West
Perez Hilton predicts Menendez brothers could see public ‘turn’ on them after prison release
The Menendez brothers, who killed their parents in a 1989 Beverly Hills living room ambush with shotguns, have a new shot at freedom after the Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office recommended reduced sentences for them this week.
They had previously exhausted all appeals and have been serving sentences of life without the possibility of parole since their convictions in the 1990s.
A shift in public awareness of how sex abuse impacts male victims, renewed scrutiny after a series of documentaries and TV dramatizations, and purported new evidence in the case all played a role in DA George Gascon’s decision, the district attorney told reporters Thursday.
But now that they have a real shot at freedom, pop culture expert Perez Hilton says the recent release of Gypsy Rose Blanchard, who pleaded guilty to taking part in the slaying of her abusive mother in 2016, may give a hint at what will happen next for the brothers. She became an overnight internet sensation after her release.
WATCH ON FOX NATION: MENENDEZ BROTHERS: VICTIMS OR VILLAINS?
Lyle Menendez, left, and his brother Erik pictured in their most recent mugshots, taken on Oct. 10, 2024. (California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation)
Prospects for money
Calling himself “Perez-stradamus” in a nod to the French astrologer Nostradamus, Perez predicts that the brothers will have a chance to rake in money on day one.
Just by telling their own stories, he said – even though they’ve been stripped of their multimillion-dollar inheritances under a state law that bars killers from profiting off their victims’ demise.
“They will have a smart team of everyone they would possibly need – an agent, a manager or a publicist, a business manager,” Hilton told Fox News Digital. “They will set them up financially for the rest of their lives.”
Lyle, left, and Erik Menendez sit with defense attorney Leslie Abramson, right, in Beverly Hills Municipal Court during a hearing on Nov. 26, 1990. (AP Photo/Nick Ut)
MENENDEZ BROTHERS PROSECUTOR ANNOUNCES RESENTENCING DECISION
The other side of that intense public interest in their case – is close scrutiny from paparazzi, Hilton predicted.
“It will be even more so than what we have seen the last few weeks and months following them around, guaranteed the paparazzi,” he told Fox News Digital. “There will be at least one or two photographers and videographers dedicated to them, wherever they end up in the United States.”
Exteriors of the Menendez brothers’ former mansion in 1989, showing the expansive pool. (Clark Fogg, retired Beverly Hills Police Department forensic specialist)
Love life
At least one brother may end up getting divorced, he predicted.
“Imagine that, like all of a sudden you’ve been locked in prison for 34 plus years, you married someone because you never thought you were going to get out – then all of a sudden you’re free,” Hilton told Fox News Digital. “You’re on social media. You quickly learn the ways of social media and, the thing is, even while in prison, they had women sending them letters. That’s how they met their wives. . . . Their DMS are going to be flooded.”
LETTER AT CENTER OF MENENDEZ BROTHERS’ BID FOR FREEDOM CALLED INTO QUESTION
Erik Menendez, left, and his brother Lyle, in front of their Beverly Hills home. They are prime suspects in their parents’ murders. (Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
Public perception
The brothers have picked up a lot of support due to the recent attention brought to their case by streaming docuseries.
The same interest that could land them book deals and production contracts is going to get them paid, Hilton noted.
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“There is a lot of goodwill for the Menendez brothers, [but] people, not all of them, but a lot of people will turn on them,” he predicted.
An undated photo of the Menendez family as it appears on-screen during a panel at CrimeCon 2024 in Nashville, Tennessee, on June 2. The brothers Lyle and Erik were convicted of fatally shooting their parents in 1989. (Michael Ruiz/Fox News Digital)
Buying a multimillion-dollar new home, or a flashy car could wind up rubbing people the wrong way, he said.
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However – unlike other disgraced Los Angeles residents, like OJ Simpson, Harvey Weinstein and, more recently, Sean “Diddy” Combs, the brothers can say that they were victims, too.
GYPSY ROSE BLANCHARD TAKES TO SOCIAL MEDIA AFTER PRISON RELEASE: ‘FINALLY FREE’
Gypsy Rose Blanchard, 32, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in 2016, when she was 24, for her role in plotting to kill her abusive mother, Claudine “Dee Dee” Blanchard, in their Missouri home in 2015 with help from her then-boyfriend. She became an internet sensation overnight after her release from prison. (Lifetime/ A&E)
“None of those people are victims,” he said. “Gypsy Rose Blanchard is a victim, and that’s one of the reasons why she’s been able to monetize as well as she has, upon her release from prison.
“So I think the fact that it’s been documented, according to this new evidence and according to their testimony from decades ago and consistent through today, they’ve been victims that will help them continue to get a lot of empathy from people.”
If Los Angeles Judge William Ryan agrees with the reduced sentencing recommendation, the brothers will be eligible for parole.
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They still would have to get approval from the parole board and the governor before they could go free.
