L.A. County D.A. Pushes for Governor to Give Menendez Brothers Clemency

Huge development for Erik and Lyle Menendez ... the L.A. County D.A. is pushing for a path to freedom that could set the brothers free in a matter of weeks.

L.A. County D.A. George Gascón just said he "strongly" supports the Menendez brothers' request for clemency.

TMZ broke the story ... Erik and Lyle's lawyer, Mark Geragos, filed legal docs Tuesday with California Governor Gavin Newsom, asking him to grant clemency to his clients.

It's significant, because over the weekend, Newsom dropped a podcast in which he said, "This is obviously some new compelling evidence that was introduced" ... referring to, among other things, a letter Erik sent to his cousin strongly insinuating his dad was molesting him just months before the murders. Newsom also said he often grants clemency around Thanksgiving time.

The key here ... if Newsom grants clemency, there would be no need for a court hearing. The brothers would instantly be free.

Gascon now says, "I strongly support clemency for Erik and Lyle Menendez ... They have respectively served 34 years and have continued their educations and worked to create new programs to support the rehabilitation of fellow inmates."

TMZ also broke the story ... failing clemency, there's a court hearing December 11 at which Geragos will ask the judge to change the convictions from murder to voluntary manslaughter. Since the brothers have served more than 3 times the maximum sentence for voluntary manslaughter, they would walk out of court free men.