Nick Reiner has pleaded not guilty to the slayings of his father and mother, Rob Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner, setting up a case that could test a potential defense surrounding his mental fitness to stand trial.
The plea, entered in a downtown Los Angeles courthouse in front of a throng of media, begins what could be a lengthy legal process, a period during which Reiner’s lawyers are expected to question his mental state leading up to and during the killings. It could be over a year before he faces a trial, if there is one.
Reiner, 32, faces two counts of first-degree murder with special circumstances relating to multiple homicides. If convicted as charged, he could face a death sentence or life in prison without the possibility of parole, though a decision hasn’t been made on whether to seek capital punishment.
Outside the courthouse after the hearing, Los Angeles District Attorney Nathan Hochman stressed that the case is “death penalty eligible.” Prosecutors will begin an internal process to determine whether it should be sought, which will include bringing in lawyers for Reiner to present arguments and evidence, Hochman said.
During the brief arraignment, Reiner only spoke to answer in the affirmative when asked by the court whether he understands that he’s entitled to a speedy preliminary hearing, where the court will determine whether there’s enough evidence to proceed to trial. He wore brown prison-issued clothes and stood behind glass in an enclosed area of the courtroom. Bail was not issued.
Prosecutors have yet to detail their case against Reiner. They’ve alleged that he stabbed his 78-year-old father and 70-year-old mother in the early morning of Dec. 14 in their Brentwood home. He allegedly fled the scene and checked into the Pierside Santa Monica hotel hours. Law enforcement arrested him later that night in South Los Angeles near a gas station.
Deputy District Attorney Habib Balian said that the bulk of discovery has been turned over to the defense but that the full autopsy report hasn’t been completed.
It remains unclear if Reiner will seek an insanity defense. His long history of drug use and related mental health disorders will almost certainly play a major role in the trial, sentencing and posture of prosecutors. It’s been widely reported that he was diagnosed with schizophrenia several years ago and that he was being treated for a serious psychiatric disorder at the time of his parents’ murder. Some reports have claimed that Reiner’s medication was adjusted or changed in the weeks leading up to the attack.
Reiner entered his plea after Alan Jackson, a media savvy defense lawyer who previously represented Harvey Weinstein, Kevin Spacey and Karen Read, withdrew from the case for unknown reasons. He said it wasn’t possible for him and his firm to “continue our representation” of Reiner and was barred from disclosing why for ethical and legal reasons. His lead attorney is now Deputy Public Defender Kimberly Greene.
Jackson has said that Reiner is not guilty of murder “pursuant to the law of California.” The statement has prompted some speculation that he planned to pursue a not guilty by reason of insanity defense, which only applies when there’s a condition that establishes the accused didn’t understand what they were doing or could not understand the difference between right and wrong.
There are other routes Reiner can take. First-degree murder requires a showing of premeditation with the intent to kill. If Reiner’s mental state was such that it made him incapable of having that intent, he may be guilty of a lesser degree of murder.
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