Family asks judge to free Menendez brothers at resentencing hearing

A long-awaited resentencing hearing on Tuesday is set to determine whether two brothers who killed their wealthy parents in their Beverly Hills mansion could be freed from prison after three decades.

After months of delays, a judge began hearing two days of arguments both for and against Erik and Lyle Menendez's bid to receive a lesser sentence - which could ultimately lead to their paroled release.

Prosecutors have argued the brothers meticulously planned the 1989 killings to access their parents' fortune, still have not taken accountability and should not be released. The brothers have said they acted out of self-defence after years of abuse.

The notorious case, which has prompted books, documentaries and dramas, still divides America.

The brothers appeared virtually for the hearing, both wearing bright blue shirts and sitting in the same room. At the start of the hearing, they appeared upbeat and smiled, even waving to their legal team.

The court heard relatives detail how the case impacted their family, and pleading for the judge to allow Erik and Lyle's release from prison.

The district attorney's office is set to oppose the resentencing application, which will continue being heard on Wednesday.

The brothers' cousin, Anamaria Baralt, who has been close with them since they were children, told the judge they deserved a "second chance at life".

"It's been a nightmare," she said of the decades-long saga. "I am desperate for this process to be over."

She speaks with Erik and Lyle frequently, she told the court, and testified about their growth, submitting that they've taken "ownership of their actions". She said they admitted they tried to steer their previous trial - with Lyle telling her he'd asked a witness to lie when testifying.

"They are very different men from the boys they were," she said.

Ms Baralt told the court that some family members were in bad health and wanted to be reunited with the brothers.

"We're on borrowed time," she said, turning to the judge with tears in her eyes. "I pray that you will help us."

Ms Baralt noted how nearly every member of their family is in support of their release. The lone family member who publicly opposed their resentencing bid - the brothers' uncle Milton Andersen - recently passed away.

Mr Andersen previously called Erik and Lyle "cold-blooded" and said their "actions shattered their family and left a trail of grief that has persisted for decades."

In a statement released by his lawyer months before his passing, Mr Andersen said his nephews should stay in prison for their "heinous act".

Outside the courthouse, television crews blocked sidewalks, symbolic of the immense interest in the case.

Before proceedings started, more than a dozen members of the public gathered hoping to secure yellow badges get inside the courtroom - a highly sought after ticket given the hearing is not being streamed or televised.

Elena Gordon, who nabbed a ticket, remembers watching the divisive case as a girl on television. She travelled from Orange County, California, multiple times to attend hearings as the brothers' resentencing bid was delayed again and again.

"I feel like this is just a historical moment - both for our area and for such a big case," Ms Gordon said, wearing her golden ticket in an elevator on her way to the courtroom. "It's a big day."

At the end of the hearing, the judge is expected to determine whether the brothers, who were sentenced to life in prison without possibility of parole, should receive a lesser sentence.

Instead of testifying as part of the hearing, the brothers plan to address the court with a statement read aloud, their attorney told the court. This might prevent them from being questioned by prosecutors as part of cross examination. The BBC has asked who else might testify.

"I know right now that I'm going to put family members on the stand," Mr Geragos said on his podcast of his plans for the hearing. "I know right now, I'll put correctional officers on the stand. I know right now I may put behavioural scientists on the stand."

The district attorney's office has not said who it plans to call to testify.

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The hearing will not be a re-trial and the brothers' guilt will not be questioned.

Instead, much of the focus is likely to be on what they have done during their 30 years in prison and whether they have been rehabilitated.

During their trials, prosecutors painted them as entitled and eager to access their parents' $14m (£10.7m) fortune.

They argued that the duo methodically planned the killings, buying shotguns and opening fire on their parents 13 times as the couple watched TV - before going gambling, to parties and on shopping sprees.

The brothers ultimately admitted to the killings, but argued they acted out of self-defence after years of emotional, physical and sexual abuse by their father Jose, a high-powered film and record label executive.

The brothers' trial in 1993 was one of the first high-profile murder cases to be shown live on television, gripping audiences in the US and globally.

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Their first trial ended in a deadlock, but in 1996, the brothers were convicted of first-degree murder in a retrial. Many of their claims of sexual abuse were not allowed as part of the proceedings.

The hearing comes after a Netflix drama thrust the case back into the spotlight, and support for resentencing them has notably come from the previous Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascón.

His replacement, Nathan Hochman, has vehemently opposed the brothers' efforts to be freed and argued they have not "demonstrated true accountability" and instead have clung to a litany of "lies" about the case.