LOS ANGELES — Nick Reiner has been indicted on murder charges in the deaths of his parents, Rob and Michele Reiner, in a stabbing attack inside the family’s Brentwood home in December.
He pleaded not guilty Wednesday to two counts of murder, with special circumstance allegations of multiple murders and murder by means of lying in wait, according to Los Angeles County officials.
Reiner, 32, was brought to a 13th-floor courtroom at the Criminal Courts Building, in downtown Los Angeles, to answer to the new charges, which will replace the original murder case filed in 2025. The indictment, which was returned last month, adds a special circumstance allegation of lying in wait.
Special circumstances allegations can increase potential penalties in the sentencing phase of a 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 J. Hochman said in a statement Wednesday.
His appointed defense attorney, L.A. County Deputy Public Defender Kimberly Greene, declined to comment following the arraignment.
The indictment speeds the case toward a jury trial, bypassing the need for a public preliminary hearing, which had been expected to take place sometime in the fall.
He also faces a special allegation that he personally used a dangerous and deadly weapon, a knife, the DA said.
Reiner, who is being held without bail, was arrested Dec. 15, a day after his parents’ bodies were discovered in their bedroom. He is scheduled to return to court for a hearing on Sept. 15.
If convicted, Reiner faces death or life in state prison without the possibility of parole. The DA said a decision on whether to seek the death penalty will be made at a later date.
The deaths of Rob Reiner, 78, a celebrated director whose long list of films included “When Harry Met Sally…,” “A Few Good Men” and “This Is Spinal Tap,” and Michele Reiner, 70, a 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 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.
