Leslie Abramson was a defense attorney, one of the most well-known names from Lyle and Erik Menendez’s trial. After one jury deadlocked in their initial trial, another was held, and the brothers were found guilty of first-degree murder of their parents, José and Mary Louise “Kitty” Menendez, as well as conspiracy to murder in 1996. So, did Lyle and Erik remain in contact with Leslie?
It does not appear that Leslie stayed in touch with either Lyle or Erik following their 1996 conviction. The siblings were sent to separate prisons and then reunited in 2018. Since then, they have been incarcerated at San Diego’s Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility.
Who Is Leslie Abramson?
Leslie is a former attorney from Queens, New York. According to The Washington Post, she relocated to Los Angeles in the 1960s and earned a law degree from UCLA. The mother of two spoke with the journal after Lyle and Erik’s 1996 conviction, and she described taking a “breather” from the highly publicized proceedings.
“This case was incredibly stressful the first time around, and was monstrous the second time,” Leslie told me. “Certainly, this will be my final capital case for a time. I need a break from this. But at the same time, I’m not ready to do nothing.”
Leslie described the Menendez brothers as “troubled” children who eventually “cracked” as a result of alleged emotional, physical, and sexual abuse during their youth.
“I’ve represented people charged with murder for 27 years, and these guys just don’t measure up to anybody else I’ve ever represented,” Leslie added, emphasizing that “these are not murderers.”
These are problematic children in a terrible and horrific home setting, and they cracked. The verdict and sentence are grotesquely disproportionate to what transpired here. When children kill their parents, something is amiss with the family. It’s a different moral mix for a sexual predator who murders strangers.
What were Leslie’s Views on the Final Verdict of The Case?
Netflix resurrected the Menendez brothers’ narrative in October 2024, using never-before-seen photos, trial footage, and interviews with important participants. Abramson wasn’t one of them. At the end of the documentary, simply named The Menendez Brothers, a title card showed that Abramson believed nothing else could be done for the brothers.
The documentary was made in 2023, some 30 years after Erik and Lyle were convicted of first-degree murder and condemned to two life imprisonment with no possibility of parole.
Abramson would have been 80 years old at the time, with a good career and a life to enjoy with her siblings, whom she fought so hard to keep. When reached by the filmmakers, her attitude did not reflect the feisty lady who refused to give up on those she called “the boys.”
“Thirty years is a long time,” Abramson stated in an email. “I want to move forward from the past. No amount of media coverage or teenage petitions will change the fate of these clients. Only the courts can accomplish that, and they have already ruled.”
A lot can happen in three decades, especially when revisiting a case like this might result in reopening a whole host of old wounds. Still, seeing this once-passionate advocate stripped of optimism for the Menendez brothers’ future is heartbreaking.
Was Leslie Abramson Gagged During the Trail?
Leslie Abramson was indeed gagged during the Menendez brothers’ retrial.
Sharon Waxman covered the Menendez brothers’ retrial for the Washington Post and reported that Abramson, who is typically vocal, was pouting at the defense table.
She was forced to spend time “fiddling with pens and papers, as co-counsel Barry Levin, practically mute through the seven-month proceeding, argued against the death penalty and for life in prison without parole.” Abramson had been accused of tampering with evidence and was dealing with the consequences.
As the retrial neared its end, Dr. William Vicary, who had met with Erik during his first year in jail, admitted to altering his notes at Abramson’s request. He ultimately removed 24 passages during the 1993 trial and was caught when the state realized their notes differed.
The prosecution requested she be moved from the case, but the judge decided on a gag order instead.
Where is Leslie Abramson Now?
Following the Menendez brothers’ trial, Leslie represented producer Phil Spector. He was charged with second-degree murder for Lana Clarkson’s death in 2003. Leslie eventually withdrew from the case, and Phil was found guilty of second-degree murder in 2009. Leslie hasn’t been seen in public since then.
In Netflix’s October 2024 documentary The Menendez Brothers, Leslie declined an interview.
Leslie has two children. She has kept their names and personal lives out of the public glare.
About Monster Season 2
In the second installment of the Monster anthology series, Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan tackle another high-profile case that captivated the nation in the ’90s. Coming to Netflix on Sept. 19, Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story tells the story of two brothers who killed their parents on Aug. 20, 1989, and the events surrounding the brutal slayings. (Both were convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Created by Murphy and Brennan, the first iteration of Monster, DAHMER — Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story premiered in 2022 and chronicled Jeffrey Dahmer’s (Evan Peters) gruesome murders between 1978 and 1991. DAHMER was a record-breaking success on Netflix, reaching 1 billion view hours in its first 60 days. The 10-episode series is only one of four series, including Stranger Things and Squid Game, to achieve such a milestone. Hot off the first iteration’s success, Monster was picked up for two additional installments of following notorious figures who left their mark on society. Here’s everything you need to know about Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story.
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