eric shot and killed their parents. would they be convicted today? >> if the menendez brothers were the menendez sisters, they'd be free today. >> and could they ever be released from prison? but first the "nightline" 5. . >>> number one in >> good evening, thanks for joining us. tonight, a rare jail house interview with one of the infamous menendez brothers who together murdered their parents in their lavish beverly hills mansion 27 years ago. were they spoiled kids run amok, or enraged victims of sexual abuse? we're about to hear from witnesses the jury never saw her heard almost three decades later. are we getting the full story? we warn you, some of the language you're about to hear is extremely graphic. >> i am the kid that did kill his parents. and no river of tears has changed that. >> tonight, lyle menendez speaking publicly fra prison in a rare interview, 27 years after he and his brother eric brutally murdered their parents. >> it's shocking to think about that happened, that i could have been involved in taking anyone's it seems unimaginable. seems so far re

so we may be seeing both lyle and eric menendez petition for a new trial and maybe we'll have trial number of the menendez brothers coming up. >> that will be fascinating. we've got to goment are you a minnesota man? >> no. i got stuck here. >> you did not get stuck. you are in the best state in the best city on the entire planet. >> she's from minnesota hill. >> michigan is the best state. michigan is the best state. >> take the exit, hill. >> the other m. >> thank you, my friend. we look forward to watching it. "how it happened" premiers to nine with a three-hour event. the men mendez brothers. >> we'll have the interview with lyle menendez, the first time you'll get to hear him talk about why he did what he did. 10:00 p.m. eastern, hln. enjoy it. what do you say, a little "good stuff?" >> next. that's why i have the spark cash card from capital one. with it, i earn unlimited 2% cash back on all of my purchasing. and that unlimited 2% cash back from spark means thousands of dollars each year going back into my business... which adds fuel to my bottom line. what's in your wallet? >>> all

and whatever joe thought would be right for a young man to behave. >> i met eric menendez when i was a photo shoot in beverly hills. he was natural in front of the camera, he was very comfortable. i don't think erik had the physical attributes to be a working model but he was photogenic. i think erik was struggling to find his way and i don't know the insides of what went on in their house because he didn't talk about it. >> describe your relationship with your father. >> brutal. painful. torturous. but yet i admired him because he was so strong and he was -- he was everything that success was that i was taught that success was. and i thought that he was the most powerful and brilliant person i had ever met. >> reporter: though the first trial ended in a hung jury, they were convicted of first-degree murder. sentenced to life in prison and no chance at parole. >> i'm more fully -- of course looking back, it's shocking to think about that that happened. that i could have been involved in taking my parents' life. it's still jarringly. it seems unimaginable because this seems so far rem

. >>> it's the case that captured the attention of the country, the menendez brothers eric and lyle convicted of killing their wealthy parents. lyle is speaking out for the first time in 20 years. here's abc news reporter angelica spanos. >> reporter: 27 years after killing their parents, abc news uncovers the hidden family unrest that led eric and lyle menendez to their brutal crime. >> as i went into the room i just started firing. >> reporter: what was in front of you? >> my parents. >> reporter: it was the original trial of the century, a rich hollywood movie executive and his wife gunned down, execution style, inside their palatial beverly hills estate. >> if you looked at the menendez brothers as teenagers you saw spoiled rich kids spending out of control. >> if i kill my parents i don't think i'd buy a porsche that first week. >> reporter: in an abc exclusive hear from one of the convicted brothers, lyle menendez telling his side of the story from inside prison describing what was really going on inside that home. >> secrets upon secrets. i was just trapped in the same nightmare. >> re

. >>> it was originally called the trial of the century. 20 years ago, eric and lyle menendez are behind bars and lyle menendez is speaking out about his life in jail. >> i'm the kid that didn't kill his parents. no amount of regret will change that. >> abc news turns back the clock on the trial that vated the country. and hidden clues are revealed between the turmoil of the menendez family behind their picture perfect facade. >> knew lyle menendez during the time of the trial he would call me from the l.a. county jail and found him to be a cold, somewhat sinister cunning person. he is different. you can hear it and you'll hear him from prison, a person that owns what he did. >> the abc news documentary truth and lies, american sons, american murderers airs at 9:00 on 6 abc and "action news" at 11:00 will follow. (sfx: rain and thunder) says it won't let up for a while. the cadillac xt5... what should we do? ...tailored to you. wait it out. equipped with apple carplay compatibility. ♪ get this low mileage lease on this cadillac xt5 from around $439 per month, or purchase with 1.9% apr fi

two beverly hills brothers, eric and lyle menendez, convicted of killing their wealthy parents in a grislybeen nearly three decades ago. a case that our terry moran has covered from the very start. >> i have. a long time ago. it's a case that has haunted me all these years since i covered it as a young reporter. it grabbed hold of me and never let go. the trial at the time, the crime of the century. it had all the ingredients. murder in beverly hills. a family shattered in the most horrifying way. as the case unfolded, shocking accusations of what was really going on in that home. the victims -- jose menendez, a cuban immigrant to this country, who made good, becoming a corporate chieftain on both coasts. and became a hollywood power broker. his wife, kitty, who seemed an all-american wife and mom. they seemed to have it all. their sons, lyle, 21 at the time of the crime, and eric, 18, good-looking, outgoing young guys. star tennis players. they had the brightest of futures ahead. behind the closed doors, it was a cauldron of lies and secrets. august 20, 1989, it all boiled over. jose and

they seemed to have it all, but the menendez brother, lyle and eric, they made their mark with murderin their beverly hills mansion. >> the infamous crime and the sensational trial that followed dominated headlines in the 1990s. well, now hln's new original series "how it really happened with hill harper" is taking a closer look. >> the defense may call its next witness. >> lyle was the first one to take the stand. even just hearing his voice was dramatic for everyone because it's very rare that you would get to hear from the mouth of someone who has committed a murder exactly how that murder went down. >> we just burst through the doors, and i start firing. >> they sat there matter of factually and explained that they did it. >> i entered the room. i saw two people in the room, and i just started firing. >> oh, my gosh. how many people would do that? >> i just fired until there was nothing left. >> there was things shattering and the noise was phenomenal. just chaos. >> so now the host of how it really happened with hill harper, hill harper, is joining us right now. great to see you,