Does Erik Menendez have a daughter? Here’s how Talia Menendez is related to him

25 October 2024, 15:23

By Sam Prance

Despite serving life in prison, Erik Menendez has a daughter who isn't in Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story and she is campaigning for his release in real life.

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Viewers of Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story may not realise that Erik Menendez has a daughter in real life.

In Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story, we see how the Menendez brothers killed their parents and the court trials that followed. Like their real testimonies, Lyle and Erik claim that they were victims of parental abuse. The show ends with Lyle and Erik both sentenced to life in prison on counts of first-degree murder and conspiracy to murder.

However, both Erik and Lyle have gone on to start families of their own all while serving life in prison without parole. Lyle has married twice - to Anna Eriksson and Rebecca Sneed - and Erik has a daughter called Talia Menendez.

Read more: Will the Menendez brothers get released? Erik Menendez's daughter says new appeal decision is imminent

Who is Talia Menendez?

Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story trailer

Talia Menendez is Erik's daughter through his marriage to Tammi Menendez. Talia isn't biologically related to Erik but he helped raise her and Talia calls Erik her "dad" on social media where she petitions for his release from prison.

Tammi first reached out to Erik via letter during his trial and they quickly became close. Tammi was married to a man named Chuck Saccoman at the time. In 1996, Tammi found out that Chuck was abusing her 15-year-old daughter from a past relationship and Chuck died by suicide two days later.

Chuck left behind Tammi and their nine-month old daughter Talia. Erik consoled Tammi over what had happened via letters and they soon met in person. Tammi moved, they fell in love and married in 1998 in Folsom State Prison.

As a result, Erik has been the father figure in Talia's life for as long as she can remember and she often opens up about their relationship on social media. Erik used to help Talia with her homework during prison visits.

In an Instagram post in 2020, Talia wrote: "My dad was more of a dad than most out in the real world."

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Talia Menendez (@seterikmenendezfree)

Where is Talia Menendez now?

Talia is currently in her 20s. Outside of posts about Erik, she keeps her personal life private but she uses social media as a platform to raise awareness about his case and petition for his release from prison. Her Instagram account titled @seterikmenendezfree currently has over 50,000 followers where she posts updates about Erik's case.

Most recently (30 Sep), Talia took to her stories to write about Erik and Lyle's latest appeal for a retrial. In 2023, boy band singer Roy Rosselló claimed that Lyle and Erik's father José Menendez has abused him when he was just 14 years old. This led Erik and Lyle's attorneys to file a new petition for them to receive an appeal.

Talia said: "Within 60 days we will hear back from the LA County District Attorney office regarding their decision for Erik's and Lyle's appeal for freedom filed in May last year."

She ended by writing: "Set them free!"