Erik and Lyle Menendez are a step closer to leaving prison, but freedom won’t come quickly

Diane Hernandez niece of Kitty Menendez sits prior to a news conference being held by Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascon at the Hall of Justice on Thursday, Oct. 24, 2024, in Los Angeles. (AP)
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Updated 25 October 2024
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Erik and Lyle Menendez are a step closer to leaving prison, but freedom won’t come quickly

  • The brothers were convicted in the 1989 killings of their parents at the family’s Beverly Hills mansion
  • A judge will need to go along with Los Angeles DA George Gascón’s recommendation and then a parole board must approve

LOS ANGELES: Erik and Lyle Menendez still have a long way to go before they can walk out of prison, even though the Los Angeles County district attorney has recommended their life-without-parole sentences be thrown out and the brothers be resentenced and immediately eligible for parole.
The brothers, convicted in the 1989 killings of their parents at the family’s Beverly Hills mansion, will need to get a judge to go along with the recommendation Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascón made Thursday and then a parole board must approve their release. The final stop is with Gov. Gavin Newsom, who could reject the board’s decision.
It’s an uncertain process likely to stretch out over months.
Lyle Menendez, then 21, and Erik Menendez, then 18, admitted they fatally shot their entertainment executive father, Jose Menendez, and their mother, Kitty Menendez. The brothers said they feared their parents were about to kill them to stop people from finding out that Jose Menendez had sexually abused Erik Menendez for years.
Prosecutors at the time contended that there was no evidence of molestation. The brothers’ first trial ended in a hung jury, and prosecutors secured a conviction in the second after much of the evidence of abuse was disallowed from the trial. The district attorney’s office also said back then that the brothers were after their parents’ multimillion-dollar estate.
Now, the DA and relatives say the world better understands the role of trauma in sexual abuse cases.
Critics accuse DA of playing politics
Meanwhile, Gascón faces fights over his resentencing recommendation: His opponent in his bid for reelection next month, as well as some of his own prosecutors, have called the latest development in the case politically motivated and the result of a recent Netflix documentary about the notorious crime.
Michele Hanizee, president of the Association of Los Angeles Deputy District Attorneys, on Wednesday said Gascón’s decision smacks of “opportunism” to get headlines.
“Throughout his disastrous tenure as DA, Gascón has consistently prioritized celebrity cases over the rights of crime victims, showing more interest in being in the spotlight than in upholding justice,” Hanizee said in a statement.
But the district attorney said he made the final decision only an hour before Thursday’s news conference and it was separate from politics.
Since their sentencing in 1996, the brothers have been model prisoners, Gascón and their attorney say, and committed themselves to rehabilitation and redemption.
“I came to a place where I believe, under the law, resentencing is appropriate,” Gascón said during the news conference.
What comes next?

