A Los Angeles judge ruled Tuesday that the Menendez brothers are eligible for parole in the August 1989 shotgun deaths of their parents, a decision that moves the two men significantly closer to possible release from prison.
Erik and Lyle Menendez, held in custody since 1990 and originally sentenced to two consecutive life terms without the possibility of parole, were each handed a new sentence of 50 years to life by Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Michael Jesic.
"They (the brothers) had tears and they were smiling," Menendez attorney Cliff Gardner told Los Angeles television station KNBC-TV, relaying what he saw from the video link in court immediately after the ruling.