Lyle and Erik Menendez proceed to serve life sentences in jail for the brutal murders of their mother and father on August 20, 1989, when the brothers—then 21 and 18—shot and killed them of their household’s Beverly Hills mansion.
Smyth Had an Affair with the Menendez Brothers’ Therapist
Smyth met married Oziel in June 1989 whereas working a tape-duplicating enterprise, and proposed they promote tapes of him discussing psychology. They started an affair, and Judalon even moved in with Jerome and his spouse, Laurel, for just a few months throughout their relationship, based on the Los Angeles Occasions. Laurel claimed that Jerome was sincere along with her concerning the affair, but in addition acknowledged that they felt “held hostage by this woman in our own home.”
Erik confessed to his psychiatrist, Dr. Oziel, who then shared the knowledge with Smyth. Nevertheless, it wasn’t till Oziel ended his extramarital affair with Smyth just a few months later that she went to the police and revealed what she knew concerning the confession. When she knowledgeable the police, she disclosed that Erik had admitted to the murders throughout remedy and that there have been audiotaped recordings of the confession. The brothers have been arrested in March 1990, resulting in a multi-year authorized battle over the admissibility of Oziel’s recordings.
“I never thought I believed in evil, but when I heard those boys speak, I did,” Smyth advised investigative journalist Dominic Dunne in 1990.
Oziel’s testimony grew to become essential within the trial, regardless of challenges associated to doctor-patient confidentiality. He claimed the brothers had threatened his life, which allowed his testimony to be deemed admissible.
Smyth Testified on Behalf of the Protection
Smyth testified that Jerome had persuaded the Menendez brothers to tape a session as a result of “he needed to get them to say incriminating things on a tape so we would have the tape to protect us.” She additionally claimed he advised Erik and Lyle {that a} recording would exhibit their regret over killing their mother and father.
Smyth initially claimed she was listening on the opposite aspect of the workplace door, as Oziel had allegedly instructed her to eavesdrop through the brothers’ dialogue about killing their mother and father. Nevertheless, through the trial, she testified that she had circuitously heard them admit to the murders. Smyth asserted that Oziel had brainwashed her into believing she had heard these issues.
Smyth Later Spoke Out In opposition to Oziel
Smyth filed two lawsuits in opposition to her former lover, claiming he had allegedly assaulted, raped, and compelled her to take prescribed drugs, based on the Los Angeles Occasions in 1993. She later testified that she believed Oziel was planning to kill her, prompting her to enter hiding for her personal safety.
