Lyle Menendez Denied Parole

Lyle Menendez got the same treatment from the parole board as his brother Erik ... his bid for freedom was just denied for 3 years!

The California Board of Parole handed down its decision Friday after Lyle answered hours of personal questions from various parole commissioners and a ton of his family members spoke on his behalf.

This isn't the end for Lyle, though -- he’ll be considered for an administrative review within a year, and he could be moved up to a hearing as soon as 18 months.

Erik's step-daughter Talia blasted both the hearings ... and said her dad and uncle were "set up from the inside" and the board "failed" them. She called the process of making the brothers relive their trauma, just to send them back to the joint, a sham. She also vowed the family would continue to fight for the pair.

During his hearing, Lyle spoke freely about the sexual abuse he endured at the hands of his father Jose between the ages of 6 and 8, saying it forced him into a state of "hyper vigilance" because he was often "waiting, and not knowing when something would happen."

He described himself as his brother Erik's protector, explaining that taking care of Erik gave him a purpose -- and noted his "love for Erik was just a really infuriating thing" for their dad, who saw him as the star child and Erik an outcast.

He noted he was 13 when Jose began abusing Erik before explaining why he himself molested his younger brother. He said he has no clue why he did, and hypoethesized he was "just trying to release" the abuse from himself.

Lyle later admitted to feeling guilty the guns used to kill his parents were purchased. Similarly to his brother, he pressed that the guns were bought for "some measure of safety" within the home, and not as murder weapons.

After he and Erik had ended their parents' life, Lyle said he felt "zero relief" his father was dead, but told the board he felt more sorrow over losing his mom because he "couldn’t imagine harming her in any way."

The ruling against Lyle comes one day after the board shot down Erik's parole bid, citing his criminal behavior -- including burglaries -- at the time they murdered their parents, Kitty and Jose Menendez, with shotguns in 1989.

Lyle spoke about the aforementioned burglaries Friday as well, saying he went with his brother for his second stint simply because he didn't want him going alone.

Lyle goes on to say his decision to use violence that day was solely his, not his "baby brother's" responsibility. Lyle closes with, “I will never be able to make up for the harm and grief I caused everyone in my family. I am so sorry to everyone, and I will be forever sorry.”

Towards the tale end of today's hearing for Lyle, leaked audio from Erik's hearing -- recorded just the day before -- was released to the public.

The family was absolutely outraged to hear that their privacy has once again gone unprotected ... so Lyle's will go un-heard until Lyle's parole attorney, Heidi Rummel, has the opportunity to file an objection or something in court to contest their release.

In May, a judge changed their life sentences to 50 years to life with the possibility of parole.