The son of actor and director Rob Reiner has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder after his parents were found dead at their home in Brentwood, Los Angeles. Nick Reiner, 32, was arrested on Sunday evening, hours after the bodies of Rob Reiner, 77, and his wife Michele Singer Reiner, 70, were discovered.
Los Angeles District Attorney Nathan Hochman announced on Tuesday that the charges carry a special circumstance of multiple murders and an allegation that a knife or other deadly weapon was used, meaning the death penalty could be sought. Hochman said the charges would be formally filed later that day, with Nick Reiner to be arraigned once medically cleared to be transferred from jail.
Police had responded to a death investigation call on the afternoon of 14 December at the Reiners’ home in the 200 block of South Chadbourne Avenue. Officers found two victims, later identified as Rob and Michele, and determined they had been killed. Detectives from the homicide division took Nick into custody at around 9.15pm local time, booking him for murder without bail.
Los Angeles Police Chief Jim McDonnell described the case as “heartbreaking” and stressed that charges are not evidence. He said the case would be presented in court to meet the standard of proof beyond a reasonable doubt. Nick Reiner’s defence attorney, Alan Jackson, stated that his client had not yet received medical clearance to appear in court and would not do so before Wednesday.
Nick Reiner had previously struggled with addiction and mental health issues, and co-wrote a screenplay based on his experiences, which his father directed in 2015. A family friend told the Los Angeles Times that Michele Reiner had recently expressed concerns about Nick’s mental health, and that he had been living at the family property. Media outlets reported that Rob and Nick were heard arguing at a Christmas party at comedian Conan O’Brien’s home the night before the killings.
