How Erik and Lyle Menendez Plan Thanksgiving in Prison Amid Possible Release

How Erik and Lyle Menendez Plan Thanksgiving in Prison Amid Possible Release.

Erik and Lyle Menendez are gearing up for Thanksgiving in prison, and it could be their final holiday spent behind bars. Finance Monthly explains how they will celebrate at the Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility in San Diego, California.

Finance Monthly has revealed the Thanksgiving menu for the inmates, ensuring they won’t miss out on the festive meal. They can choose between turkey or ham as the main dish. Accompanying the main course will be a variety of sides, including green salad, fresh mashed potatoes with gravy, sweet corn, dinner rolls, and cranberry sauce.

For dessert, Erik, 53, and Lyle, 56, will have a selection of assorted pies. According to reports, the brothers have been enjoying decent meals during their incarceration. The October menus featured lunch options like roasted chicken, lunch meat sandwiches, and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.

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Dinner choices included cheese pizza, beef patties, chicken breast, and fish, with a special treat of lemon cake served on weekends. Both brothers have been serving life sentences at the same facility since 2018, with Erik there since 2013 and Lyle joining him later. Convicted in 1996 for the first-degree murder of their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez, they received life sentences without the chance of parole. The brothers have maintained that they were victims of their father's abuse. Recently, they filed a petition to overturn their convictions after former Menudo member Roy Rosselló accused Jose of sexual abuse in 2023.

Erik expressed his deep sorrow, saying, “Honestly, I feel terrible. It’s heartbreaking to realize that my father has left another victim in his wake. I always held onto the hope that the truth about him would eventually surface, but I never imagined it would come out in such a painful way — as a result of another child's trauma. It truly saddens me.”

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Erik and Lyle included Roy’s allegations and a recently uncovered letter Erik had written to a family member detailing the supposed abuse in their petition. In October, Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascon announced that his office would recommend resentencing for Lyle and Erik. At a press conference, he stated, “As we proceed with the resentencing of Erik and Lyle Menendez, who have spent 35 years in prison after their 1996 conviction for the murder of their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez, we must recognize the profound pain and suffering endured by the victims’ families.

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For many years, they have dealt with the grief of their unimaginable loss. We also acknowledge the ongoing rehabilitative efforts made by Erik and Lyle during their time in custody.” Sources close to the brothers revealed to Finance Monthly that their family is eager for them to reconnect with their elderly relatives while there’s still time. An insider shared with Finance Monthly that the family is hopeful for Lyle and Erik to reunite with their 92-year-old aunt, Joan Andersen VanderMolen. The source also mentioned that the brothers have an 85-year-old aunt, Terry Baralt, who is currently battling cancer. “This might be their last opportunity,” the source noted.