The defense attorney for Erik and Lyle Menendez withdrew a motion Friday to remove the Los Angeles County district attorney and the entire D.A.’s Office from the highly publicized case involving the possible resentencing of the brothers, who were convicted of murder nearly three decades ago.
A hearing was scheduled Friday morning for a judge to hear arguments by the defense that D.A. Nathan Hochman and his office are biased against the brothers.
“The family does not want to go through this charade anymore with the D.A.,” defense attorney Mark Geragos said before the hearing. “What’s obvious to anyone, I think, who has a couple of synapses that are still firing is this is a D.A. who made up his mind and did no hard work in terms of his position.”
Geragos spoke to the media outside the courthouse following Friday’s new developments.
“I pulled the recusal motion, for those who want to know, for a strategic legal reason, Geregos said. He didn’t give detailed information on those strategies but pointed to the many avenues still available to the Menendez brothers for resentencing.
Hochman also spoke Friday morning, saying he was ready to go “toe-to-toe” with Geragos with the facts and was hoping for a resentencing hearing soon.
The Menendez brothers were sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole in 1996 for the shotgun murders of their parents, Kitty and Jose Menendez, in their Beverly Hills home.
Hochman believes that the brothers, who were 18 and 21 at the time, have not taken full responsibility for the crime, citing the extreme violence of their actions.
“The brutality of this murder … Thirteen shotgun blasts. Again, one through the back of the father’s head. One to the mother at point-blank range as she lay dying on the ground. And then through the kneecaps after each one was dead in order to stage it as a mafia killing,” Hochman said before Friday’s hearing.
Former D.A. George Gascón recommended a sentence reduction for the brothers in October, but Hochman, who was elected to the office in November, has opposed the resentencing.
The Menendez brothers are still waiting for the full results of a state parole board risk assessment ordered by Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office. The final hearing, scheduled for June 13, will influence whether Newsom grants the brothers clemency.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.