A Los Angeles County grand jury indicted 32-year-old Nick Reiner on July 20 on two counts of murder for the fatal stabbings of his parents, Rob Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner, according to court documents unsealed on Wednesday. The indictment includes a special circumstance allegation that Nick Reiner was lying in wait before launching the attack, alongside an allegation that he personally used a knife.
According to the Los Angeles Times, their daughter Romy discovered her father’s body on a Sunday afternoon and ran to a neighbor, who called 911. Nick Reiner was arrested in Exposition Park approximately 12 hours after the bodies were discovered and has been held without bail.
During a court appearance on the 13th floor of downtown Los Angeles’ criminal courts building on Wednesday, Nick Reiner entered a plea of not guilty to the newly released indictment. The grand jury indictment replaces the original murder charges filed in 2025 and allows prosecutors to bypass California’s preliminary hearing process, avoiding a public airing of evidence and witness testimony prior to trial.
“This was a profound betrayal by someone who was loved and trusted by the very people he is accused of killing,” Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman said in a statement reported by the Associated Press and the Los Angeles Times. Hochman added that the district attorney’s office has not yet decided whether to seek the death penalty. Under California law, a murder conviction accompanied by a lying-in-wait special circumstance makes a defendant eligible for life without parole or the death penalty.
Legal Defense and Trust Fund Dispute
The unsealed indictment does not specify a motive for the killings, and the Los Angeles County chief medical examiner’s autopsy reports remain withheld under a court order, according to the Associated Press. Meanwhile, Nick Reiner’s civil attorneys filed a court petition in June seeking to compel trustees to release at least $1.5 million from an independent trust fund established for him by his late parents.
According to court filings reported by the Associated Press, the trust assets were meant to be disbursed to Nick Reiner even if his parents were alive, and he contends he requires the funds to pay for his legal defense. The petition aims to rehire high-profile criminal defense attorney Alan Jackson, who initially represented Reiner before his siblings declined to continue funding that defense, leading the Los Angeles County Public Defender’s Office to take over representation. A hearing on the trust petition is scheduled for later this month, and Reiner’s next pretrial hearing is set for Sept. 15 at the Foltz Criminal Justice Center.
Family Background and Hollywood Legacy
Rob Reiner built a prolific career as an actor and director, initially rising to fame starring as Michael “Meathead” Stivic in the television sitcom “All in the Family,” a role that earned him two Emmy Awards. As a feature film director, he helmed acclaimed movies including “When Harry Met Sally…,” “Stand by Me,” and “This Is Spinal Tap.” He and Michele Singer met on the set of “When Harry Met Sally…,” marrying later and collaborating professionally.
The father and son previously collaborated on the 2015 independent film “Being Charlie,” which drew on Nick Reiner’s real-life experiences with mental health struggles and addiction to depict the strained relationship between a successful artist and his son. At the time of the December killings, Nick Reiner was living in the guesthouse of his parents’ Brentwood estate.