West
Menendez brothers 'risk assessment' ordered by Newsom ahead of resentencing hearing
California Gov. Gavin Newsom has ordered the state parole board to conduct a “comprehensive risk assessment investigation” on Erik and Lyle Menendez to determine whether they pose “an unreasonable risk to the public” if released from prison.
On Wednesday, Newsom made the announcement during a segment on his podcast, “This is Gavin Newsom.”
“The question for the board is a simple one — do Erik and Lyle Menendez, do they pose a current, what we call `unreasonable risk to public safety,”‘ Newsom said.
“The risk assessment will be conducted as they typically are conducted — by experts in public safety as well as forensic psychologists.”
NEW LOS ANGELES DA NATHAN HOCHMAN DOES NOT SUPPORT OVERTURNING MENENDEZ BROTHERS’ MURDER CONVICTIONS
Newsom described the assessment as a “common procedure carried out by the state.”
“After that, there’s going to be a hearing that works like a standard parole hearing, providing the District Attorney and the victims a chance to be part of the process,” the governor’s office shared in a statement.
Newsom’s office explained that the legal standard in California for release on parole is whether an inmate poses an unreasonable risk to public safety, which has to be determined before the governor can make a decision on their commutations.
“This process doesn’t mean there’s any guaranteed outcome, but it shows we’re doing our due diligence, ensuring transparency, keeping public safety at the forefront, making sure the process is fair for everyone involved, and getting closer to a conclusion,” Newsom’s office said.
Back in November, Newsom indicated he would defer any decision on the Menendez brothers’ case to local courts and prosecutors.
“The Governor respects the role of the District Attorney in ensuring justice is served and recognizes that voters have entrusted District Attorney-elect Hochman to carry out this responsibility,” Newsom’s office said in a previous statement. “The Governor will defer to the DA-elect’s review and analysis of the Menendez case prior to making any clemency decisions.”
Newsom’s office told Fox News Digital that the governor’s decision is part of a larger announcement on executive clemency actions that he will be releasing later on Wednesday.
MENENDEZ BROTHERS’ RESENTENCING: WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?
California Gov. Gavin Newsom asked the state parole board to conduct a “risk assessment investigation” on Erik and Lyle Menendez, which he said is a common procedure carried out by the state.
Newsom said the results of the risk assessment will be shared with the Los Angeles Superior Court judge presiding over the case, as well as Los Angeles District Attorney Nathan Hochman and defense attorneys.
“There’s no guarantee of outcome here,” Newsom said. “My office conducts dozens and dozens of these clemency reviews on a consistent basis, but this process simply provides more transparency, which I think is important in this case, as well as provides us more due diligence before I make any determination for clemency.”
Newsom’s announcement comes less than a week after Hochman asked the court to reject the Menendez brothers’ request for a new trial.
Hochman cited issues with the evidence, claiming it didn’t meet a high enough standard for a new trial.
This comes months after former DA George Gascon cited new evidence in the form of a letter suggesting the brothers may have been abused by their father as a reason for a new trial.
LETTER AT CENTER OF MENENDEZ BROTHERS’ BID FOR FREEDOM CALLED INTO QUESTION
Incoming Los Angeles County DA Nate Hochman says he hasn’t seen any of the media about the Menendez brothers before he assumes office. (Getty Images)
“We looked again at the credibility of the letters, particularly this Andy Cano 1988 supposed letter weighed in the continuum of lies, and it calls into drastic question whether this is in fact a 1988 letter written by Erik Menendez to Andy Cano about this sexual abuse,” Hochman said Friday in a news conference.
The letter was allegedly written eight months before the murders of their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez, in 1989 by Erik Menendez to his cousin Andy Cano, and detailed alleged sexual abuse by their father.
The letter wasn’t found until several years ago, the Menendez brothers’ attorney said.
The Menendez brothers’ family condemned Hochman’s decision in a previous statement shared with Fox News Digital by their legal team.
“District Attorney Nathan Hochman took us right back to 1996 today. He opened the wounds we have spent decades trying to heal,” the statement said. “He didn’t listen to us. We are profoundly disappointed by his remarks, in which he effectively tore up new evidence and discredited the trauma they experienced. To suggest that the years of abuse couldn’t have led to the tragedy in 1989 is not only outrageous, but also dangerous.
MENENDEZ BROTHERS RESENTENCING HEARING POSTPONED DUE TO RAGING LOS ANGELES FIRES
Erik Menendez, center, his brother Lyle and defense attorney Leslie Abramson are seen in court in Beverly Hills, California, on Aug. 12, 1991. (Mike Nelson/AFP via Getty Images)
“Abuse does not exist in a vacuum. It leaves lasting scars, rewires the brain, and traps victims in cycles of fear and trauma. To say it played no role in Erik and Lyle’s action is to ignore decades of psychological research and basic human understanding.”
