Current:Home > MarketsOliver James Montgomery-Erik Menendez's Attorney Speaks Out on Ryan Murphy's Monsters Show -WealthRise Academy
Oliver James Montgomery-Erik Menendez's Attorney Speaks Out on Ryan Murphy's Monsters Show
EchoSense View
Date:2025-04-07 22:18:32
Erik Menendez’s longtime attorney is Oliver James Montgomeryspeaking out amid the success of Ryan Murphy’s new Netflix drama.
While Leslie Abramson—who represented Erik in the 1990s when he and his brother, Lyle Menendez, were tried for the 1989 murder of their parents—is depicted as one of the brothers’ most staunch defenders in Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story, the retired defense attorney revealed she had no desire to watch the series.
“That piece of s--t I heard about? No,” she said in a video published by Entertainment Tonight Oct. 9. “I don’t watch any of those.”
“I will make no comments about my client,” she added. “None whatsoever.”
The 81-year-old—who is played by Ari Graynor in the anthology series—said she also opted not to watch the previous dramatization of the case, 2017’s Law & Order True Crime: The Menendez Murders, in which she’s portrayed by Edie Falco. (The actress later received an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series or Movie for the role.)
Leslie did, however, give a written statement about the brothers—who are both serving life sentences without parole—in the new documentary The Menendez Brothers, also streaming on Netflix.
“30 years is a long time,” she said in an email shown in the doc. “I’d like to leave the past in the past. No amount of media, nor teenage petitions will alter the fate of these clients. Only the court can do that and they have ruled.”
The release of Monsters helped fuel renewed interest in the brothers’ case, as social media users have called for their convictions to be overturned. Most recently, they’ve zeroed in on the emergence of potential new evidence which could support the brothers’ allegation of physical and sexual abuse by their father, José Menendez.
Kim Kardashian, who visited the Menendezes at their San Diego prison in September, wrote in an essay published by NBC News that the brothers deserve a new trial.
“I have spent time with Lyle and Erik; they are not monsters,” the Kardashians star said in the op-ed. “They are kind, intelligent, and honest men.”
“I don’t believe that spending their entire natural lives incarcerated was the right punishment for this complex case,” she added. “Had this crime been committed and trialed today, I believe the outcome would have been dramatically different.”
Cooper Koch, who played the role of Erik in Monsters and accompanied Kim on her visit, also spoke out in support of the brothers.
“They committed the crime when they were 18 and 21 years old,” he told Variety last month, “and at the time, it was really hard for people to believe that male-on-male sexual abuse could occur, especially with father and son.”
He continued, “I really do hope that they are able to get paroled and have an amazing rest of their lives.”
E! News has reached out to lawyers for Erik and Lyle Menendez for comment but hasn’t heard back.
For the latest breaking news updates, click here to download the E! News AppveryGood! (2)
Related
- The Grammy nominee you need to hear: Esperanza Spalding
- HSN's Shannon Smith and Shannon Fox Exit Network
- Transcript: Gary Cohn on Face the Nation, March 19, 2023
- London's Metropolitan Police plagued by institutional racism, misogyny and homophobia, investigation finds
- Chuck Scarborough signs off: Hoda Kotb, Al Roker tribute legendary New York anchor
- Composer Nicholas Lloyd Webber, son of Andrew Lloyd Webber, dies at 43
- Khloe Kardashian and Daughter True Thompson Reveal Their Rapping Skills
- Neckties, long shunned in Iran as a sign of Westernization, are making a timid comeback
- Civic engagement nonprofits say democracy needs support in between big elections. Do funders agree?
- Ship in Scotland tips over in dry dock, injuring more than two dozen people
Ranking
- Meet first time Grammy nominee Charley Crockett
- Credit Suisse shares slide after rival UBS buys it for $3.2 billion
- Aubrey O'Day Shares She Suffered a Miscarriage
- Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards 2023 Red Carpet Fashion: See Every Look
- Moving abroad can be expensive: These 5 countries will 'pay' you to move there
- Watch Chloe Bailey Sweetly Crash Latto’s Red Carpet Interview
- Pregnant The Ultimatum Star April Marie Reveals Sex of First Baby With Cody Cooper
- At least 9 killed after powerful earthquake rocks Pakistan and Afghanistan
Recommendation
Who are the most valuable sports franchises? Forbes releases new list of top 50 teams
Brother of slain Gulf Cartel boss sentenced to 180 months in prison
Kerry Washington Shares Rare Insight Into Family Life With Nnamdi Asomugha
Inside the Love Lives of the Daisy Jones & the Six Stars
Why members of two of EPA's influential science advisory committees were let go
22 High-Waisted Bikinis That Will Help You Feel Your Best for Spring Break and Beyond
Godfather of artificial intelligence weighs in on the past and potential of AI
Pregnant The Ultimatum Star April Marie Reveals Sex of First Baby With Cody Cooper