Netflix
Content warning: This article contains content that some readers may find distressing, including discussions on murder and sexual abuse.
Ryan Murphy’s latest true crime drama on Netflix, “Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story,” has rekindled the public’s interest in one of the most infamous murder cases in American history. The brutal murder of José and Kitty Menéndez by their sons in 1989 was first brought to the public’s attention when the trial of Lyle and Erik was televised on Court TV in 1993. The case had all the elements of a captivating true crime story: a seemingly perfect family, contradictory testimonies, sexual abuse, gruesome murders, and a fair share of side drama amongst the supporting characters for added intrigue.
The arrest of the Menéndez brothers was triggered by an unexpected informant: their psychologist’s mistress, Judalon Smyth (portrayed by Leslie Grossman in “Monsters”). Smyth informed the police about the existence of audiotaped confessions of the murders, along with other crucial information. In a Vanity Fair interview that same year, she asserted that she had overheard the Menéndez brothers admitting to the crime and threatening their psychologist, Dr. Jerome Oziel, while listening at his office door.
However, the relationship between Oziel and Smyth was fraught with scandal and controversy, extending beyond the fact that Oziel was a married man. A few weeks after tipping off the police, Smyth sued Oziel, accusing him of exploiting his position as her therapist to drug her and subjecting her to physical and sexual assault during their relationship. In response, Oziel’s lawyer likened Smyth to Glenn Close’s infamous character in “Fatal Attraction.” (Oziel lost his license to practice psychology in 1997 following a state board complaint that he had violated confidentiality rules and engaged in sexual relations with female patients; he surrendered his license but did not admit to any misconduct.)
Three years after her pivotal role in the arrest of the Menéndez brothers, Smyth retracted her initial account and testified for the defense. She claimed that she had only heard “bits and pieces” of the conversation and that Oziel had manipulated her into believing she had heard more, including threats against his life by the brothers.
What happened to Judalon Smyth after the events of Monsters
Reelz Channel
As a key witness in a murder trial that was the center of a media frenzy, Judalon Smyth was essentially put on trial herself in the court of public opinion.
“I really didn’t understand the attack I was going to come under for doing the right thing,” she said in an interview for the 2015 Reelz Channel series “Murder Made Me Famous.” Much like the murder of Dee Dee Blanchard, the Menéndez case has divided opinion over whether the Menéndez brothers truly were “monsters,” or whether they were victims who had finally fought back after years of abuse. Some who are sympathetic to the killers see Smyth as a snitch; she recalled the papers calling her a “nutball” and criticizing her for having “loose lips.”
In “Murder Made Me Famous,” Smyth is careful to specify that she only overheard “parts” of the conversation in Oziel’s office (in keeping with her “bits and pieces” testimony from 20 years earlier), but says that she “did overhear them say that they killed their parents.” Justifying why she didn’t go to the police until March 1990, despite overhearing the conversation in October 1989, Smyth says that she was “scared” of becoming a fresh target for the Menéndez brothers. “I mean, if you’ll kill your parents, who won’t you kill?”
At the time of her relationship with Oziel, Smyth was running her own audiobook business. Her LinkedIn page indicates she’s gone through several career shifts since then, including freelance work in the entertainment business and founding several other companies. She mostly stayed out of the public eye after the initial publicity storm surrounding the trial, and hasn’t given any media interviews about the Menéndez case since appearing in “Murder Made Me Famous.”
“Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story” is available now on Netflix.
Credit: www.slashfilm.com
