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Menendez brothers ask California Gov. Newsom for clemency
Erik and Joseph “Lyle” Menendez, the Beverly Hills brothers who shotgunned their parents to death from behind in 1989, are asking California Gov. Gavin Newsom for clemency less than a week after Los Angeles’ district attorney told a judge their prison sentences should be reduced.
Their lawyer, Mark Geragos, filed documents Monday, with the support of LA District Attorney George Gascon, according to the latter’s office.
The governor’s office said it is unable to discuss specifics.
MENENDEZ BROTHERS RESENTENCING: WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?
Lyle Menendez, left, and his brother Erik are pictured in their most recent mugshots, taken on Oct. 10. (California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation)
“Pending clemency applications are confidential, and we’re not able to discuss individual cases,” a spokesperson told Fox News Digital.
The brothers are both serving life without the possibility of parole, but Gascon’s request last week cleared the way for a judge to impose lesser sentences on the brothers.
Gascon recommended 50 years to life, which would make them immediately eligible for parole hearings. He said he opposed taking things a step further and having their crimes reduced from first-degree murder to manslaughter.
Then he turned around Wednesday and publicly urged Newsom to grant clemency and release the brothers before the resentencing process plays out in front of a judge.
MENENDEZ BROTHERS PROSECUTOR ANNOUNCES RESENTENCING DECISION
Mark Geragos, defense attorney of Erik and Lyle Menendez, the Beverly Hills brothers convicted of killing their parents, speaks during a press conference at the Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center in Los Angeles on Oct. 16. (Reuters/Mike Blake)
“I strongly support clemency for Erik and Lyle Menendez, who are currently serving sentences of life without possibility of parole,” Gascon said. “They have respectively served 34 years and have continued their educations and worked to create new programs to support the rehabilitation of fellow inmates.”
The DA, who is up for reelection in less than a week, sent a separate letter in support of each brother to the governor.
Read Gascon’s letter in support of Erik Menendez
The killings were premeditated. The brothers walked up behind their parents with shotguns while the two were watching TV at 10:30 p.m. And they had to go to the car to reload before firing a fatal shot at their mother, who tried to escape the bloody crime scene after being injured.
No matter what happens with their clemency request, Newsom would still have the final say over whether they should go free.
Read Gascon’s letter in support of Lyle Menendez
Even if the parole board approves their release, the governor has veto power.
TIMELINE OF THE MENENDEZ BROTHERS’ MURDER CASE
An undated photo of the Menendez family as it appears onscreen during a panel at CrimeCon 2024 in Nashville, Tennessee, on June 2. Lyle and Erik were convicted of fatally shooting their parents in 1989. (Michael Ruiz/Fox News Digital)
The brothers claim they shot their father, former RCA Records executive Jose Menendez, in self-defense, arguing they thought he was going to kill them after they warned him they planned to expose him as a child sex abuser.
They also killed their mother, Mary “Kitty” Menendez, who was sitting next to Jose eating ice cream and watching TV during the ambush.
Their first trial ended in a mistrial, when jurors couldn’t agree on their fate. After a second trial in the mid-1990s, in which some of their evidence about the alleged sexual abuse was excluded, jurors agreed with prosecutors that their motive was greed.
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LAS VEGAS (FOX5) — One woman is dead following a head-on collision on US-95 Sunday afternoon.
Nevada Highway Patrol responded to a report of a crash at 4:41 p.m. at mile marker 105, approximately 45 miles north of Beatty. The crash involved two sport utility vehicles.
One adult female driver was confirmed dead at the scene. The other driver was transported to a local area hospital with injuries.
MORE ON FOX5: Report: Nevada traffic deaths down 33% for April
No road closures are in effect. Investigations are being conducted on the southbound shoulder area.
Nevada Highway Patrol, a division of the Nevada State Police, is asking motorists to slow down and use caution in the area as troopers and investigators work at the scene.
Further information will be provided following the preliminary investigation.
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Damon Bankston, RB
Height: 5’ 10 ⅜”
Weight: 196 lbs
Class: Fifth-year Senior
School: New Mexico
Hands: 9 ½”
Arm Length: 30 ⅞”
Wingspan: 72 ⅝”
40-Yard Dash: 4.44 seconds
Bench Press: 21 reps
Vertical: 33”
Broad Jump: 10’ 3”
20-Yard Shuttle: 4.32 seconds
3-Cone: 6.89 seconds
STATS
Damon Bankston was an unranked running back recruit from Katy Paetow in Katy, Texas, who enrolled at Weber State, an FCS school in Ogden, Utah.
Bankston would stay at Weber State from 2021 to 2024 before transferring to New Mexico for his final season of college football in 2025.
As a redshirt senior, Bankston would rack up 635 rushing yards, 397 receiving yards, and 8 scrimmage touchdowns, as well as another 434 kick return yards and two touchdowns on just 12 returns.
Strengths
- Explosive athlete with elite acceleration
- Soft, natural hands as a pass-catcher out of the backfield
- Solid vision when operating in zone run schemes
- Usually a patient runner before accelerating through gaps
- Plays very quick as a runner with a bit of a choppy style
- Eliminates tackle angles with acceleration
- Can make defenders miss in space with a solid juke move
- Kick return specialist with two return touchdowns in 2025
- Willing as a pass protector in the backfield
Weaknesses
- Likely won’t be able to survive through contact often against NFL-caliber defenders
- Questionable ability to run between the tackles at the next level
- Not necessarily a weakness but only one year of FBS film, not sure how he’ll adapt to NFL game speed
- Questionable size to succeed in pass protection
- Ball security was an issue for him in 2025, including two fumbles in one game against Colorado State
- Play strength is a concern with contact balance, ball security, pass protection, and the ability to be an all-around back
Summary
Bankston will at best be a change-of-pace back in the NFL who never handles a significant workload.
Carving out a role as a return specialist should be the goal for Bankston to make the roster in 2026, which will also be a tall task for him to solidify with Deonte Banks back for the Giants in 2026.
Bankston, who at this point is probably more of a practice squad candidate, can definitely provide some juice on special teams as a kickoff returner. In college he averaged 36.2 yards per return and had two returns for touchdown, showing some explosiveness.
The step up in competition from the FCS to FBS for Bankston caused him to be less consistent with creating yards after contact and making defenders miss.
It’s fair to estimate that with another step up in competition, Bankston could once again see a decrease in that ability to create.
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