Judge to hear arguments over whether LA prosecutor should be kicked off Menendez case

By JAIMIE DING Associated Press LOS ANGELES AP Attorneys for Erik and Lyle Menendez who were convicted of killing their parents in will make their event to a judge Friday that Los Angeles prosecutors should be removed from the brothers resentencing situation The brothers were sentenced in to life in prison without the possibility of parole for fatally shooting their entertainment executive father Jose Menendez and mother Kitty Menendez in their Beverly Hills home The brothers were and at the time of the killings Defense attorneys argued the brothers acted out of self-defense after years of sexual abuse by their father while prosecutors noted the brothers killed their parents for a multimillion-dollar inheritance Former LA County District Attorney George Gasc n had opened the door to realizable freedom for the brothers in October by requesting their sentences be reduced to years with the possibility of parole His office reported the episode would ve been handled differently at present due to modern understandings of sexual abuse and trauma and that the brothers had rehabilitated during their years in prison But current district attorney Nathan Hochman has reversed syllabus and opposes the brothers resentencing Hochman has revealed the brothers have not taken full responsibility for their crimes because they have not admitted to lies described during their trials The Menendez family and lawyers have been heavily critical of the way Hochman has handled the event Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman speaks outside of court before a hearing in the episode of Erik and Lyle Menendez Thursday April in Los Angeles AP Photo Damian Dovarganes Hochman s office filed a motion to oppose his removal from the occurrence dismissing the defense s concerns as completely not being happy with prosecutors opinion on resentencing Disagreeing with the opposing side s position is not a conflict of interest it is totally a disagreement it noted While Hochman s conduct is the focus of defense attorneys petition they want the development entirely removed from the Los Angeles district attorney s office in which situation the state attorney general s office would usually step in However California Attorney General Rob Bonta filed a motion this week siding with Hochman saying the defense had not adequately demonstrated a conflict of interest Laurie Levenson a former federal prosecutor and professor of criminal law at Loyola Law School in Los Angeles revealed these types of recusal requests are almost never granted Defendants don t usually get to pick their prosecutors she declared Occasionally an individual prosecutor will be recused but to recuse an entire office is very rare Generally this only happens if a prosecutor s personal family member is involved or if the district attorney s office received outside payment in a development Levenson mentioned During long-awaited resentencing hearings last month attorneys engaged in a heated debate over whether material from pitfall assessments completed by the state parole board at the governor s order should be admissible in court The hearings were delayed and the brothers lead attorney Mark Geragos reported he would move to recuse Hochman from the development In a motion filed April Geragos argued that Hochman s bias against the brothers and mistreatment of the Menendez family posed a genuine peril the brothers would not receive a fair hearing Attorney Mark Geragos center representing Erik and Lyle Menendez who were sentenced in to life in prison without the possibility of parole for fatally shooting their parents speaks to the media outside of court after a resentencing hearing in their scenario Thursday April in Los Angeles AP Photo Damian Dovarganes He pointed to Hochman s demotion of Nancy Theberge and Brock Lunsford the two deputy district attorneys who filed the original resentencing motion Theberge and Lunsford have since filed lawsuits against Hochman alleging they were punished for their work on the Menendez scenario Hochman also hired Kathleen Cady who represented Milton Andersen the only Menendez family member who opposed the brothers resentencing at the time to head his Office of Victim Services Andersen died in March Geragos noted no one from the victim services office had ever reached out to the Menendez family to offer backing In mid-April both Cady and Hochman were present at an organization s rally to condemn the Menendez brothers resentencing he commented Decisively Geragos announced the district attorney s office had violated Marsy s Law which ensures casualties in California are treated with fairness and respect Menendez cousin Tamara Goodell filed a complaint with the U S Attorney s Office in which she wrote Hochman used a hostile dismissive and patronizing tone that left the family distressed and feeling humiliated Hochman s motion announced the defense had not presented any proof that hiring Cady a seasoned prosecutor and attorney prevented his office from treating the Menendez brothers fairly and that the reassignments of Theberge and Lunsford were internal staffing decisions Marsy s Law also does not give casualties the right to seek the removal of a prosecutor the motion explained The Menendez brothers are still waiting for the full results of a state parole board pitfall assessment ordered by Gov Gavin Newsom s office The final hearing scheduled for June will influence whether Newsom grants the brothers clemency