Nick Reiner pleads not guilty to murder charges in killings of parents

A hearing is scheduled for Wednesday in a Los Angeles courtroom for Nick Reiner, who faces murder charges in connection with the killings of his parents, Hollywood director Rob Reiner and wife Michele Reiner, at the family’s Brentwood home.

Reiner pleaded not guilty Feb. 23 in a Los Angeles courtroom after he was charged on Dec. 16 with first-degree murder. The charges include a special circumstances allegation of multiple murders and an additional allegation that Reiner used a knife in the killings, which took place sometime early Sunday morning on Dec. 14, authorities said.

Special circumstances elevate a murder charge to a more severe level. The charges carry the potential for a possible death sentence, if prosecutors pursue capital punishment.

The 32-year-old was arrested on Dec. 15 after the tragic discovery of the bodies of Rob Reiner, 78, and photographer wife Michele Reiner, 68, inside their Brentwood home.

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Reiner remains jailed without bail. He was scheduled to return to court Wednesday, when a date will be set for a preliminary hearing to determine if there is enough evidence for him to stand trial.

Reiner is being represented by a public defender. Attorney Alan Jackson was initially representing Reiner, but later announced his withdrawal from the case during Reiner’s Jan. 7 court date.

The medical examiner determined the Reiners’ deaths were caused by “multiple sharp force injuries.”

Nick Reiner is the second of the couple’s three children. 

“Words cannot even begin to describe the unimaginable pain we are experiencing every moment of the day,” Jake and Romy Reiner said in a statement after the slayings. “The horrific and devastating loss of our parents, Rob and Michele Reiner, is something that no one should ever experience. They weren’t just our parents; they were our best friends,” the statement added.

The deaths of Rob Reiner, a celebrated director whose long list of successful films included “When Harry Met Sally…,” “A Few Good Men” and “This Is Spinal Tap,” and Michele Reiner, a talent photographer and producer, stunned the Hollywood community and led to an outpouring of tributes from entertainment industry colleagues, political figures and more. The family’s challenges with Nick, including battles with drug addiction, were well-documented.

In 2015, Rob and Nick Reiner worked on a coming-of-age film together called “Being Charlie.” Directed by Rob Reiner and co-written by Nick Reiner, the film explored the relationship between a son and father. In a 2016 interview with The Associated Press, they talked about the film.

“It forced us to understand ourselves better than we had,” Rob Reiner told the AP. “I told Nick while we were making it, I said, ‘You know it doesn’t matter, whatever happens to this thing, we won already. This has already been good.’ We’ve worked through a lot of stuff.”

In September, the family appeared together at the Los Angeles premiere of “Spinal Tap 2: The End Continues.”

Nick Reiner has spoken publicly over the years about his struggles with drug addiction, which began in his teens. He told People in an interview in 2016 that he cycled in and out of treatment facilities with bouts of homelessness and relapses in between.

“I spent nights on the street. I spent weeks on the street. It was not fun,” Nick Reiner told People, adding that, “If I wanted to do it my way and not go to the programs they were suggesting, then I had to be homeless.”