(NewsNation) — With both sides of their family urging their release and the power to grant clemency in California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s hands, the Menendez brothers’ attorney Mark Geragos is hopeful the pair could be home for the holidays.
“I’ve reviewed all of this material, I’ve looked at it, and to me, it’s a no-brainer. They should be out. They’ve been in for 34 years,” Geragos said Friday on “Banfield,” referring to the 57-page correctional files detailing the brothers’ case history and deeds in prison.
Nathan Hochman, the newly elected Los Angeles County district attorney, previously told NewsNation the Menendez brothers’ resentencing recommendation will remain a top priority as he takes over the office from George Gascón.
Hochman’s review, if “dispassionate” and “rational,” will lead to their release, Geragos said Friday. But the power ultimately doesn’t lie in Hochman’s hands, he clarified.
“The law in the state of California is, once the D.A. moves for resentencing, it’s up to the judge,” Geragos explained. “So, while the D.A. can have input, it’s up to the judge.
“There is a separation of powers, and both the governor in the executive branch and the judicial branch are just as, if not more, important at this point than the D.A.’s office is,” he added.
Though Geragos wouldn’t elaborate on whether he’d heard from Newsom about the case recently, he said the governor has “has a heart” and has “shown that he’s kind of taken his own course” when it comes to granting clemency.
Erik and Lyle Menendez’s resentencing hearing has been set for Dec. 11, when a judge will decide whether they will have a shot at freedom after spending 34 years behind bars for the shotgun killings of their parents in 1989 at their Beverly Hills home.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.