The murders of Hollywood legend Rob Reiner and his photographer wife, Michele, have sparked a tense and highly anticipated legal battle involving their alleged son, prosecutors and defense attorneys, all of whom face important decisions in the coming weeks and months.
Prosecutors say Nick Reiner stabbed his parents to death in their Brentwood bedroom early Sunday morning, then fled the area.
They did not give a motive for the Dec. 14 attack, but Nick Reiner struggled for years, and had been prescribed medication for schizophrenia some time before the killing, according to two sources with knowledge of the criminal investigation. Sources also said she got into an argument with Rob Reiner at a Christmas party hours before the murder.
Legal experts say Reiner’s state of mind and the details of what happened at the event could be important factors in the case.
A full evaluation of his mental health will likely take months, and the results could affect how the two sides proceed and whether prosecutors seek the death penalty.
Reiner, 32, he was charged with two counts of murder and could face life in prison without parole, or the death penalty if convicted of the special charge of mass murder. Reiner appeared in court on December 17 wearing a blue suicide prevention smock, which is issued to defendants who may be at risk of harming themselves. The judge granted attorney Alan Jackson’s request to continue Reiner’s trial until Jan. 7.
Reiner did not enter his plea, so the public has yet to hear his side of the story. Prosecutors also released few details.
Nick Reiner’s attitude check
Lou Shapiro, a Los Angeles defense attorney, said he expects Jackson is now working to examine “Reiner’s mental health history and attitude at the time of the crime. That will take time for experts to prepare the report.”
Those findings could be the basis for plea bargain negotiations or the initiation of an insanity defense, according to Shapiro and others.
The brutal murder of the Reiners shocked the world, and the danger will be high in Los Angeles County Dist. He said. Nathan Hochman and his crew, who swore justice to the lovely couple.
Shapiro said Hochman is unlikely to consider a sentence of less than life unless he is granted parole, as he already has a special conviction.
“It’s going to be politically difficult for him to go back,” Shapiro said.
Neama Rahmani, a former federal prosecutor, agreed but said she would be surprised if prosecutors sought the death penalty.
“California hasn’t carried out the death penalty in decades, and Newsom put an end to the death penalty,” he said. “It is very unlikely that Nick will be killed, but the possibility of the death penalty may be used by the prosecutor to improve the case. This will probably not be a capital case and will go to trial because the prosecutor will not give anything less than life without the possibility of release.”
Conan O’Brien’s party battle could be the key
The case is in its early stages and prosecutors have presented very little evidence against Nick Reiner, including forensics, videos or other data. So it is impossible to know exactly what will happen next. Prosecutors have not commented on the allegations that Rob and Nick Reiner exchanged words at Conan O’Brien’s Christmas party. Some friends of the family told The Times that the conflict was “overwhelming.”
But Rahmani said prosecutors could use it.
He said it could be used as evidence of premeditation. “If you’re in a fight with someone and you come back with a weapon, that’s planning ahead.”
Rahmani also said prosecutors can use the argument to counter the insanity defense. “If you know enough to argue with your parents at Christmas … you’re not crazy,” Rahmani said.
The insanity defense has its challenges
Defense attorney Dmitry Gorin, a former LA County prosecutor, said Jackson’s first task is to evaluate his client’s mental health. That test could lead to a not guilty plea of insanity, but it could also provide evidence to move Reiner from the county jail to a private psychiatric facility.
“The most important thing in criminal cases is for clients to receive treatment quickly, and to be able to cooperate in their defense, which cannot happen while they are incarcerated,” he said.
Gorin said the insanity defense is particularly difficult in California, and that in rare cases it must be proven that the defendant was incapable of knowing right from wrong.
“The burden of proof is on the defense in a frivolous case, and jurors may see self-defense as an excuse to commit a serious crime,” he said. “The judge imposes a higher law on the defendant because he understands that it will free him from legal responsibility.”
Sources told The Times that after the murder Nick Reiner went to a hotel in Santa Monica. He was arrested that Sunday night near USC. His general movements that day remain unclear.
Neither Jackson nor prosecutors would comment on the direction of the case.
‘Complex’ problems
Jackson called the killing a “devastating tragedy.” But he warned the public not to rush to judgment or jump to conclusions, saying there are “complex and serious issues” that need to be “handled well, but very carefully, dealt with and tested and looked at and analyzed.”
Nick Reiner’s addiction has been in the public eye for years.
He has mentioned in interviews that he became addicted to heroin as a child, and cycled in and out of rehabs and stints of homelessness. Reiner said he stopped using in 2015, when he co-wrote “Being Charlie,” a film about a drug-addled young man whose cold-blooded movie star father is running for governor of California. Rob Reiner directed the film.
Nick Reiner has no criminal history and at the time of the murder he was living in the house behind the Reiners’ property.
