This is a BIG DEAL ... the judge in the Menendez case says the new evidence unearthed in the murder case -- if true -- makes a compelling case to throw out their convictions ... which would mean they could be released even without a parole board hearing.
00:00So there is a big development in the Menendez case.
00:04On Friday, we found out the judge issued an order.
00:10It's called a show cause order.
00:12And essentially, he is telling prosecutors that he is swayed by the new evidence that the defense, Eric and Lyle, have presented to him.
00:24And unless the prosecution can come up with a good reason why that new evidence is bogus, he is inclined to throw out the conviction and release them outright.
00:40That is stunning.
00:41And the new evidence that the judge is referring to would be the letter from the former member of Menudo, who said that Jose Menendez had molested him, as well as the letter that Eric had written to one of his cousins.
00:59Where Eric also said that he had been molested by his dad.
01:03The judge said, if this evidence is what it appears to be, I don't see a reason not to overturn this, toss out their conviction.
01:12The reason it's significant is that, look, they were never going to be found not guilty under any circumstances.
01:20They killed their mother and father.
01:22They shot them to death.
01:25So the only issue is, is it manslaughter or is it murder?
01:30In the first trial, there was a lot of evidence about sexual abuse.
01:35Six out of the 12 jurors thought it should be manslaughter.
01:39And it was a hung jury as a result.
01:42In the second trial, the judge severely limited their ability to present any of that.
01:49So what this new judge is saying is, had this evidence come in, had the judge allowed it, that it may have swayed the jury to a manslaughter verdict.
02:02And they've already served more than three times the maximum for manslaughter.
02:07Yeah.
02:07So that's the key to everything.
02:09This judge is saying that if the error was made, it would have been reversible error.
02:13Every trial has errors.
02:14What the judge is looking for is some sort of a mistake that the trial judge made in excluding the evidence that actually would have resulted in a different outcome.
02:22That would have resulted in exoneration or just a lesser conviction.
02:26And if that's the case, if that's the judge's findings, he's going to do what he did here, which is shift the burden of proof back to the prosecution to say,
02:33hey, it's not just enough that you got this prosecution in the first place, this conviction.
02:38We want to prove again.
02:39We want to show why it would not have been a different outcome had this information been included.
02:45So the DA has 30 days to respond.
02:49And if the judge is unpersuaded by prosecutors, he could release them.
02:55And there may never be a parole hearing because the conviction itself would be thrown out.
02:59Right.
02:59Which was already scheduled to be happening.
03:01For next month.
03:01Next month.
03:02But maybe that is irrelevant if this goes forward.
03:08So, as we were saying, the burden of proof seems to be now that the ball is in the DA's office and that they've got to respond.
03:18Earlier today, we spoke to Nathan Hockman, the L.A. County District Attorney.
03:22This is what he told us his office plans to do.
03:25But you've talked about this a lot and have even filed paperwork to support your position.
03:32So is there something more you're going to present?
03:35Because it feels like the judge is leaning toward throwing out this conviction.
03:40So I would actually disagree with that based on the actual procedure involved with a habeas petition.
03:46When someone files a habeas petition, the people are often asked to give an informal response.
03:54And that's what we provided.
03:56An over 80-page informal response to let the judge know what our position is and whether or not we think there is any merit whatsoever to that petition.
04:05We believe that there is absolutely no merit and the judge shouldn't get to the next stage, which is to actually ask the people for a formal response.
04:15The judge said, in essence, there was a prima facie case.
04:19That is the lowest level standard that a judge can analyze a case.
04:25So he basically said that under the lowest level standard of analysis, we want to hear from the people again with a formal response.
04:34He's given us 30 days to make that formal response.
04:37We will make that formal response.
04:40But at all points in a habeas petition, the defendants bear the burden of evidence.
04:46So the judge has made absolutely no finding whatsoever that the Menendez brothers have met their burden of evidence.
04:53We believe after the judge considers in a formal response our analysis about the law and the facts, an extensive detailed analysis of both,
05:04the judge will conclude that habeas relief is non-appropriate.
05:08If that weren't the case, if the judge actually does throw out the convictions, would you file murder charges again against Eric and Lyle Menendez?
05:19We'll have to see exactly how this plays out and what is the basis for the judge doing it, what ends up happening quite candidly as well with the other parts of the procedure.
05:29There's a parole hearing coming up.
05:31Eventually, it's going to land on the governor's desk.
05:34So that final decision is certainly far away from being made.
05:37But we are fairly confident that when the judge considers all the evidence and the law in connection with this habeas petition and applies the burden of proof, which is the defendant's burden of proof, not the people's, we believe that the habeas petition will be dismissed and rejected.
05:55Well, we'll see how that plays out.
05:58By the way, we are going to speak to the DA a little later in the show about a big case here, Sam Haskell Jr.
06:06One of the most gruesome murder cases you will ever hear.
06:09Awful.
06:10And he is supposed to be in court today, Sam Haskell Jr.
06:13But he will not be there for that because he killed himself in jail on Saturday.
06:18But we're going to talk to the DA about that and what evidence they had that they were going to present against him.
06:23Shanice, Houston, Texas.
06:25So it looks like the Menendez brothers have a really good chance of getting out.
06:29I think that just like, you know, they've served enough time to definitely prove that they, you know, have been rehabilitated.
06:37And so just like with Gypsy Rose, once they get out, it's just up to them to make sure that they're showcasing that they're trying to lead a positive lifestyle, you know, and live correctly.
