With Erik and Lyle Menéndez potentially walking free on parole, Cooper Koch hopes to see the brothers on the outside.
After portraying Erik in Monsters: The Erik and Lyle Menéndez Story, the actor shared a statement in response to Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón‘s recommendation that they be resentenced for the 1989 murders of their parents José and Mary Louise ‘Kitty’ Menéndez, potentially making them “eligible for parole immediately.”
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“I am overwhelmed with gratitude and hope for the progress we’ve seen today,” said Koch in a statement. “Gascón’s recommendation has ignited a renewed sense of possibility that Lyle and Erik could finally be released after decades behind bars. But, this journey is not over.
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“There are still critical steps ahead: the judge must endorse the resentencing, and, if that happens, the parole board must recognize the time they have served as fitting for the crime. Our voices, our unwavering support, remain crucial—not just for the brothers to ensure their release, but also for every victim of sexual abuse fighting to be heard. I hope to see Erik and Lyle soon. Free from all of this,” he added on his brother Payton Koch’s Instagram Story.
After Erik slammed Ryan Murphy‘s Monsters as a “dishonest portrayal,” Koch and Kim Kardashian visited the brothers along with 40 inmates at San Diego County’s Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility to discuss prison reform. Kardashian subsequently penned an essay calling for their release.
Gascón previously announced in a press conference that he is filing a motion with LA Superior Court on Friday to have the brothers resentenced for manslaughter instead of murder. Rather than life without parole, they would then be sentenced to 50 years to life. But since they were under the age of 26 when the crime was committed, they would be eligible for parole immediately.