Nick Reiner was formally charged Tuesday with two counts of murder in the first degree, Los Angeles District Attorney Nathan Hochman announced, just two days after Rob Reiner and his wife Michele were found stabbed to death in their Brentwood home.
The charges include “special circumstance” enhancements for the intentional use of a deadly weapon and multiple murders. Hochman said the charges carry a possible sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole, and that a decision was pending on whether prosecutors would seek the death penalty.
“Prosecuting cases involving family violence are some of the most challenging and heart-wrenching we face because of the intimate and often brutal nature of the crimes,” Hochman said in a later statement. “Rob Reiner was one of the greatest filmmakers of his generation. His murder and his wife of more than 35 years, Michele Singer Reiner’s murder, are shocking and tragic. We owe it to their memory to pursue justice and accountability for the lives that were taken.”
They come swiftly after the LAPD issued a uniquely definitive statement Monday, saying their investigation “revealed that Nick Reiner, the 32-year-old son of Robert and Michele Reiner, was responsible for their deaths.”
LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell said during the Tuesday press conference that Reiner was arrested Sunday night in Exposition Park, near the USC campus, without incident. Asked whether he was intoxicated at the time, McDonnell said “that’s a question I can’t touch.”
Neither Hochman nor McDonnell offered any details on the time or manner of the Reiners’ deaths, nor the presence of a murder weapon, when asked by reporters. The later statement announcing formal charges Tuesday said the couple was killed “in the early morning hours” on Sunday.
Nick Reiner, who struggled for years with drug addiction, mental illness, homelessness and frequent violent behavior, was questioned and arrested Sunday night just hours after his 28-year-old sister Romy Reiner discovered her parents’ lifeless bodies in the family’s longtime West Los Angeles compound.
According to multiple sources, Romy immediately suspected her brother, who had moved back in with his parents after years of cycling in and out of treatment facilities and periods of homelessness. Though Nick Reiner had experienced a stretch of sobriety, the family privately told close friends that he had recently relapsed, reaching what they described as a new low and prompting serious concern.
Several media outlets reported Monday that Nick Reiner appeared at a Christmas party held Saturday night at comedian Conan O’Brien’s home in the Pacific Palisades, where the “Princes Bride” director and his wife were invited guests. Nick’s appearance – wearing a hoodie at the festive and exclusive affair – and incoherent demeanor alarmed guests, who said he was “freaking everyone out, acting crazy, kept asking people if they were famous,” People reported, citing anonymous partygoers.
Nick then got into a “loud argument” with his parents, who left the party a short time after. Police did not disclose when they thought the attack happened; several outlets reported that the Reiner’s throats were slashed with a knife.
Nick Reiner has retained famed defense attorney Alan Jackson, who confirmed his involvement Tuesday to media gathered at the Los Angeles criminal courthouse. Reiner was scheduled to appear, but Jackson said his client had not been medically cleared to be transported from Men’s Central Jail, and he was not present at a Tuesday morning hearing.
“Every inmate has to be medically cleared before they can be transported to court,” Jackson said. “He has not been medically cleared.”
Once he receives that clearance, Reiner will appear in court for arraignment, Hochman said.
Jackson, who defended Harvey Weinstein against rape charges in California, did not respond to questions about his client’s mental health or physical condition. Multiple news outlets reported Monday night that Nick Reiner was on suicide watch while in custody.
