now living in a cell with these as your companions:
Your parents' hatred.
The beatings.
The belittling.
The crushed sense of self-worth.
The rapes.
The sexual abuse.
The psychological torture.
The physical scars.
The emotional scars.
The mental scars.
The abused trust.
The orphan inside you.
The recurring feelings of suicide.
The constant nightmares.
The distorted sense of reality.
The dismantling of of your life by a line of legal representatives.
The betrayal of twelve people.
The disowning by a community.
The ignorance of every neighbouring country across the globe.
The self-doubt.
The trepidation about your future in prison.
...and, every day, your memories of this complete timeline.
The suffering that Lyle and Erik Menendez endured is beyond the average person's comprehension.
Only those who've experienced a similar plight can truly understand the depths of just how penetrative the poison of this kind of horror really is.
Our global view is merely an assessment from an armchair perspective. We are the third person.
But, those of us who support them with an understanding and a compassion for abuse-sufferers KNOW that they are innocent victims.
The Menendez brothers were already imprisoned LONG before their trial began. Their childhood was lived inside the walls of emotional discord, sexual torture and psychological battering.
What they've been forced to endure has been punishment enough.
TIME HAS BEEN SERVED.
FREE.
THE.
MENENDEZ.
BROTHERS.
couldn't agree more.
I've watched the full trial, and I guarantee what you have written is absolute garbage. You have to be careful when you portray Lyle and Erik as poor victims, and José and Kitty as horrible monsters because by doing so you might just be reflecting your own stupidity.
The writing was just brilliant, it brought tears to my eyes. 😢😢😢
@@Dzanarika1 Thank-you, my friend. Very kind words, indeed.
🥰🥰🥰
Thanks for your empathy and taking time to capture the abuse and betrayal from birth to present. It captures how I felt about it, the injustice is unbearable.
And clearly this is why people take matters into their own hands!!!! 🤦🤷💯 No justice for these monsters and no support for the victims.
Where's that prosecutor now??
I think it's disgusting that a juror is allowed to profit from this crime. When I served on s jury, we had to swear an oath that we would not discuss the case outside the jury room and would never discuss it in the future.
In California you can speak about the trial after it has reached a verdict.
Thankyou and that's all hazel the lunatic Thornton has been doing like Robert rand lieing to profit ,robert rand is disgusting and he k ows both brothers are liars
@@nataliadinovecci7840 I see you still haven't learned how to spell.
And, why not in the furure?! Sounds like they do not want truth to come out!
Once a trial is over, you’re allowed to after a certain amount of time. Why wouldn’t you be allowed to discuss it? Seems fishy if you couldn’t.
Two juries deadlocked. And then a third trial. That sounds like they tried them until they got the verdict they wanted.
They were abused period. They need to be released. Enough is enough.
That's no excuse for killing your parents in cold blood
But that doesn't give them carte blanche to kill. If that's the case, many more need to be released.
That rich, powerful father not only sexually assaulted his sons but he abused them physically & emotionally. Til they couldn’t take it anymore. Others knew about some of the abuse; but didn’t dare stand up to that powerful, rich monster either.
Hoping and praying they are released now especially in view of the new evidences that have come up.
The ignorance in this comment section. I pray these boys find peace some day 🙏
Los hermanos Menéndez han sufrido desde que llegaron a este mundo, con unos padres que en realidad eran MONSTRUOS, desalmados, violentos, abusivos, pedófilos. El hecho de que el padre fuera un hombre con dinero, no significó nada en sus vidas, pues no les dio lo más importante que todo hijo necesita : amor, comprensión, respeto, guías y ambiente familiar adecuado. La Fiscalía y el juez Stanley, fallaron en contra de estos chicos, revictimizaton a las verdaderas víctimas que fueron Erick and Lyle. La sociedad y la justicia norteamericana, le quedan debiendo a estos muchachos. LIBERTAD PARA ELLOS, SIN CONDICIONES, ellos actuaron en defensa propia y si eso no es entendido de una vez por todas, quedará un terrible estigma para la justicia norteamericana que se jacta de ser justa, técnica y profesional. ¡LIBERTAD PARA LOS HERMANOS MENÉNDEZ! AYÚDENLOS A TRANSITAR EL RESTO DE SUS VIDAS CON AYUDA PROFESIONAL, EMPATÍA, CARIÑO Y SIN CARGAR CADENAS NI GRILLETES CONDICIONALES.
Same judge that let oj off. The irony. This justice system is for monsters not the victims
Eric kept his word.his father would not touch eric anymore.
My brother who was 10 years younger than me molested me between the ages of 4 and 6 years. I didn't speak out until I was thirty-two and the reaction was devastating!
Don’t you mean your brother was 10 yrs OLDER than you?
He thought they were going to be killed on the deep sea fishing trip. Scared his parents were going to kill them. Crazy.
They didn’t walk away and leave home either because they were so threatened by their father Erik especially was terrified of him and that’s a trauma abuse response, look at women who stay with men who beat them they were such young children when it started imagine living your whole life in a home like that my heart hurts for them I hope they get out and can live normal lives and really begin to heal
I watched the original trial and I believed them then and I definitely still believe them. It is unspeakable what they went through. And now we know that there was at least one other victim of Jose M. I think there are probably more we do not know about at this time.