Gascón’s office filed paperwork Thursday that recommends the brothers — now 54 and 56 years old — receive a new sentence of 50 years to life. Because they were under 26 years old at the time of the crimes, they would be eligible for parole immediately.
“I believe that they have paid their debt to society,” the DA said.
A hearing before a judge could come within the next month or so. If the judge agrees to the resentencing, the state parole board will hold its own proceeding to determine whether they should go free. If the board recommends parole, Newsom would have 150 days to review the case. The governor could green-light parole, or overrule the board and deny their release.
Despite Gascón’s goal of freeing the brothers, Laurie Levenson, a professor of criminal law at Loyola Law School in Los Angeles, warned that the judge would not likely be a “rubber stamp” due to dissent within the DA’s office.
“That puts the judge actually in a very challenging position,” Levenson said, noting she had not heard of any cases until recently where the head of the office disagreed with other lawyers involved in the case. Ultimately, Gascón chose the “safest route” for his decision — leaving it up to the court and parole board, she said.
Mark Geragos, an attorney for the brothers, has said he’s hopeful the brothers could be freed by Thanksgiving. Levenson called that deadline “awfully hopeful.”
Family largely unites to call for brothers’ freedom
The brothers’ extended family has pleaded for their release. Several family members have said that in today’s world — which is more aware of the impact of sexual abuse — the brothers would not have been convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life without parole.
Anamaria Baralt, a niece of Jose Menendez, said the district attorney’s “brave and necessary” decision means “Lyle and Erik can finally begin to heal from the trauma of their past.”
Not all Menendez family members support resentencing. Attorneys for Milton Andersen, the 90-year-old brother of Kitty Menendez, filed a legal brief seeking to keep the brothers’ original punishment.
“They shot their mother, Kitty, reloading to ensure her death,” Andersen’s attorneys said in a statement Thursday. “The evidence remains overwhelmingly clear: the jury’s verdict was just, and the punishment fits the heinous crime.”
DA’s challenger weighs in
The LA district attorney is in the middle of a tough reelection fight against former federal prosecutor Nathan Hochman, who has blamed Gascón’s progressive reform policies for recent high-profile killings and increased retail crime.
Gascón said Thursday that his office has recommended resentencing for some 300 offenders, including people behind bars for murder.
Hochman questioned the timing of the Gascón’s announcement, coming less than two weeks before the election and calling it a “desperate political move.”
He said he is unable to form his own opinion on the case without access to confidential records and relevant witnesses.
“If I become DA and the case is still pending at that time, I will conduct a review consistent with how I would review any case,” Hochman said.
Geragos said the DA took the case seriously before there was any talk of him losing reelection.
New attention to case
The case has gained new traction in recent weeks after Netflix began streaming the true-crime drama ” Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story.”
Roy Rossello, a former member of the Latin pop group Menudo, also recently came forward saying he was drugged and raped by Jose Menendez when he was a teen in the 1980s.
Rossello spoke about his abuse in the 2023 Peacock docuseries “Menendez + Menudo: Boys Betrayed.” His allegations are part of the evidence listed in the petition filed last year by the Menendez brothers’ attorney in seeking a review of their case.
Menudo was signed under RCA Records, which Jose Menendez headed at the time.


Trump booed and cheered at the Kennedy Center while attending ‘Les Misérables’

Updated 12 June 2025
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Trump booed and cheered at the Kennedy Center while attending ‘Les Misérables’

