10 Moments From the Menendez Trial

10-Moments-From-the-Menendez-Trial

Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re breaking down the wildest, most compelling, most unbelievable moments of Lyle and Erik Menendez’s infamous court proceedings.

The “Abuse Excuse”

Before any of the Menendez trials were underway, the matter of whether or not Lyle and Erik had taken their parents’ lives was hardly up for debate. Rather, the pressure was on litigator Leslie Abramson to successfully dodge the death penalty. Upon meeting with and speaking to the brothers across various interviews, it became clear that Abramson had the opportunity to draw attention to the wider pattern of abuse that both young men had described. A bold strategy even at the time, it was up to the defense to prove, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that not only had the abuse taken place, but that it had become so unbearable as to do what the brothers had done.

Dr. Oziel’s “Confession Tapes”

After an attempt by local authorities to coax a confession out of Erik failed, the younger Menendez brother’s admission finally came from an unexpected source: his therapist, Dr. L. Jerome Oziel. The mental health professional recorded his sessions with Erik after he confessed to the murders — this move was predictably met with considerable levels of controversy. Although the tapes were perceived as possibly violating doctor-patient confidentiality, an August 1992 ruling by the California Supreme Court eventually ruled them (mostly) admissible due to the heavy implication that Lyle and Erik had threatened Oziel. One major exception? The actual tape on which Erik had made his confession.

The Brothers’ Family Testifies

The aforementioned “abuse excuse” was, of course, controversial. How could the brothers’ defense team justify or even attempt to rationalize their heinous crime? While it’s true that the truth in the Menendezes’ case is likely completely unknowable, Lyle and Erik benefited greatly from the testimony of two cousins: Andy Cano and Diane Vander Molen. Cano testified that Erik Menendez had confided in him about José Menendez’s abuse when the two of them were children, complete with vivid and descriptive details. Perhaps even more damningly, Vander Molen’s testimony revealed that Lyle Menendez had once revealed José’s abuse to her, but when she’d brought it up with Lyle’s mother Kitty, she was brushed off and shut down.

Erik Menendez’s Testimony

Here’s when things really started to get real. In his shocking testimony, Erik asserted that, in the weeks leading up to the double murder, he had finally mustered up the courage to admit his father’s abuse to his brother Lyle. After this, Lyle claims to have confronted José, who made what appeared to be a cryptic, coded threat against his sons’ lives. Erik’s testimony revealed that, per his account of the situation, this began a period of tension within the family, in which the brothers seemed to sincerely believe that their lives were in danger. After a series of increasingly intense encounters, the brothers made the choice to kill their parents — they viewed it as self-defense.

Judalon Smyth Takes the Stand

It’s only fitting that the person who first went to the authorities about Oziel’s “confession tapes” provided some of the trial’s most memorable moments. Smyth was the therapist’s mistress who, when told by Oziel that he wouldn’t leave his wife for her, promptly informed the police about the tapes’ existence. In a turn of events that few would have predicted, Smyth became a witness for the defense, revealing that Oziel had attempted to extort the Menendez brothers for weekly payments, in exchange for keeping their secret. While even the presiding judge eventually tired of the sordid details of Oziel and Smyth’s affair, Smyth’s statement that she “would not want children that looked like Dr. Oziel” was a notable highlight.

Lyle’s Testimony

It almost feels wrong to call Lyle Menendez’s time on the witness stand a “show-stopper,” but it’s hard to describe it any other way. Lyle’s dramatic testimony lent significant credence to Abramson’s “abuse excuse” defense. While Erik’s earlier testimony had certainly done its part to move the jury, Lyle’s was interpreted as being, at least for a moment, a significant boon to the Menendez brothers. The elder brother’s graphic, harrowing account of the abuse he alleged his father had committed, particularly its first hour, was largely responsible for the case’s first mistrial. As Robert Rand described in his book “The Menendez Murders,” “[I]n the courtroom the family members were crying, jurors were emotional. Some reporters were becoming emotional.”

Lyle Menendez’s Hairpiece

While Lyle’s testimony was obviously powerful in itself, it yielded one of the most shocking and notable moments of the entire trial: not only did Lyle regularly wear a hairpiece, but it had been used as a prop by his mother as a means of humiliating him. As Lyle recounted in his testimony, an argument between himself and his mother had resulted in her ripping the toupée off with her bare hands. Given the powerful chemical solvent needed to attach the hair system to Lyle’s head, it goes without saying that this would’ve been extremely painful for him.

A Mistrial Is Declared

Following the unexpected success of Leslie Abramson’s “abuse excuse” and Lyle Menendez’s obviously moving testimony, a case previously thought to be a cut-and-dry double homicide was flipped on its head. That is to say, each of the brother’s respective trials ended with deadlocked juries, who could not come to an agreement as to whether or not the extent of the brothers’ alleged abuse was justification for their actions. L.A. County District Attorney Gil Garcetti immediately declared that another trial would take place, with an all-new jury. Unlike the highly-publicized first trial, Judge Stanley Weisberg forbade media presence in the courtroom this time around.

Lyle’s “Private Diary” Becomes a Problem

One of the first trials to be broadcast on television, the Menendez case famously deteriorated into a media circus. However, not every aspect of this was harmful or embarrassing to the brothers: they soon found that they had fans, who write and call them, and even give them money. One such quote-unquote “fan” was Norma Novelli, who struck up a phone correspondence with Lyle under the guise of helping him write a book. Unfortunately for Lyle, the contents of the book made him look cold, callous, calculating, and above all, disingenuous. As a result, Lyle was barred from testifying at the brothers’ second trial.

The Menendez Brothers Are Convicted

Despite the mountain-moving efforts of the brothers’ legal defense, the jury at their second trial was unconvinced by their accounts of how their father had treated them. This partially owed to Judge Weisberg’s ruling that Lyle and Erik’s abuse claims would be restricted. Ultimately, they were convicted to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Explaining their decision, this trial’s jurors had spared the Menendezes the death penalty on account of the fact that they’d had no previous criminal record. Crucially, they stated their belief that the murders had been committed for financial gain, and not out of self-defense. After their 1996 sentencing, Lyle and Erik Menendez wouldn’t meet in person again until 2018.

Which Menendez brothers trial moment shocked you the most? Let us know in the comments below!