Gypsy Rose Blanchard has advice for the Menendez Brothers should they be released from prison.
“The one thing I wish I did was take the time away from the media when I first came out of prison and give myself time to adjust,” she told TMZ. “I didn’t do that and I got overwhelmed by it.”
Blanchard, like Lyle and Erik Menendez, spent time in prison in connection with the murder of her mother. The brothers, who have spent decades behind bars, have made multiple appeals to be released.
The Menendez brothers were sentenced to life in prison in 1996 following a second trial at which they were found guilty of murdering their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez.
Like Blanchard, the Menendez brothers have accused their parents of abuse, claiming that Jose sexually abused them while their mother failed to step in and prevent it. Lyle and Erik then used shotguns to kill their parents in August 1989.
Blanchard was released from prison in January 2024, nine years after her ex-boyfriend Nicholas Godejohn fatally stabbed her mother, Dee Dee Blanchard, who for years had abused her daughter via Munchausen syndrome by proxy.
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Blanchard pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in 2016 and was granted parole in December 2023.
If the Menendez brothers are released — they have currently submitted a habeas corpus petition and are also seeking possible re-sentencing — Blanchard warns them not to rush straight into the entertainment world.
“If they ever do get released, take a break, really kind of like work on yourself, get your feet on the ground,” Blanchard said to TMZ. “And then if that’s something you want to do, go right ahead.”
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