In 1989, the Menendez brothers — Lyle and Erik — murdered their parents in cold blood at their lavish mansion in Beverly Hills. In court, the prosecution argued that their motive was to get their inheritance, but the brothers said it was done in self-defense and alleged they were abused by both their parents. The story is now big news once again after the Netflix show Monsters and the accompanying documentary.
The Menendez brothers’ father, Jose, worked hard to accumulate his wealth. He was born in Cuba and immigrated to the U.S. in 1959, where he met and eventually married Kitty in 1963. Jose was an accountant and worked for the car-rental company, Hertz, which was acquired by RCA. This acquisition opened the opportunity for Jose to work with music artists and record deals as a top executive. Later, he became the CEO of film studio LIVE Entertainment, now known as Artisan Entertainment. Kitty, meanwhile, was a homemaker.
At the time of their deaths, Jose’s estate was worth $14 million, which included properties, vehicles, and shares of LIVE Entertainment. Before their arrest six months after the murders, the Menendez brothers spent large amounts of money on lavish things. According to reports, they stayed in extravagant hotels, bought Rolex watches, gambled, went on shopping sprees, and had other highly unnecessary expenses including a Porsche Carrera worth $64,000 and a Jeep Wrangler. The brothers, who were tennis players, hired a coach for $60,000 a year to train them, too. Per court records, some of the other expenses include a ski trip to Aspen, a private limousine, a vacation in Cancun, and investments at Smith Barney. Then, the brothers were arrested.
Were they able to gain access to the millions?
According to Wealth Advisor, the Menendez brothers used Jose’s personal life insurance policy that was valued at $650,000 when they went on a spending spree before the arrest. Some of the brothers’ purchases were also carried on credit cards reportedly amounting to $90,000.
The Menendez brothers were convicted in 1996, and based on probate records, they spent $10.8 million during their trial, with a large portion of the said amount reportedly used for their legal defense. They didn’t inherit anything from their estate, as per the Slayer Statute, convicted murderers are not allowed to inherit from their victims regardless of their familial relationship. The only exception to the rule is if the murder was done in self-defense or was deemed to be justifiable homicide, which wasn’t the case for the Menendez brothers.
The properties their parents owned were sold for much lower than their values, and mortgage and closing costs had to be paid as well. With all the payments that had to be made, including the mortgages, taxes, debts, and other necessary expenses during the trial, the Menendez brothers wouldn’t have inherited anything significant, if at all, even if they were not convicted.
Erik and Lyle have been serving their sentences of life in prison without parole since their 1996 conviction, but the recent interest in their case may change that. LA County Prosecutor George Gascón said that the Menendez brothers should be resentenced and released on parole. In his statement, Gascón said Erik and Lyle were subjected to abuse. “I believe they have paid their debt to society,” he explained. A judge will be deciding whether or not the brothers should be resentenced.
