It’s August 1989, and a 911 call comes through from a Beverly Hills mansion on Elm Drive just before midnight. The call is from a hysterical Lyle Menendez, and you can hear his brother Erik crying in the background. The brother's parents, Jose and Kitty, are dead, shot a combined 16 times at close range while in their TV room. The crime scene is horrific.

At first, police suspect a Mafia or mob hit. But seven months later, it’s the brothers who are arrested for murder in a case that catapults them into worldwide infamy. Even 35 years later, we’re still discussing the Menendez brothers, asking why they killed their parents.

Robert Rand is an award-winning journalist who has been covering the Menendez brother's case since the day after the murders on August 21, 1989. He has a personal relationship with the brothers, speaking with them regularly. He helps us tell this story.

You can read his book The Menendez Murders here. You can watch The Menendez Brothers documentary on Netflix here.

THE END BITS

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CREDITS

Guest: Robert Rand

Host: Gemma Bath

Producer: Tahli Blackman

Audio Producer: Thom Lion

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