Word: erik
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...Luke's Hair Design in Somers, New York, the main topic of TV conversation these days is not Jessica Fletcher's latest murder mystery or Roseanne Connor's most recent family crisis. It is the fate of Lyle and Erik Menendez, the Beverly Hills, California, brothers awaiting a verdict on charges of murdering their parents. "One way or another, every day it comes up in conversation," says Rosalie Mignano, 29, a nail technician at the salon. "I've really come to care about them as people...
...more than an hour to issue jury instructions on the subtle variations in mental state that distinguish a first-degree * murder from a second-degree offense, a voluntary manslaughter from an involuntary killing -- all-important gradations that may spell the difference between life and death for Lyle, 25, and Erik, 23, in the Aug. 20, 1989, slaying of their parents...
...hope that after 90 days of hearing about sex, lies and audiotapes, the jurors hadn't missed his most important instruction, one that went largely unstated. At no point did the judge inform Lyle's jury of the conditions that would win acquittal -- nor will he when he addresses Erik's jury this week. Weisberg ruled last week that the brothers Menendez could not argue "perfect self-defense," meaning that they had shot their parents out of a reasonable and honest belief that their own lives were in imminent danger. If the two juries are faithful to Weisberg's instructions...
More than a few of the brothers' stories faltered in the courtroom. Pisarcik, who has since broken up with Lyle, challenged the brothers' contention that the murder plan had begun on Aug. 15, when mother Kitty ripped Lyle's toupee from his head. The scene supposedly so shocked Erik that to assuage his brother's humiliation, the younger Menendez confessed to his sibling that he was being continually abused by their father. Lyle allegedly then began thinking of ways of saving his brother from Jose. Pisarcik testified, however, that Erik couldn't have been shocked by his brother's bald...
...forensics experts as "spin doctors." But the prosecution's decision not to hire its own experts leaves all the defense's witnesses virtually undisputed. Most persuasive was Dr. William Vicary, a psychiatrist who specializes in sex offenders and has evaluated 750 accused murderers. After spending 88 hours with Erik, Vicary concluded that Erik had been the victim of sexual abuse. Asked why Erik had not spoken of the abuse until almost a year after the shootings, Vicary answered, "It's very common for people who have been molested to not come forward with that information. It's a dirty secret...