Inside a celebrity-backed campaign to free the Menendez brothers

You meet the most interesting people in solitary confinement.

As for former New York mobster Michael Franzese, in prison for a parole violation, those men encountered Eric and Lyle Menendez while serving time at the Los Angeles County Federal Correctional Institution.

Notorious for killing their parents – including father Jose, a show business big shot who claimed they sexually abused them – the Menendez brothers were serving their combined 1996 life sentences without parole. As of 2018, several years after meeting Franzese, they have been married to Richard J. of Southern California. Donovan remains in a correctional facility.

But they are not detained for long. Now there is a movement to shorten those sentences and demand their release. It was inspired by the Netflix biographical series “Monsters: The Lyle and Eric Menendez Story” produced by Ryan Murphy.

Dropped this past September, it tells the story of murderous brothers, the alleged sex predators of their father Jose and their laissez-faire mother Kitty. Franzese raved about it on his YouTube channel and said the brothers had “done it long enough”.

Franzese arrived at this opinion through first-hand knowledge. “Lyle opened up to me and told me about the abuse,” Franzese told the Post. “I asked him a lot of questions. I have a good BS detector, and I believe they were abused by their father.”

Having said that, he remembers some of the strange words that came out of Lyle's mouth in hopes of not dying behind bars: “I'll never forget him telling me [if he gets released from prison] 'I don't know what I'm going to do without my dad.'

Despite everything, Franzese added, “They depended on him. [Lyle] Always expressed love for her father — despite being mistreated by her father. She said she was afraid of him. But she was a force in his life.”

Now, the ex-mobster actor is among a diverse cadre of relatives, influencers and other brothers rallying for his early release. Kim Kardashian, Rosie O'Donnell, rapper Anare “X-Ridded” Brown and dozens of relatives have all rallied for a reconsideration of the life sentence.

Embattled Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascon — whispering the ultra-liberal DA is desperate for a public comeback as he faces a re-election challenge in November — announced he would review Lyle and Eric's sentences and decide whether to. Reconsideration is justified.

He briefly posted and quickly deleted a screenshot of a letter from Eric to his cousin, uncovered by Robert Rand, who wrote a non-fiction book about the murder of the brothers. “I'm trying to avoid Dad,” the letter said. “Every night I wake up thinking he's coming.”

Some believe it provides evidence of alleged molestation.

The brothers have been incarcerated since 1990, convicted of first-degree murder for parricide — the 1989 killing of their parents. They claimed Jose sexually assaulted them while mother Kitty stood by in silence. Roy Rossello, of boy band Menu, has made similar claims against Jose since his conviction.

Eric and Lyle maintained double murder, which they admitted to self-defense, because they claimed their parents would kill them to stop exposing their father.

For years, the Menendez brothers were almost a punchline and their chances of ever seeing the light of day seemed remote. Then Ryan Murphy covered the alleged sexual assault, murder, and two trials in the Netflix series – the first was declared a mistrial.

The series was panned by Variety and the brothers hated it, insisting it was “horrible” and “full of naive lies”, particularly objecting to scenes that implied the brothers had an adulterous relationship.

Murphy responded, “It's really, really hard — if it's your life — to see your life on screen.”

But then something unexpected happened. “Younger people saw it and were very offended by the characterization,” Mark Geragos, Lyle and Eric's lawyer, told The Post. “The Ryan Murphy thing created a reaction that was really helpful. To that extent, when Ryan Murphy said, 'I'm the best thing that ever happened to them,' because he was on top. It was so outrageous that I think the reaction helped.”

Much as Franzes respected Lyle and Eric, he had no respect for their post-murder behavior – particularly a luxury shopping spree that saw them spend their dead parents' money on a Rolex watch and a Porsche – which is said to have been lacking. The grief that kept law enforcement on their tail.

“I can tell you those guys weren't real criminals … they were amateurs,” Franzes said. “They didn't act properly after the whole thing. I mean they went out and bought a car! They should have done the opposite.”

Since dropping the series, the brothers have also captured the interest of reality star-turned-social-justice advocate Kim Kardashian.

“They are kind, intelligent and honest men … my hope is that the life sentences of Eric and Lyle Menendez will be reconsidered,” he wrote in an essay for NBC.

Rosie O'Donnell claimed to have been penpals with Lyle for 30 years after an appearance on “Larry King Live.” He ignored the advice of Barbara Walters, who warned, “He's a murderer. He's very clever.”

These days, O'Donnell and Lyle speak frequently on the phone – his wife, former magazine reporter Rebecca Snead, confirmed they connected on Mother's Day 2023 – and he hugs the brothers when he visits them in prison. O'Donnell describes herself as a “big sister” and a “cheerleader” for their independence.

Rapper Anare “X-Rided” Brown has opened up about the brothers encouraging him to take classes in prison, enroll in Narcotics Anonymous and abandon his violent past as a Crips gang member who went to prison for his involvement in a murder.

“They served time equivalent to the crime they committed in terms of child abuse, sexual abuse and psychological abuse,” Brown, now free, told the Post. “I very much believe they rehabilitated dozens of other men, including myself and myself.”

Earlier this week, at a news conference in downtown Los Angeles, Menendez's family members, young and old, rallied for Lyle and Eric's release. Joan Andersen Vandermolen, Kitty's 92-year-old sister, expressed unwavering sympathy for her nephews. “It became clear,” he said, “that their actions – while tragic – were the desperate response of two boys trying to survive unspeakable cruelty.[ty] of their father.”

While it's unclear what their financial situation will be when they get out of prison — “I've never asked about that,” said Geragos, who believes any family money left is “long gone” — rapper Honorary “X-Raid” Brown has any No worries.

“They have powerful allies including me [who would] Menendez finds it unacceptable that the brothers are not financially secure,” X-Raided said.

But not everyone is willing to write off the blood on the hands of the Menendez brothers. Their uncle, Milton Andersen, Kitty's 90-year-old brother, wants to see them serve life in prison. Anderson maintains, according to her attorney Kathy Cady, “her nephews were not molested.”

As Cady told Andersen's Eyewitness News, “He believed it was a hoax and the motive was pure greed.”

Brown acknowledged that “nobody puts a limit on how long people are suffering,” but he believes that, outside of prison, Lyle and Eric Menendez will make powerful contributions to society. “They've got a lot of time in terms of the crime and the motivation behind it. The success of the brothers and the way they perform in society, once they are released, everything will be fair.”