The statement added that it was “absurd” for Hochman to say that the evidence should have been submitted at the trial.
Hochman also noted that Newsom has the clemency petition on his desk and “he can do whatever he wants, whenever he wants, and we will be dealing in the next couple of weeks with the resentencing issue.”
If Hochman’s office continues down the resentencing road, Newsom still has the final say. If the brothers’ sentences are reduced to something that would make them eligible for parole, the governor has veto power over parole board decisions. He could also issue clemency or a pardon on his own.
The resentencing hearing was pushed back nearly two months due to California’s devastating wildfires.
Lyle and Erik Menendez were found guilty in 1996 of the 1989 killing of their parents at their ritzy Beverly Hills home and sentenced to life in prison without parole.
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 in their living room when they opened fire.
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.
Fox News Digital’s Michael Ruiz, Michael Dorgan and Brie Stimson contributed to this report.
Stepheny Price is a writer for Fox News Digital and FOX Business. She covers topics including missing persons, homicides, national crime cases, illegal immigration, and more. Story tips and ideas can be sent to stepheny.price@fox.com
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The Mariners have made the first move in what’s sure to be a rip-roaring Trade Deadline season, acquiring INF Buddy Kennedy from the Giants in exchange for cash considerations.
Kennedy was designated for assignment by San Francisco earlier this morning as outfielder Heliot Ramos returned from the Injured List.
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The 5’10” infielder has spent most of the season with Triple-A Sacramento, hitting well, even for the PCL. He’s in the 78th percentile for xWOBA, has a nearly identical K% and BB% (12.6%/12.1%) and rarely whiffs. This all has come out to a .322 batting average and a 152 wRC+. He’s made just a minimal impression in the bigs this season, with 8 plate appearances in 7 games, and zero hits.
Kennedy is likely to head to Tacoma. He can play 3B and 2B in a pinch, and will likely backfill Patrick Wisdom’s role if Wisdom is called up to take over right-handed pinch hitting duties from the currently-employed Rob Refsnyder.
The 27-year-old has not found much traction in the five years since his debut with Arizona in 2022. He’s amassed less than 200 plate appearances across 74 games, with a career 50 wRC+. On the mound, Kennedy has made one appearance this season, pitching one inning and giving up four runs, all earned.
San Diego, CA
Feds Will Finally Help Oceanside 73 Years After Admitting Fault for Its Disappearing Beaches
When the U.S. military built the Camp Pendleton Harbor complex just north of Oceanside in 1942, it didn’t set out to steal Oceanside’s beaches for decades to come.
But that’s exactly what’s been happening for the past 73 years.
In 1953, the federal government admitted that construction of harbor jetties at Camp Pendleton was directly contributing to the erosion of Oceanside’s beaches. The jetties block the ocean’s currents that carry sand along the coast, which causes Oceanside’s beaches south of the military base to lose out on sand that would have naturally flowed to them.
Rising sea levels caused by climate change also play a part, but in Oceanside, naturally occurring erosion has been exacerbated by the military base.
But the military is only just now stepping in to help. While the government’s admission of guilt seemed like a win, it somewhat backfired; because the federal government was on the hook for the entire cost, the project got swallowed by a bureaucratic black hole. Tired of waiting, Oceanside launched its own plan to save its beaches, one the military now refuses to help fund.
What Took so Long
In 2000, Congress passed a law mandating the Army Corps to study how it could restore Oceanside’s beaches to pre-harbor conditions.
The government was supposed to pay for the study and complete it in 44 months. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers finally released the draft report of the study earlier this month – 26 years later.“Studies require both authorization and funding,” said Shawn Davis, public affairs specialist for the Army Corps, via email. “While the study was initially authorized in 2000, there have been gaps in funding that have impacted the timeline to complete the study.”
Those funding gaps happened until 2022 when Rep. Mike Levin, D-San Juan Capistrano, whose district includes much of North County’s coastal cities, helped secure $1.8 million in federal funding and another $2.27 million in 2025 to complete the study.
So, why did the funding dry up for so long at the federal level? According to Davis, “federal projects can only proceed and continue with appropriations from Congress.”
In other words, the project was stuck in bureaucratic limbo; it had the legal authorization to exist, but it couldn’t secure funds in a highly competitive budget that favored bigger projects.
Jayme Timberlake, Oceanside’s coastal zone administrator, told Voice of San Diego that the city and its representatives tried lobbying Congress for years, but there are often a lot of unknowns when it comes to Army Corps projects.
