How were the Menendez brothers caught and where is their therapist now?

No matter how gripping the stories can be, true crime content on Netflix never fails to get people talking. The streamer’s latest buzz-worthy release is the second installment of Ryan Murphy’s Monsters anthology series. After chronicling the cannibalistic antics and capture of Jeffrey Dahmer in 2022, this year the TV mogul explores how the notorious Menendez brothers – Lyle and Erik – tried to get away with the murder of their parents, Kitty and Jose. The California family were incredibly wealthy, but behind their picture-perfect facade were dark secrets and allegations of sexual abuse.

In August 1989, Jose and Kitty were found dead in their Beverly Hills home after being shot more than 14 times. At first, the boys (18 and 21 at the time) appeared innocent thanks to their alibis. They used previously purchased shotguns to commit the murders and then quickly fled the scene, “which was gruesome enough that it looked like the mob was involved,” according to StyleCaster. To throw police off their trail, Lyle and Erik frantically called 911, claiming they had been to the movies and returned home to a horrific tragedy.

Who was the therapist in the Menendez case?

Playing the part of grieving sons, the Menendez brothers amassed more than $700,000 ($1.8 million today) in luxuries after Kitty and Jose’s deaths. They bought a restaurant, Porches, and honed their tennis skills with a high-priced instructor, raising eyebrows in their community. According to Cosmopolitan , police wiretapped one of Erik’s friends in hopes of recording a murder confession, but it was actually a therapist named Jerome Oziel and his mistress who helped piece together the mystery.

Did Lyle and Erik Menendez confess?

Two months after killing his parents, Erik left Dr. Oziel a disturbing voice message that led to a private session on October 31. During their chat, the 18-year-old described nightmares and feelings of depression. He also confessed to the murders on tape, which the therapist later told his mistress, Judalon Smyth, about. After that relationship ended, Smyth went to authorities about Menendez’s confession, suggesting that she had heard one of the boys talking about shooting Kitty out of her eye socket.

Lyle was arrested on March 8, 1990, outside the Menendez home, while Erik was picked up a few days later at Los Angeles International Airport; the latter was on his way home from a tennis tournament in Israel. Because the brothers violated doctor-patient confidentiality by threatening Oziel’s life, the audio confession was used at trial—though it took more than two years for the evidence to be admissible.

Defense attorneys argued that Erik and Lyle acted in self-defense, but the prosecution stuck to the theory that the boys wanted their parents’ money. In addition to the motive, it was also noted that the Menendez brothers had purchased their guns days before the murder, suggesting premeditation. Despite being wealthy, the killers testified that Jose had sexually and emotionally abused them throughout their childhood and teenage years. Their cousin, Andy Cano, confirmed that Erik had told him about “genital massages” from Jose that “started to hurt.”

Is Dr. Oziel still practicing?

During the murder trial, defense attorney Leslie Abramson attempted to discredit Oziel with allegations of “inappropriate relationships with patients,” which Smyth supported but the doctor refuted. In 1997, Oziel was stripped of his license to practice psychology, the Los Angeles Times reported. His attorney spoke to the outlet about the situation, explaining, “It just didn’t make sense to go back to California and spend thousands of dollars defending a license he doesn’t use in a state he doesn’t live in.”

Dr. Oziel himself also reached out to Bustle about his work to clear up any misconceptions. “I did not surrender my license because of the accusation, which implies that I gave up my practice because I did things that were alleged in the original accusation. That is flat out and completely false,” he stated. “I had been winding down my practice because I had a large business offer that was very lucrative and had moved on to being the CEO of a large corporation in another state a year and a half prior to the surrender… No agency has ever found that I did anything inappropriate or wrong.” According to Hollywood Life, Dr. Oziel now lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico and practices at the Marital Mediation Center.