Closed Courthouse Delays Lyle Menendez Case

In an unprecedented delay for a high-profile trial, court officials have put off deliberations in the Lyle Menendez murder case until at least Monday because of earthquake damage to the Van Nuys courthouse.

Superior Court officials had hoped to resume deliberations Thursday. But the courthouse, in the San Fernando Valley just a few miles east of the quake’s epicenter, remained closed as inspectors tested for asbestos exposure.

Legal experts said the long and traumatic layoff will inevitably have a substantial impact on the jury.

“Major life events change people’s perspectives,” said Laurie Levenson, a professor at Loyola law school. “They may have a new perspective on the case.”

Lyle Menendez, 26, and Erik Menendez, 23, are charged with murder in the Aug. 20, 1989, shotgun slayings of their wealthy parents, Jose Menendez, 45, and Kitty Menendez, 47.

The sons admit they shot the parents Aug. 20, 1989, in the TV room of the family’s Beverly Hills mansion. But they testified during the six-month trial that they fired in fear and self-defense after years of physical, emotional and sexual abuse. Prosecutors contend that the brothers killed out of hatred and greed.

Two juries heard the case because some evidence was admitted against only one brother. Superior Court Judge Stanley M. Weisberg declared a mistrial in the Erik Menendez case on Jan. 13 after that jury reported it was hopelessly deadlocked.

The Lyle Menendez jury deliberated for a 22nd day on Jan. 14 without having sent any notes to the judge signaling a deadlock. Its last note, sent Jan. 13, asked three questions on legal definitions relating to manslaughter.

The earthquake caused major damage to the sixth and seventh floors of the Van Nuys courthouse, knocking ceiling tiles, courtroom paneling and at least one slab of marble to the floor.

Concerned that the shaking may have released asbestos particles into the air, inspectors set up specialized nozzles around the courthouse Thursday to test for fibers.

Robert Letteau, supervising judge at the courthouse, said he is hopeful of reopening next week. If the building can’t be reopened by then, court officials said, the Lyle Menendez jury could be placed in one of several trailers ringing the courthouse--usually used as extra courtrooms--or in the Van Nuys Municipal Court building next door.

It is unlikely that deliberations will be moved to Downtown Los Angeles or to another court location, officials said.

All 12 Lyle Menendez jurors--and the sole remaining alternate--live in the San Fernando Valley. It did not appear that any jurors were hurt in the quake, but court officials said several jurors, reached Thursday morning by phone, reported that they were not yet ready to come back.

Legal experts said there was no question that the deliberations can resume. Los Angeles courts have faced delays before--such as after the 1992 riots--though not this long.

If the courthouse remains shut next week, the toughest question facing Weisberg will be how long to wait before ordering jurors back to court.

In cases of “extraordinary circumstances,” judges have wide leeway to run their courtrooms as they see fit, and circumstances this week are “as extraordinary as they get,” Levenson noted.

Jurors might be angry if ordered back before they are ready, the experts said. But there’s no way to predict how the quake will affect deliberations when they resume.

“The fate of the Menendez brothers and the cosmic significance of this case has to have been reduced in perspective, given the reality we’ve all gone through these last few days,” said Robert Pugsley, a Southwestern University professor of criminal law.

“Weighing against that is the fact that they’ve invested six months of their lives and energy in the trial,” he said.

“I do think that the jurors will press quickly for any compromise that was in the works when the case was interrupted, if there was such a compromise,” Pugsley added. “Or if they can quickly determine that compromise is not in the works without several more days of discussion, then (they) will report themselves hung.”