The Menendez brothers are back in the spotlight due to “Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story.”
Lyle and Erik Menendez received consecutive life sentences in 1996 after killing their parents.
Lyle Menendez was first married to Anna Eriksson, and is now married to Rebecca Sneed.
“Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story” has thrust the brothers, who were found guilty of first-degree murder in 1996, back into the spotlight.
Both brothers are serving life sentences after admitting that they killed their parents, José and Kitty Menendez, in 1989. During their trial, they alleged a history of abuse by their parents led them to murder. Erik and their extended family has criticized “Monsters,” calling it a “gross, anachronistic, serial episodic nightmare.”
Despite being in prison, both Erik and Lyle have gotten married. Erik married his wife Tammi Menendez in 1999 while he was in prison. Lyle, in addition to a correspondence-based friendship with a woman called Norma Novelli, who recorded and later sold phone conversations with him, has been married twice.
Here’s what we know about Lyle’s two marriages.
Lyle Menendez was first married to Anna Eriksson
The Los Angeles Times reported that Lyle and Eriksson, a former model, met by mail after Lyle and Erik’s arrest in 1990. Lyle declared his love for Eriksson in a “20/20” interview with Barbara Walters, and the pair attempted to have a Judge Nancy Brown marry them in her courtroom a day before Lyle and Erik’s sentencing. However, court and jail officials prevented the ceremony.
The two were secretly married via telephone conference call that day, The New York Times reported. Lyle and Erik, who served as his best man, phoned into the wedding, and defense lawyer Leslie Abramson placed the ring on Eriksson’s finger for Lyle. Eriksson was present the next day when the brothers were sentenced to consecutive life sentences, the Times reported.
The California Department of Corrections, however, did not consider the marriage to be legal, The Los Angeles Times reported in October 1997.
People reported that Eriksson filed for divorce in 2001 after she discovered that Lyle had been unfaithful and sent letters to other women.
Lyle Menendez then married Rebecca Sneed
Lyle married Rebecca Sneed two years later, in 2003, when he was 35 and she was 33. They were married in a ceremony at Mule Creek State Prison, witnessed by friends and family, The Los Angeles Times reported. A spokesperson for the prison told the publication that Lyle and Sneed had known each other for ten years at the time.
People reported in 2017 that Sneed lived near Mule Creek State Prison and worked as an attorney. In an interview with the publication that year, Lyle said that he and Sneed attempted to speak with each other at least once a day. California state law prohibits conjugal visits for those serving life sentences.
“Our interaction tends to be very free of distractions and we probably have more intimate conversations than most married spouses do, who are distracted by life’s events,” he said.
He told People that he felt guilt for the judgment that Sneed faced as his wife.
“But she has the courage to deal with the obstacles,” he said. “It would be easier to leave, but I’m profoundly grateful that she doesn’t.”
News
Elon Musk’s daughter declares she “wants to have a familial relationship” with her father
Musk’s transgender daughter filed the legal docs one day after turning 18. Elon Musk’s transgender daughter has filed legal documents in court to change her name and gender while also pursuing a new birth certificate. According to legal documents obtained by…
Unpacking Elon Musk’s turbulent dating history and the 12 children he has fathered
Two marriages, 12 kids and several high-profile romances (see: Amber Heard, Grimes), Elon Musk is indeed, as he said in a 2023 eponymous biography, “just a fool for love.” Turns out Elon Musk‘s months-long romance with Amber Heard cut deep. Smitten from the moment he saw the…
Elon Musk shares very rare picture of four-year-old son for special reason
Elon is dad to 11 children May 4 has been a day of celebration for Elon Musk, as his seventh child – son X – has turned four. “Lil X turns 4 today on May 4th,” Elon shared with followers on his…
Elon Musk creates the world’s most exclusive school: Buys a mansion to house 20 students
California school is named Ad Astra, which is Latin for ‘to the stars’ It is shrouded in secrecy, with no known websites or social media accounts Billionaire has five sons, nine year-old twins, and seven year-old triplets School doesn’t provide…
Inside Elon Musk’s luxurious $9.5 million and $30 million homes in Bel-Air
Elon Musk may only be the 23rd richest person in the world, but when it comes to real estate, he has top-ten billionaire taste. The Tesla founder recently took to Twitter to announce he’d be selling all his property (a move girlfriend Grimes…
Grimes reveals she and Elon Musk once lived in a ‘$40,000 house and ‘ate peanut butter for eight days straight’ after Tesla CEO sold his house
Grimes has revealed she and Musk, 50, lived in a ‘very insecure $40,000 home’ The 33-year-old singer told Vanity Fair he ‘doesn’t live a billionaire’s lifestyle’ Comes after the Tesla CEO, who is worth an estimated $228.7 billion, vowed to…
End of content
No more pages to load