The judge postpones the hearing on the release of the Menéndez brothers

“I’m not ready to move forward,” Superior Court Judge Michael Jesic said at a hearing. “I want the new administration to review the documents.” The Menéndez brothers were convicted of first degree murder and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole after the second of two highly publicized trials for killing their parents, José and Kitty Menéndez, in 1989.

The case captivated the United States in the 1990s because of the brothers’ privileges as children of a record label and entertainment industry executive. A recent Netflix series brought new evidence to light and revived public interest in the case. Those tests supported their claims that they suffered sexual abuse on his father’s side for years leading the outgoing district attorney to support his release.

At Monday’s hearing, Defense attorneys sought to reduce first-degree murder sentence to voluntary manslaughter, which could allow his release. The judge rescheduled the hearing for January 30, but still decided to hear the testimony of two of Menéndez’s relatives who support the release of the brothers, who are now 56 and 53 years old. The brothers were supposed to follow the process by videoconference from prison, but technical difficulties prevented them from watching it, at least temporarily.

The brothers said they were victims of abuse, while prosecutors argued the couple were after their parents’ multimillion-dollar fortune. Lyle was 21 and Erik was 18 at the time of the murders. Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascon said the new evidence, combined with a more modern understanding of sexual abuse, led to requesting a new sentence for the Menéndez brothers claiming that they had paid their debt to society.

However, Gascon was defeated in the November 5 election and will leave office on December 3. The new district attorney, Nathan Hochman, has not yet commented on the case. Gascón has said that there is no doubt that the brothers killed their parents, but cited a letter Erik Menéndez allegedly wrote to a cousin eight months before the murders in which he referred to abuse.

Investigators are also examining allegations of a member of the 1980s pop band Menudowho said he had suffered abuse from José Menéndez. Those allegations were made public last year in the Peacock documentary series titled “Menéndez + Menudo: Boys Betrayed.” If the evidence had been presented at trial, the jury could have reached a different resultGascon said.