True Crime

Big twist for Erik and Lyle Menendez ... a judge who may have been sympathetic to their bid to get out of prison is off the case, and a new judge is coming on board.

The case has been transferred to the Van Nuys Courthouse, which is where the brothers were originally tried for murdering their parents, and the new judge coming into the fold is Michael V. Jesic of the Los Angeles County Superior Court.

Jesic is a former district attorney who is known as a law and order guy and for being prosecution-oriented ... and he's described as being very smart and fair.

Gypsy Rose Blanchard is cutting through the confusion about her unborn child's paternity -- we're told she’s finally set to take a paternity test this week!

Sources familiar with the situation tell TMZ Gypsy isn’t questioning her boyfriend Ken Urker's paternity -- she’s doing this to give the public, and her estranged ex Ryan Anderson, some closure -- so he and everyone else can move on and know once and for all RA is not the baby daddy.

We’re hearing that Ryan hasn’t been clued in about the test because Gypsy doesn’t need his DNA -- she only needs Ken’s to confirm he’s the baby daddy. She’s confident it's him -- but if he's not, the results will clearly show he’s a 0% match.

The Menendez brothers are a step closer to potentially getting out of prison ... because Los Angeles' District Attorney just filed the document officially asking a judge to resentence them.

D.A. George Gascón filed the motion mere minutes ago ... asking a judge to change the brothers' sentences from life without the possibility of parole to life with the possibility of parole. Because of time served, this would allow them to potentially be released from prison immediately.

It's a long document ... but, basically, the D.A.'s office says Erik and Lyle have been upstanding inmates and no longer present a risk to public safety -- so, there's no reason to keep them locked up.

Gypsy Rose Blanchard's telling the Menendez brothers to tread carefully ... because while people are currently advocating for them, she knows from personal experience it won't always be like that.

We spoke with Gypsy, and she tells us she hopes all the facts of their case are taken into account, and they have a peaceful transition back into society if they're released following Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascón's decision to advocate for resentencing.

That said, GRB says she worries society's building them up only to tear them down just like she says they've done to her.

The Menendez brothers' possible resentencing is music to Lyle’s first wife’s ears ... 'cause she tells TMZ she’s still standing by the pair, despite her own rocky history with her ex-hubby.

Anna Eriksson, who was married to Lyle from 1996 to 2001, tells TMZ that even though Lyle shattered her trust when a misdirected letter revealed he had feelings for someone else, it doesn’t change her stance -- she still believes the brothers should be freed.

Anna gives us more insight into her heartbreak, admitting she actually fainted when she found out Lyle was all in for someone else. Even though he wanted to work things out, she wasn’t having it -- she says she told him he taught her not to put up with things like that -- and she filed for divorce.

Kim Kardashian is thrilled the Menendez bros have a shot at freedom, and she's singling out Ryan Murphy as a judicial influencer who got the D.A. to act.

Fact is ... there was a hearing set for Erik and Lyle Menendez to make their case long before Murphy's 'Monsters' dropped on Netflix. But L.A. County D.A. George Gascón did make a point that he accelerated the process because of public interest in the wake of the documentary -- presumably he's referring to the Paramount doc.

As for Kim, she was effusive ... "Thank you, George Gascon, for revisiting the Menendez brothers' case and righting a significant wrong."

Some true-crime junkies are getting way too pushy, trespassing at the former house of the Menendez brothers ... and Beverly Hills police are dreading what that could mean for Halloween, TMZ has learned.

Here's the deal ... thanks to a hella popular Netflix series and doc ... people have been swarming the affluent Beverly Hills location where Lyle and Erik Menendez brutally murdered their parents in '89 ... the duo later claimed it was a response to the severe lifelong abuse they endured.

Police tell TMZ ... what were initially calls from pissed neighbors about an uptick in foot and car traffic  -- annoying, but not illegal -- have now escalated to straight-up trespassing ... and in one case, an apparent break-in caught on TikTok.

Erik and Lyle Menendez don't deserve to get out of prison over new molestation allegations against their father ... at least according to a reporter who was in court for the brothers' first trial.

USC journalism professor Alan Abrahamson joined us on "TMZ Live" and we asked his thoughts on the Menendez brothers' new push to get out of prison, despite life sentences without parole.

Alan covered Erik and Lyle's first highly televised trial in 1993 -- which ended in a mistrial -- for the Los Angeles Times, and he says he sees the brothers as stone-cold killers who deserve to spend the rest of their days behind bars.