WASHINGTON: A tuxedo-wearing President Donald Trump was booed and cheered as he took his seat for the opening night of “Les Misérables” at the Kennedy Center, bringing his own dose of political drama to the theatrical production that was unfolding onstage.
It was his first time attending a show there since becoming president, reflecting his focus on remaking the institution in his image while asserting more control over the country’s cultural landscape.
“We want to bring it back, and we want to bring it back better than ever,” Trump said while walking down the red carpet with first lady Melania Trump.
The Republican president has a particular affection for “Les Misérables,” the sprawling musical set in 19th-century France, and has occasionally played its songs at his events. One of them, “Do You Hear the People Sing?,” is a revolutionary rallying cry inspired by the 1832 rebellion against the French king.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom noted Trump’s attendance at the musical and posted on social media, “Someone explain the plot to him.” Newsom, a Democrat, has been feuding with Trump over the president’s decision to send National Guard troops to respond to protests in Los Angeles over his deportation policies.
Opening night had a MAGA-does-Broadway feel. Ric Grenell, the Trump-appointed interim leader of the Kennedy Center, stood nearby as the president spoke to reporters. Attorney General Pam Bondi chatted with other guests. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. took selfies with attendees. Vice President JD Vance and his wife, Usha, were also there.
There were more precautions than usual, given the guest list, and ticketholders had their bags searched after walking through magnetometers. Canned soda was on sale for $8, while a glass of wine cost $19.
Terry Gee, a bartender, bought his ticket for the show in November and didn’t mind Trump’s presence. It’s his sixth time seeing “Les Misérables,” and he said, “I’m going to enjoy the show regardless.”
Hannah Watkins, a nurse, only learned that Trump would be there when the Kennedy Center distributed information about extra security and she searched online to see what was happening.
“I’ve seen a lot of famous people so far, which is exciting,” said Watkins, who had claimed a spot near the VIP entrance with her mother. “Honestly, we just like ‘Les Mis’ and are excited to be here.”
However, when the lights went down and the show began, there were empty seats in the balconies and even in the orchestra section.
Before Trump, presidential involvement in the Kennedy Center’s affairs had been limited to naming members to the board of trustees and attending the taping of its annual honors program in the fall.
But after returning to office in January, Trump stunned the arts world by firing the Kennedy Center’s longtime director and board and replacing them with loyalists, who then named him as chairman. Trump promised to overhaul its programming, management and even appearance as part of an effort to put his stamp on the national arts scene.
His latest moves have upset some of the center’s patrons and performers.
In March, the audience booed the Vances after they slipped into upper-level seats to hear the National Symphony Orchestra. Trump appointed Usha Vance to the Kennedy Center board along with Bondi, White House chief of staff Susie Wiles and Fox News Channel hosts Maria Bartiromo and Laura Ingraham, among other supporters.
Sales of subscription packages are said to have declined since Trump’s takeover, and several touring productions, including “Hamilton,” have canceled planned runs at the center. Actor Issa Rae and musician Rhiannon Giddens scrapped scheduled appearances, and Kennedy Center consultants including musician Ben Folds and singer Renée Fleming resigned.
Understudies may have performed in some roles Wednesday night because of boycotts by “Les Misérables” cast members, but Trump said he wasn’t bothered by anyone skipping the performance.
“I couldn’t care less,” he said.
Since returning to the White House in January, Trump has adopted a more aggressive posture toward the arts. The White House has taken steps to cancel millions of dollars in previously awarded federal humanities grants to arts and culture groups, and Trump’s budget blueprint proposed eliminating the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Trump has also targeted Smithsonian museums by signing executive orders to restrict their funding and by attempting to fire the director of the National Portrait Gallery.
Trump characterized previous programming at the Kennedy Center as “out of control with rampant political propaganda” and said it featured “some very inappropriate shows,” including a “Marxist anti-police performance” and “lesbian-only Shakespeare.”
The Kennedy Center, which is supported by government money and private donations, opened in 1971 and for decades has been seen as an apolitical celebration of the arts.
It was first conceived in the late 1950s during the administration of Republican President Dwight Eisenhower, who backed a bill from the Democratic-led Congress calling for a National Culture Center. In the early 1960s, Democratic President John F. Kennedy launched a fundraising initiative, and his successor, President Lyndon B. Johnson, signed into law a 1964 bill renaming the project the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts. Kennedy had been assassinated the year before.


Social media fueling ‘devastating’ kids’ mental health crisis: NGO

Updated 13 June 2025
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Social media fueling ‘devastating’ kids’ mental health crisis: NGO

  • The KidsRights report said one in seven children and adolescents aged between 10 and 19 suffered mental health issues

AMESTERDAM: The “unchecked expansion” of social media platforms is driving an unprecedented global mental health crisis in kids and teens, a children’s NGO said Wednesday, calling for urgent coordinated action worldwide.
The KidsRights report said one in seven children and adolescents aged between 10 and 19 suffered mental health issues, with the global suicide rate at six per 100,000 for those aged 15-19.
Even these high rates represent “the tip of the iceberg” as suicide is widely under-reported due to stigma, according to the Amsterdam-based group.
“This year’s report is a wake-up call that we cannot ignore any longer” said Marc Dullaert, KidsRights chairman.
“The mental health... crisis among our children has reached a tipping point, exacerbated by the unchecked expansion of social media platforms that prioritize engagement over child safety,” he added.
The report said what it termed “problematic” social media use was on the rise, with a direct link between heavy Internet use and suicide attempts.
However, blanket bans are not the answer, the group warned.
Australia passed a law to ban social media use for under-16s.
“Such blanket bans may infringe on children’s civil and political rights,” including access to information, said the report.
The group urged “comprehensive child rights impact assessments” at a global level for social media platforms, better education for kids, and improved training for mental health professionals.
The report seized on the popularity of Netflix sensation “Adolescence,” which highlighted some of the toxic content kids view online.
The mini-series “demonstrated global awareness of these issues, but awareness alone is insufficient,” said Dullaert.
“We need concrete action to ensure that the digital revolution serves to enhance, not endanger, the wellbeing of the world’s 2.2 billion children,” he said. “The time for half-measures is over.”

