Nick Reiner, the 32-year-old man charged with the double murder of his renowned parents, director Rob Reiner and Michele Reiner, has reportedly been removed from suicide watch. This development comes as he awaits his next court appearance in Los Angeles.
Current Custody Status and Legal Proceedings
A source within the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department confirmed to People magazine on Monday that Nick Reiner is no longer under suicide watch. He remains in solitary confinement at the Twin Towers Correctional Facility in Downtown Los Angeles. Officials stated he will stay in High Observation Housing unless a court order dictates otherwise, ensuring he is observed and kept isolated at all times.
Following his arrest on December 15, the day after the alleged slayings, Nick was placed in a protective smock designed to prevent self-harm. Authorities have now removed that smock, and he is clothed in the standard prison-issue yellow shirt and blue pants. He is scheduled for arraignment on Wednesday at the Los Angeles Superior Court Stanley Mosk Courthouse.
Details of the Crime and Family Tragedy
Nick Reiner faces two counts of first-degree murder for the deaths of his parents, Rob, 78, and Michele, 70. The charges include a special allegation involving the use of a knife. The grim discovery was made on December 14 at the family's Brentwood, California home.
The victims' daughter, Romy Reiner, 29, found her father's body after a massage therapist could not gain entry to the property, according to the New York Times. First responders who arrived at the scene subsequently discovered Michele's body and informed Romy of her mother's death.
A History of Personal Struggles
Nick Reiner has been open in the past about his protracted battles with substance abuse, which led to periods of homelessness and multiple rehabilitation attempts. In a 2016 interview with People, when he was 22, he revealed he had been to rehab 17 times.
He described how his family had presented him with ultimatums, forcing him to choose between treatment and living on the streets. "If I wanted to do it my way and not go to the programs they were suggesting, then I had to be homeless," Nick said. "I spent nights on the street. I spent weeks on the street. It was not fun." He reported experiencing homelessness in several US states, including Texas, New Jersey, and Maine.
The complex father-son relationship was explored in the 2016 film Being Charlie, which Rob directed from a screenplay co-written by Nick. In an Associated Press interview that year, Rob Reiner said the project "forced us to understand ourselves better than we had" and that the experience of working together had been therapeutic regardless of the film's success.
The Daily Mail has contacted Nick Reiner's attorney, Alan Jackson, for comment on his client's removal from suicide watch.