Shocking turn of events in a nearly 30-year-old trial ... the judge who presided over the murder case of Michael Jordan's slain father, James Jordan, has stunningly asked parole officials to release the convicted killer ... saying he fears the wrong guy could be behind bars.

Retired Judge Gregory Weeks, who oversaw the 1996 murder trial, petitioned the North Carolina state parole board, calling on the commission to release Daniel Green, the man who was found guilty of killing MJ's dad in the mid-90s during a botched robbery.

The reason? Judge Weeks says a forensic blood expert failed to disclose key findings during the trial ... evidence that could've cast doubt as to whether Green was guilty of the horrific crime.

Gypsy Rose Blanchard is looking to move on from her trauma ... saying she plans to avoid future awkward conversations about her late mother Clauddine "Dee Dee" Blanchard when her own baby arrives.

The convict-turned-reality star stopped by Nick Viall's "The Viall Files" podcast Wednesday, where she addressed how she'll broach her complicated past with her daughter -- who she's set to welcome with boyfriend Ken Urker next year.

Per Gypsy Rose, she finds it "heartbreaking" her mother won't have a relationship with her little girl, admitting she thinks "from time to time" about what could've been.

Nightmare scenario for Joe Exotic ... he tells us he's been infected with a painful skin condition, part of a huge outbreak at the Texas prison where he's doing time.

The "Tiger King" star tells TMZ ... He's among 300 inmates in quarantine at FMC Forth Worth. Joe says he's one of 140 inmates with confirmed cases of scabies.

According to the CDC, scabies is a skin infestation caused by a human itch mite ... and it causes intense itching and a pimple-like skin rash.

Rosie O'Donnell says people need to stop hating on the Menendez brothers ... asking people to show more compassion, as new evidence surfaces in the decades-old case.

The TV personality took a few questions at LAX this week ... all about Erik and Lyle Menendez, who O'Donnell publicly came out in support of after the documentary series "Menendez: Monsters or Misjudged" dropped on Max in 2022.

Rosie said people need to show grace and understanding for the brothers' crime, because they were abused young men who had no choice but to shoot and kill both of their parents back in 1989.

A female juror from the Menendez brothers' first trial is speaking out -- about how sexism and homophobia impacted that outcome, and why she thinks they deserve to walk free now.

Hazel Thornton, who voted to convict Erik and Lyle Menendez of voluntary manslaughter back in 1994, joined us on "TMZ Live" ... and claims the male jurors she served with didn't buy the argument the brothers were molested by their dad, José Menendez, and also felt the public pressure to make a "macho" decision.

Hazel elaborated that homophobia was the biggest issue in the trial, highlighting how the case's prosecutor suggested the family's problems stemmed from Erik allegedly being gay.

"American Horror Story" alum Naomi Grossman is coming to Ryan Murphy's defense amid the growing debate surrounding "Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story."

ICYMI ... the Menendez brothers have made it clear they aren't fans of the show, with EM previously bashing the Netflix drama as a "dishonest portrayal of the tragedies surrounding our crime."

Yet, when we caught up with Naomi in Santa Monica, California, she voiced her shock at the siblings' outrage ... since she felt the show painted Lyle and Erik as "total victims."

Lyle and Erik Menendez's lawyer is feeling confident after the L.A. County District Attorney's Office announced they're reviewing new evidence in the Menendez brothers case ... which could potentially result in the brothers' release from prison.

We had Mark Geragos on "TMZ Live" Friday, where he explained why he has a positive outlook about his clients' case following Thursday's press conference. As Geragos puts it ... D.A. George Gascón is brave to touch the controversial 35-year-old case in an election year, as Gascón himself is on the ballot in November.

The lawyer feels the D.A. is serious when he said his office is reviewing sexual abuse claims Lyle and Erik have made against their late father, Jose Menendez. Those allegations were not allowed to be presented in the brothers' 2nd murder trial ... which led to their life without parole convictions.

Erik and Lyle Menendez are experiencing newfound fame behind bars thanks to the popular Netflix series about the gruesome murders of their parents ... and there's a weird request that keeps coming up in the fan mail that's been pouring in, TMZ has learned.

A source with knowledge at Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility in San Diego tells TMZ ... the infamous Menendez brothers have seen a "huge" increase in mail from fans (and, of course, some haters) thanks to wild interest in Netflix's "Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story."

Perhaps the most interesting item the brothers are being sent ... 1990-91 Hoops Mark Jackson NBA cards -- the brothers are on the card, snapped sitting in the Knicks crowd, after the murders, before their arrests -- and people want 'em autographed.