(L-R) Jenelle Riley, Stephen Graham, Jack Thorne, Owen Cooper, Erin Doherty, Ashley Walters, Shaheen Baig, James Drake, Aaron May, and David Ridley are seen onstage during Netflix's FYSEE ADOLESCENCE ATAS Official at Saban Theatre on May 27, 2025 in Beverly Hills, California. (AFP)

 


Monsoon-loving Indian expats chase rain in UAE desert

Updated 11 June 2025
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Monsoon-loving Indian expats chase rain in UAE desert

  • After Muhammed Sajjad moved from India to the United Arab Emirates a decade ago, he missed his native Kerala’s monsoon season, so he embarked on an unlikely quest: finding rain in the desert

SHARJAH: After Muhammed Sajjad moved from India to the United Arab Emirates a decade ago, he missed his native Kerala’s monsoon season, so he embarked on an unlikely quest: finding rain in the desert.
Using satellite imagery, weather data and other high-tech tools, the amateur meteorologist tracks potential rainfall spots across the desert country and, along with other Indians nostalgic for the monsoon season, chases the clouds in search of rain.
“When I came to UAE in 2015, in August, it... was peak monsoon time” in Kerala, the 35-year-old estate agent told AFP, adding that he had struggled to adjust to the change of climate.
“So I started to search about the rainy condition in UAE and I came to know that there is rain happening in UAE during peak summer,” he said, adding: “I started to explore the possibility to chase the rain, enjoy the rain.”
Each week, he forecasts when and where rain might fall and posts a suggested rendezvous to the 130,000 followers of his “UAE Weatherman” page on Instagram.
He regularly posts footage of his rain expeditions out into the desert, hoping to bring together “all rain lovers who miss rain.”
Last weekend, he headed out into the desert from Sharjah at the head of a convoy of about 100 vehicles.
But nothing is certain. The rain “may happen, it may not happen,” Sajjad said. But when it does, “it is an amazing moment.”


After driving in the desert for hours, the group arrived at the designated spot just as a downpour started.
The rain lovers leapt out of their vehicles, their faces beaming as the rain droplets streamed down their cheeks in a rare reminder of home.
“They feel nostalgic,” Sajjad said proudly.
Most UAE residents are foreigners, among them some 3.5 million Indians who make up the Gulf country’s largest expatriate community.
Despite the use of advanced cloud-seeding technology, the UAE has an average yearly rainfall of just 50 to 100 milliliters.
Most of it falls during short but intense winter storms.
“While long-term averages remain low, the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events has been increasing and is due to global warming,” said Diana Francis, a climate scientist who teaches at Khalifa University in Abu Dhabi.
In the summer, the country often gets less than five milliliters of rain, she said, usually falling away from the coastal areas where most of the population lives.
So rain-seekers must drive deep into the desert interior to have a chance of success.
An Indian expatriate, who gave her name only as Anagha and was on her first expedition into the desert last weekend, said she was “excited to see the rain.”
“All of my family and friends are enjoying good rain and good climate and we are living here in the hot sun,” she said.
The UAE endured its hottest April on record this year.
By contrast, April last year saw the UAE’s heaviest rains in 75 years, which saw 259.5 mm of rainfall in a single day.
Four people died and the commercial hub of Dubai was paralyzed for several days. Scientists of the World Weather Attribution network said the intense rains were “most likely” exacerbated by global warming.
“We couldn’t enjoy it because it was flooded all over UAE,” Anagha said. “This time we are going to see... rain coming to us in the desert.”


