Erik and Lyle Menendez were sentenced to life in prison in 1996 after they were pronounced guilty of murdering their parents out of greed in August 1989. However, they have been serving their sentence in different prisons for more than three decades.

The case of the Menendez brothers, who are in their 50s now, resurfaced after the footage of their trials became viral on the social media app TikTok. The brothers were praised for their attractive looks and gained the support of hundreds of thousands of TikTok fans fighting to set the brothers set free.

Erik also has a wife named Tammi and a daughter who have started an Instagram page for him. His daughter runs the account and makes posts with #seterikmenendezfree to encourage people to raise their voices to free Erik from prison.

How Tammi Menendez Met Erik Menendez

During her talk with the NBC, she expressed she felt a deep sense of empathy for Erik and wanted to support him emotionally when she saw the footage of the trials featuring the Menendez brothers. 

Fascinated by Erik, she started sending him letters starting from his second trial, and to her surprise, he actually started writing back to her.

They would frequently write to each other even when he was sent to prison. Then, they started talking to each other on the telephone and confessed their love for one another. 

Tammi visited Erik in prison, and although she reported that their first meeting wasn't romantic, they continued seeing each other regularly.

How People Reacted to Tammi Getting Married To a Convicted Murderer

Tammi moved from Minnesota to California to be closer to the love of her life, and the duo exchanged vows and was officially married on June 12, 1999, in the waiting room of Folsom State Prison.

"It was a wonderful ceremony until I had to leave," Tammi said. "That was a very lonely night."

People were horrified when they heard her getting married to a convicted murderer, but she told NBC that her mom is still supportive of her decision.

Tammi Menendez on Freeing the Menendez Brothers

Tammi has admitted that Erik is guilty of killing his parents but added that the parents were a threat to him and his brother, which led to their murder. 

I do know the person that Erik is. I know his heart; I know his soul. I do know what happened that night and I do understand – I believe that within everybody, put in certain circumstances, you will be able to kill somebody.

Talia Menendez Raises Awareness for Erik Menendez's release 

Erik is not permitted conjugal visits, and therefore, has no children with Tammi. However, Tammi has a daughter, Talia Menendez, with her first husband, who died of suicide. Talia visits her "Earth Dad" every weekend. 

After the footage went viral on TikTok, Erik's daughter started an Instagram page in September 2020 to release her dad from prison.

Talia shares pictures of her dad with sweet anecdotes of the time she shared with her dad in her childhood. The page has almost 14 thousand followers, and it continues to gain popularity from people to free the convicted murders.