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HONOLULU (KHON2) — Fried chicken fans have a reason to celebrate today as Popeyes Hawaii marks National Fried Chicken Day with a special one-day-only offer.
On Monday, July 6, participating Popeyes locations across Hawaii are offering five pieces of Signature Chicken for just $5, while supplies last. The deal includes a mix of legs and thighs and is limited to one order per customer and one per vehicle, with no substitutions.
Popeyes says the promotion is a fun way for customers to enjoy its signature crispy, Louisiana-style fried chicken at a value price while celebrating the national food holiday.
The offer is available today only at participating Popeyes Hawaii restaurants including Aiea, Waipahu (Waikele), Kunia, Kapolei, Kailua, Kaneohe, and Pāhoa (Big Island). The offer is limited to one per vehicle in the drive-thru and one order per customer for dine-in, while supplies last.
For more information and participating locations, visit popeyeshawaii.com.
Idaho
An Idaho mother who said her toddler twins died after vaccinations has been charged with murder
An Idaho woman who said her toddler twins died last year after being vaccinated faces murder charges connected to their deaths, authorities said.
A grand jury indicted Andrea Shaw, who is accused of suffocating her 18-month-old twins in May 2025, on two counts of first-degree murder on June 29, according to court records and a news release from the Payette Police Department.
While appearing last year on an internet show produced by Children’s Health Defense — an anti-vaccine group founded by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. — Shaw said her twins died after getting vaccinated. Kennedy has not been affiliated with the group since December 2024, when he formally resigned as chairman to join President Donald Trump’s administration.
Shaw, 23, was arrested by Boise police officers Tuesday and arraigned Thursday. She is being held on a $2 million bond and could face life in prison or the death penalty if convicted or if she pleads guilty to first-degree murder. Her next court appearance is July 14.
An attorney representing Shaw did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The Payette Police Department and the Payette County prosecutor declined to comment Monday.
During her May 2025 appearance on the Children’s Health Defense show, Shaw said she found her twins dead in their room days after they got vaccinated for the flu and other diseases.
“They had got their shots at the same time by two nurses at the same time,” Shaw said. “And they got sick.”
Medical experts point out that the childhood vaccines at issue — hepatitis A, influenza and DTaP — are safe and effective for kids and recommended by various medical groups.
Shaw is also a plaintiff in a federal lawsuit brought by Children’s Health Defense and others against the American Academy of Pediatrics. The lawsuit, which was filed in January in federal court in Washington, accuses the American Academy of Pediatrics of racketeering for its “central role in an enterprise that has defrauded American families about the safety of the childhood vaccine schedule for several decades.” In the lawsuit, Shaw is described as a mother “whose children died following routine vaccinations administered according to AAP guidelines.”
The American Academy of Pediatrics has asked the court to dismiss the suit, asserting in an April court filing that it is the “latest missive in a campaign targeting” the academy and its “use of science-backed evidence in vaccine policy.”
In January, pediatricians and other experts became alarmed when U.S. health officials made broad changes to childhood vaccine guidance, dropping several universal recommendations. Kennedy, who helped lead the anti-vaccine movement for years, said the changes better align the U.S. with peer nations “while strengthening transparency and informed consent.”
In March, a federal judge blocked the changes and said Kennedy likely violated federal procedures in revamping a key vaccine advisory committee. But the judge’s order is not the final word; the blocks are temporary, pending either a trial or a decision for summary judgment.
BIGFORK, Mont. — Boaters on the Flathead River near Bigfork will face a temporary closure this week as crews continue work on the new Sportsman’s Bridge.
The Montana Department of Transportation and Sletten Construction will continue constructing the new bridge on Montana Highway 82 northwest of Bigfork by placing steel beams over the east side of the Flathead River. The beams will support the deck of the new bridge.
To safely complete the work, the river beneath the bridge will be temporarily closed from 7 a.m. Wednesday, July 8, to 6 p.m. Thursday, July 9.
No boat traffic will be allowed to travel under the bridge during that time.
The following was sent out by Montana Department of Transportation:
The Montana Department of Transportation (MDT) and Sletten Construction will continue constructing the new Sportsman’s Bridge on Montana Highway 82 (MT 82) northwest of Bigfork by placing steel beams over the east side of the Flathead River. These beams will support the deck of the new bridge.
To safely complete this work, the river beneath the bridge will be temporarily closed from 7 a.m. on Wednesday, July 8, to 6 p.m. on Thursday, July 9.
No boat traffic will be allowed to travel under the bridge during this time.
This closure area includes approximately 20 feet upstream and 300 feet downstream of the bridge and applies to all motorized and non-motorized watercraft, including kayaks, canoes, rafts, and paddleboards.
The Sportsman’s Bridge Fishing Access Site will remain open during this time for boaters traveling southbound (downstream) on the river toward Flathead Lake.
No traffic impacts are anticipated for motorists traveling on MT 82 during this work.
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