Nintendo says sold record 3.5m Switch 2 consoles in first four days

Updated 11 June 2025
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Nintendo says sold record 3.5m Switch 2 consoles in first four days

  • The Switch 2 costs $449.99 in the United States, compared to a launch price of $299.99 for the original Switch

TOKYO: Nintendo said Wednesday it had sold a record 3.5 million Switch 2 units worldwide in the first four days after the console was launched.
“This is the highest global sales level for any Nintendo hardware within the first four days,” the Japanese video game giant said in a statement.
Featuring a bigger screen and more processing power, the Switch 2 is an upgrade to Nintendo’s blockbuster Switch console.
It was released last Thursday to a global swell of fan excitement that included sold-out pre-orders and midnight store openings.
Since its 2017 launch, the original Switch — which enjoyed a popularity boost during the pandemic with hit games such as “Animal Crossing” — has sold 152 million units.
That makes it the third best-selling console of all time.
Analysts predicted last week that Nintendo could score record early sales with the Switch 2 — but it remains to be seen if it can match the performance of its predecessor.
Challenges for Nintendo include uncertainty over US trade tariffs and whether it can convince enough people to pay the high price for its new device.
The Switch 2 costs $449.99 in the United States, compared to a launch price of $299.99 for the original Switch.
Both are hybrid consoles which can connect to a TV or be played on the go.
New games such as “Donkey Kong Bananza” and “Mario Kart World” — which allow players to go exploring off-grid — are also more expensive than existing Switch titles.
Nintendo forecasts it will sell 15 million Switch 2 consoles in the current financial year, roughly equal to the original in the same period after its release.
The Switch 2 “is priced relatively high” compared to its predecessor, so it “will not be easy” to keep initial momentum going, the company’s president Shuntaro Furukawa said at a financial results briefing in May.
The Switch 2 has eight times the memory of the first Switch, and its controllers, which attach with magnets, can also be used like a desktop computer mouse.
New functions allowing users to chat as they play online and temporarily share games with friends could also be a big draw for young audiences used to watching game streamers.
Success is crucial for Nintendo: while the “Super Mario” maker is diversifying into theme parks and hit movies, around 90 percent of its revenue still comes from the Switch business, analysts say.


K-pop stars Jimin and Jung Kook of BTS discharged from military service as band’s reunion nears

Updated 11 June 2025
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K-pop stars Jimin and Jung Kook of BTS discharged from military service as band’s reunion nears

  • BTS temporarily disbanded in 2022 for its members to render 18-21 months of military service, as required by South Korean law
  • The 7-member world-famous supergroup plan to reunite sometime in 2025 after they all finish their service

YEONCHEON, South Korea:  Two more BTS members were released from South Korean military service Wednesday, bringing the K-pop supergroup closer to a reunion as they promised fans a “better version” of themselves soon.

Jimin and Jung Kook are the latest and final members of supergroup to be discharged from South Korea’s mandatory military service.

The septuplet BTS, South Korea’s most lucrative musical act, has been on a self-described hiatus since 2022 while its members separately completed their military service, which is mandatory in the South for all men under 30.

The pair wore their military uniforms Wednesday, saluted and addressed fans who had assembled to see the pair after their discharge.
Jung Kook thanked the journalists and fans who traveled to see him and Jimin after their discharge and acknowledged how different it was to be back in the spotlight. “Actually, it’s been so long since I’ve been in front of cameras, and I didn’t even put on makeup, so I’m a bit embarrassed,” he said. “I don’t know what to say.”

They enlisted in December 2023, one day after RM and V did the same. The latter were discharged on Tuesday. They saluted upon their release Tuesday in Chuncheon City as about 200 fans, some of whom traveled from Mexico, Turkiye and Brazil, cheered.
V thanked fans Tuesday for their patience in waiting for him and RM’s return and teased the band’s reunion. “If you can just wait a little bit longer, we will return with a really amazing performance.”
The seven singers of the popular K-pop band plan to reunite as a group sometime in 2025 after they finish their service.

