On August 20, 1989, Jose and Mary Louise Menendez were shot to death by their two sons Lyle and Erik in their Beverly Hills home. The main arguement of this case was that  they acted out of self-defence after years of emotional, physical and sexual abuse. They told the court they feared their parents would kill them if they didn't act first.The brothers were found guilty of first-degree murder in 1996 after a second trial and were  sentenced to life in prison without parole In their first trial, the jury was deadlocked, leading to a mistrial. In the second trial, the jury found the brothers guilty of first-degree murder, and they were sentenced to life in prison without parole. 

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This is a very important case in international criminal law. This case is significant as it brought light to issues  of abuse and trauma in the context of legal defenses. It set a precedent for how the law treats claims of self-defense, especially in cases involving family violence and abuse.It pushed the legal system to be more sensitive to how complex abuse is. Actus Reus can be defined as the physical act of committing a crime, which in this case was the killing of their parents, José and Mary Menendez. Mens Rea however is the mental intent behind committing a crime and for the case of the Menedez brothers the prosecution argued that they planned and intended to kill their parents which shows premeditation. The defense, however, claimed that they acted out of fear and trauma from years of abuse, suggesting that their mental state was affected by this history.Erik and Lyle Menendez shot their parents,13 times in the den of their Beverly Hills home.

 

The crime scene was reported as brutal. The brothers initially claimed they found their parents dead but later confessed to the murders themselves.) In the Menendez brothers case, the aggravating factors are the brutal way that the brothers killed their parents. It was also seen as a premeditated crime which showed a calculated plan rather than a spontaneous crime. Mitigating factors are elements of a person or a crime that support a reduced penalty. Regarding this case, some of the factors are the traumatic childhood experiences like the emotional and physical abuse they faced. The main question of the case was did Lyle Menendez and Erik Menendez really kill their parents for money so they could live rich and high? Or was the crime of assault genuinely driven by the brothers defending themselves against years of abuse. Unfortunately, there wasn't enough proof to substantiate their abuse claims, and Erik and Lyle Menendez were convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison.