A Los Angeles County grand jury has indicted Nick Reiner on two counts of murder in the December stabbing deaths of his parents, filmmaker Rob Reiner and photographer-producer Michele Singer Reiner.
The newly unsealed indictment adds a special-circumstance allegation that Reiner killed his parents by lying in wait, in addition to a multiple-murder special circumstance and an allegation he used a knife, the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office announced Wednesday. Reiner, 32, pleaded not guilty to the charges Wednesday.
"This was a profound betrayal by someone who was loved and trusted by the very people he is accused of killing," District Attorney Nathan Hochman said.
Grand Jury Returns Indictment
The grand jury handed up the indictment on July 20, though it was not unsealed until Wednesday, according to the district attorney's office. Hochman said the move brings prosecutors "one step closer to a trial and achieving justice."A decision on whether prosecutors will pursue the death penalty against Reiner has not yet been made.
Authorities allege Reiner fatally stabbed his father and mother at their home in the 200 block of South Chadbourne Avenue in Brentwood on Dec. 14, 2025. He then fled the scene before being taken into custody later that evening in Exposition Park.
Case History and Delays
The case had already worked its way through several court dates before this week's indictment. Reiner pleaded not guilty to two counts of first-degree murder on Feb. 23. He appeared in court again on April 29, when a Los Angeles Superior Court judge pushed a decision on scheduling a preliminary hearing to Sept. 15, pending completion of final autopsy results.That delay stemmed from a court order sought by the LAPD blocking public release of full autopsy details for both victims. The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner's office said in a Dec. 29 statement that although cause and manner of death had previously been released, no further case information could be disclosed "until further notice" because of the order. The LAPD said it requested the hold "to protect the integrity of its investigation.” Earlier records from the medical examiner's office had listed the manner of death for both Rob and Michele Reiner as homicide.
Nick Reiner's difficult relationship with his father and his history of drug addiction had previously been public. He had spoken openly about cycling through treatment facilities and periods of homelessness, and he and his father had even collaborated on a film exploring the strains between an addicted son and his famous parent, mirroring their own lives.
At his first court appearance in December 2025, Reiner wore a suicide-prevention smock, a garment issued to inmates considered at risk of self-harm. By his April court date, he appeared in a yellow shirt and blue pants before Judge Sam Ahta.
Reiner is next due back in court Sept. 15 in Department 108 of the Foltz Criminal Justice Center for a pretrial hearing. The charges against him remain allegations, and he is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.