Six of the group’s seven members served in the army, while Suga is fulfilling his duty as a social service agent, an alternative form of military service. He will be discharged later this month.
Jin, the oldest member of K-pop supergroup BTS, was discharged in June 2024. J-Hope was discharged in October.
In South Korea, all able-bodied men aged 18 to 28 are required by law to perform 18-21 months of military service under a conscription system meant to deter aggression from rival North Korea.
The law gives special exemptions to athletes, classical and traditional musicians, and ballet and other dancers if they have obtained top prizes in certain competitions and are assessed to have enhanced national prestige. K-pop stars and other entertainers aren’t subject to such privileges.
However, in 2020, BTS postponed their service until age 30 after South Korea’s National Assembly revised its Military Service Act, allowing K-pop stars to delay their enlistment until age 30.
There was heated public debate in 2022 over whether to offer special exemptions of mandatory military service for BTS members, until the group’s management agency announced in October 2022 that all seven members would fulfill their duties.

Promise of a “better version”

More than a thousand fans gathered at the site of a press conference near the two army bases where singer Jimin — whose solo single “Who” holds the record for longest-running K-pop song on the Billboard Hot 100 — and singer Jungkook were discharged.
With so many people assembled to greet the music icons, the networks were overloaded and some broadcasters experienced satellite disruptions.

Fans of K-pop boy band BTS hold a banner while seated with other fans at an outdoor sporting facility in Chuncheon on June 10, 2025. (AFP)

When the members started to speak, their voices were often drowned out by the deafening cheers and joyful screams from the crowd.
“Thank you so much for waiting for us all this time,” Jungkook said.
“Now that we’ve been discharged, I believe it’s time for us to keep drawing the picture we’ve always envisioned. We’ll make sure to prepare well and show you an even better version of ourselves.”
Jimin said the military “wasn’t an easy place.”
“Still, I carry with me many meaningful memories, and I’ll hold on to them for a long time,” said the 29-year-old.
“After experiencing military life firsthand, I can say it truly isn’t easy... if you happen to pass by a soldier, even a small word of kindness would mean the world to them,” he added.

Streets in the area were decorated with colorful lampposts and banners.
One read, “Jungkook’s voice, back to the world,” while another read, “Jimin! Now that you’re discharged, how about a world tour?“
Giant banners floated in the sky alongside balloons, with one reading: “We missed you, Jungkook!“
 

Fans of K-pop boy band BTS wait for members Jimin and Jungkook at an outdoor sporting facility in Yeoncheon on June 11, 2025, shortly before their release from 18 months of South Korean military service. (AFP)

“Extremely positive news”

Delighted fans from around the world had gathered as early as 3 a.m., hoping to catch a glimpse of their idols.
“I think I’m gonna cry,” Anaisa Silva, 30, a hotel receptionist from Portugal, told AFP.
“I am an ARMY of nine years and this is the first time I’m seeing them,” she said, referring to BTS’s fandom by its official name.
“We couldn’t sleep!” said Rosie Tanquilut, a 64-year-old fan from the Philippines.
“We’ve been counting the days since they entered military,” she added.
All the band members signed new contracts with their agency HYBE in 2023, and once SUGA is released on June 21, analysts expect profit-driving reunion activities.
The news of the members’ discharge is “extremely positive news” for the K-pop industry, Yoo Sung-man, an analyst at Leading Investment and Securities, told AFP.
“Given the long military hiatus for the full group, this upcoming comeback is expected to have a massive global impact across all fronts — music streaming, album sales, and concerts,” Yoo added.
Prior to their mandatory military service, the boy band generated more than 5.5 trillion won ($4 billion) in yearly economic impact, according to the Korea Culture and Tourism Institute.
That accounts for roughly 0.2 percent of South Korea’s total GDP, according to official data.
HYBE has hinted at a BTS comeback this year, but has also said the members “need time for reflection and preparation.”
On Friday, the band marks the 12th anniversary of its debut, with the HYBE headquarters in Seoul wrapped with the slogan “WE ARE BACK” and thousands of fans set to descend on the city for celebrations.
Faces of the boy band were seen in giant billboards across Seoul, while numerous buses covered with their images welcomed the members back to civilian life.