“It’s very political. It’s very much dependent on what the rest of the nation is going through and where the funds are going and how they’re getting allocated,” Timberlake said. “It’s very tough to navigate and there’s a lot of risk associated with it, meaning we can’t really rely on it.”
Other coastal cities received a plan before Oceanside did: The Corps completed similar studies for two sand replenishment efforts. One is a joint effort in Encinitas and Solana Beach, the other in San Clemente. Congress has already approved both of these projects for sand deliveries every seven to 10 years for the next 50 years.
“The difference is that the … projects that are happening in Encinitas, Solana Beach and San Clemente were initiated by a request to the Army Corps from these cites, and they were cost shared,” Timberlake said.
That means these cities are paying 35 percent of the costs, and the federal government is paying 65 percent. That also applies to sand deliveries every seven to 10 years. These types of projects can cost upwards of $100 million.
“In Oceanside, our mitigation project, at least the study was not cost shared. It was the full responsibility of the federal government because they admitted fault,” Timberlake said. “So, it’s really unfortunate that the mitigation for Oceanside beaches didn’t happen before those requested projects.”
Meanwhile, Oceanside’s Sand Was Disappearing
While Oceanside officials and residents waited for the government’s help, the city’s beaches were rapidly disappearing before their eyes.
Previous Army Corps studies estimate the Harbor has caused a loss of 1.4 to 1.6 million cubic yards of sand volume from Oceanside’s beaches since 1942, with some areas retreating at a rate of 6.6 feet per year. That’s 84 years of consistent and severe sand loss.
El Niño conditions over the years have also exacerbated the problem.
“There was such a dramatic loss of sand that the community really started asking for solutions,” Timberlake said. “There’s a whole generation that has been able to use the beach and then have it be gone, so it has triggered a lot of community interest.”
After 20 years of waiting, Oceanside decided to take matters into its own hands.
“Once there was momentum to fix the problem itself and not rely on the Army Corps any further, the city did a feasibility study in 2020, and that study really unearthed all the possible things that Oceanside could do in the short and long term to fix its beaches,” Timberlake said.
A few years later, city officials held a competition that brought together three design teams from around the world to develop sand retention pilot projects. They chose a concept that includes the construction of two headlands that will aim to stabilize sand on the back beach, with an offshore artificial reef aimed at slowing down nearshore erosive forces.
The project is called RE:Beach and it’s already funded up to the construction phase, Timberlake said. The city has applied for a few different grants to cover construction, which will cost upwards of $60 million.
Timberlake said the city asked the Army Corps to help fund the rest of the RE:Beach project, and the Army Corps denied the request.
The Government’s Plan
Oceanside’s RE:Beach project and the federal government’s recent recommendations won’t conflict with each other, Timberlake said. In fact, the two projects will complement one another.
The Army Corps’ draft feasibility report identified beach nourishment (a lot of sand) as the tentatively selected plan to restore Oceanside’s beaches.
It calls for dredging 4 million cubic yards of sand from an offshore borrow site and then placing it along Oceanside’s beaches, with the goal of sustaining a minimum 85-foot wide beach from Oceanside Harbor south to Buena Vista Lagoon. Sand replenishment would be 1 million cubic yards the first cycle, then repeated every 10 years.
Realistically, though, it could be another couple decades before Oceanside’s beaches start receiving sand, Timberlake said.
That’s because there are other competing projects the Army Corps is working on. Plus,, Congress still has to appropriate funding for the rest of the project to move forward once the feasibility study is completed. Initial costs of construction are currently estimated to be $243,540,000, Davis, spokesperson for the Army Corps, said via email.
It’s still unclear if the government will cover the full costs of construction and the subsequent sand renourishments for Oceanside, but Levin told Voice he thinks it’s unlikely.
“I will advocate for every penny to come from the federal government, given that the government did acknowledge responsibility,” Levin said. “But I do also know how the Army Corps works, and it’s very likely they’ll want some sort of cost share.”
Meanwhile, the Trump administration is proposing major funding cuts to the Army Corps’ budget for fiscal year 2027. If those cuts are approved by Congress, it could have an impact on projects like this one.
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JUNEAU, Alaska (KTUU) – The Supreme Court of Alaska will be taking up the case of the State of Alaska, Division of Elections v. Daniel J. Sullivan, Jr.
The oral arguments will be held Monday at 10 a.m. via Zoom, according to an order and opening notice.
The document also specifies that a decision is expected to be made before noon on Tuesday.
According to documents from the Division of Elections, the state must start printing ballots at noon on the same day.
This comes after an Anchorage Superior Court Judge ordered Dan J. Sullivan on to the ballot Friday.
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