As Lyle and Erik Menendez‘s case gained nationwide attention last year, Kim Kardashian took it upon herself to visit the brothers in prison as they serve their life sentence for the fatal 1989 shootings of their parents, José and Kitty Menendez. But a 2025 episode of The Kardashians has viewers talking about the family’s long-time connection to the Menendez brothers. So, did the Kardashian-Jenner family know the brothers before their crimes?
Find out everything we know about how long the Kardashians have known the Menendez brothers.
Are the Menendez Brothers Getting Released From Prison?
It’s unclear if Lyle and Erik will be released from prison anytime soon. They presented new evidence last year, and a resentencing hearing was scheduled to take place toward the end of 2024. However, that hearing was delayed to January 30, 2025, in order to give the new Los Angeles County District Attorney, Nathan Hochman, time to review the case.
Do the Menendez Brothers Know the Kardashians?
Before Kim visited the Menendez brothers in 2024, alongside actor Cooper Koch, Kris apparently knew both siblings in the 1980s. During an episode of The Kardashians that aired in early 2025, the family matriarch claimed she became acquainted with Lyle and Erik “in the ’80s.”
“You know, I knew those guys in the ’80s,” Kris told Kim before Kourtney Kardashian asked, “You knew the parents?” Kris then replied, “No. I knew the kids because Erik used to come over and play tennis with your dad on the weekends,” referring to the late Robert Kardashian Sr.
During a confessional, Kim pointed out being around 13 years old when Erik and Lyle’s trial took place in the 1990s.
“Now being older and seeing it from a different lens, 35 years later and knowing what I know now about the system, I just have a whole different outlook on it,” Kim said about Lyle and Erik’s case.
Did the Menendez Brothers Know O.J. Simpson?
According to The Menendez Murders author Robert Rand, O.J. Simpson was temporarily held in a jail cell next to Erik’s at one point, per The Hollywood Reporter.
“I remember Erik telling me that O.J. was just super friendly with all the deputies, and all the deputies you know, like, came around with signed pictures,” Rand previously told THR. “They were used to having celebrities of O.J.’s level in their custody. So, Erik was calling me like every night giving me updates, ‘This happened today or that happened today.’ But I had the impression that O.J. really appreciated the friendship and advice from Erik.”
In his book, Rand claimed that Lyle also spoke with O.J. and gave him advice about a defense team.
“O.J. and Lyle Menendez spent many hours in the jail’s attorney room while waiting for their attorneys or material witnesses,” Rand wrote in one excerpt. “For 100 hours of contact between the two inmates, the two high-profile prisoners talked openly and exchanged dozens of letters. Lyle advised O.J. he should consider taking a plea deal and O.J. briefly considered that option — according to Lyle — but later told Menendez he couldn’t do that because it would ruin his reputation and he would never work again.”
