New D.A. Hasn't Watched Either Netflix Series on Menendez Brothers, Speaks Out on Their Trial (Exclusive)

New Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman says he has not watched the Netflix series or the documentary about the Menendez brothers, both of which aired in 2024.

“Anything that’s re-enacted, that’s not based on facts that are hardcore facts, I’m uninterested in,” he tells PEOPLE. “Anything that obviously recites facts in the case, I will review, probably with the source documents, rather than have a documentary tell me what those documents say.”

Hochman, who was elected district attorney in November, says he is still “figuring it out” whether the sentences for Erik and Lyle, who are serving life without parole for the 1989 shotgun murders of their parents Jose and Kitty Menendez, should be shortened.

“As you can well imagine, the review we have done has been very extensive, and we are analyzing it on a daily basis,” he says.

Hochman says his options include withdrawing the resentencing motion filed by former district attorney George Gascón, who recommended the brothers be resentenced to 50 years to life, which could make the brothers eligible for immediate parole. Other options, says Hochman, include proceeding with Gascón’s motion as is, disagreeing with it or modifying it.

“Those are all within the decision points that I have,” he says.  

Lyle was 21 and Erik was 18 when they fatally shot their parents using 12-gauge shotguns in the den of their Beverly Hills, Calif., home on Aug. 20, 1989.

The killings, according to the brothers, came after years of sexual abuse by Jose — abuse which they claimed was ignored by their mom, a former pageant queen.

However, prosecutors at the time said the two brothers’ motive was greed and cited their lavish spending spree after the slayings.

In 1996, three years after their first trial ended in a deadlock, the siblings were convicted of the first-degree murders and subsequently sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

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Asked whether the brothers, who are being held at the Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility in San Diego, received a fair trial, Hochman responded, “The verdict has been affirmed as a fair trial under the law by every legal judge that has seen it in the state and federal system. Everyone has concluded that the trial met constitutional standards.”

Hochman says he has spent “a lot of time” going over the thousands of pages of prison records and trial transcripts from the two trials ahead of the resentencing hearing, which is scheduled for Jan. 30 and Jan. 31.

“I’ve spoken to, at this point, virtually every prosecutor that’s been involved with the case,” he says. “I will be speaking with law enforcement. I’ve spoken to the defense counsel.”

In recent months, he has also removed Gascón’s deputy district attorneys who filed a motion in October asking a judge to reduce the brothers’ sentences.

“I want a fresh set of eyes to look at it, to understand the full range of analysis and not come in with one view,” he says.

The attorneys now reviewing the case “have done some of the most difficult trials that the office has had in years,” he says. “I was looking for real experienced trial attorneys, and they are these attorneys, so I am working with them hand-in-glove.”

Hochman says Gascón’s handling of the Menendez case “cast a cloud over whether or not it is the just motion to bring, or it was just a political ploy,” he says. “My goal in conducting this thorough review of the facts and the law is to remove any cloud over the credibility of the ultimate decision that I reach.”

If you or someone you know has been a victim of sexual abuse, text “STRENGTH” to the Crisis Text Line at 741-741 to be connected to a certified crisis counselor.