Lyle and Erik Menendez are still in prison, and their next parole hearings have been tentatively moved up to early 2027, more than a year earlier than expected. An Associated Press report published by The Guardian on September 8, 2026, put them in March. On September 18, NBC Los Angeles reported that Lyle Menendez’s hearing is tentatively scheduled for February 23, 2027, and Erik Menendez’s for the next day. No betting market on the outcome is quoted here.
The brothers were denied parole in August 2025, three months after a Los Angeles judge cut their sentences to 50 years to life. Each was given a three-year denial, which NBC Los Angeles describes as the shortest California law allows, so they were next eligible to apply for a hearing in August 2028. The parole board has now granted their requests for an earlier one.
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Where the case stands
The brothers were convicted in 1996 of the first-degree murders of their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez, shot in their Beverly Hills home in 1989. Their first trials, held separately in 1994, ended with deadlocked juries. At the second, held jointly, much of the defense evidence about alleged sexual abuse by their father was excluded, and both were sentenced to life in prison.
In May 2025 a Los Angeles judge reduced the sentences to 50 years to life, which made the brothers eligible for parole because they were under 26 at the time of the killings. In August 2025 the California parole board denied both. By the AP’s account, the board said Lyle Menendez still showed “anti-social personality traits like deception” and that Erik Menendez had broken prison rules by repeatedly using a cellphone.
Weeks after that decision, a Los Angeles judge denied their petition for a review of their convictions based on new evidence supporting their abuse claims. The brothers are held in a San Diego prison. Their family said in a statement that they had helped set up a hospice program there.
The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation lets eligible prisoners ask for an earlier hearing when there is “a change in circumstances or new information indicating the person may be suitable for parole.” The department did not immediately respond when the AP asked why the brothers’ requests were granted, and their attorney declined to comment. Both reported dates are tentative.
How this page’s earlier props look now
This page quoted three BetUS props before the 2025 rulings and picked all three. None of them came with a deadline, so none can be graded as final.
| Prop | Our pick, as published | Where it stands, October 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Will the Menendez brothers be released? | No (-2000) | Not released |
| Will they get a retrial? | No (-500) | No retrial; the 2025 petition for review was denied |
| Will a major studio make a movie about them? | Yes (-150) | Not checked against a source |
A price of -2000 implies a 95.2% chance and -500 implies 83.3%. Before betting a prop like these, read the settlement terms: a prop on a legal case with no end date can stay open for years.
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