Exploring Male Sexual Trauma Through the Menendez Brothers’ Story
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - In the wake of the Netflix series and the possible resentencing of the Menendez brothers, the conversation about male victimhood has ignited.
Erik and Lyle Menendez are currently serving life in prison without the possibility of parole in California
The brothers have always maintained that they killed their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez, in the family's California mansion in 1989 because they were being sexually abused by their father.
Last week, Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón that he is seeking resentencing citing a letter allegedly written by Erik to his cousin before the murders in which he referenced being afraid of his father and sworn testimony from Roy Rosselló, a former member of the boy band Menudo, who claims he was raped by Jose in the 1980s. Jose was head of RCA records at that time.
In March 1996, juniors convicted both brothers of first-degree murder.
Since then, there has been a renewed interest in the case.
In September 2024, Netflix released a crime drama "Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story." a nine-episode series about the killings.
In October, multiple generations of family members of the Menendez brothers held a news conference pleading for their release from prison. Relatives said the jurors at the time who sentenced the brothers to life in prison without parole were part of a society that was not ready to hear that boys could be raped.
"They might be perceived as less of a man for not being able to fight their predator," said Dugu Balan, a licensed psychotherapist specializing in familial and intergenerational trauma.
Your News Channel spoke with Balan live on Thursday, October 31 at 6:30p on the BeMindful show to talk about how the retelling of their story exposes society's tendency to dismiss male survivors of sexual abuse, highlighting how deeply ingrained shame and stigma prevent many men disclosing abuse and seeking help.
