Jake Reiner, the older son of Rob and Michele Reiner, says learning his parents were killed \u2014 and the aftermath of that \u2014 has been “too devastating to comprehend”.<\/p>\n
The grand jury, which had been meeting in secret, returned the indictment on July 20.<\/p>\n
It was unsealed on August 12 when Nick Reiner, 32, entered a not guilty plea.<\/p>\n
The director, actor and Hollywood luminary Rob Reiner and his wife, photographer and producer Michele Singer Reiner, were stabbed to death<\/a> in their home in the upscale Brentwood section of Los Angeles on December 14 last year.<\/p>\n Nick Reiner was arrested hours later and charged two days later.<\/p>\n Major step towards trial<\/p>\n The grand jury indictment is a major step toward trial and allows prosecutors to skip California’s preliminary hearing process, where evidence is publicly aired.<\/p>\n Rob Reiner, Michele Singer, Romy Reiner, Nick Reiner, Maria Gilfillan and Jake Reiner on the red carpet in September 2025. (Reuters: Aude Guerrucci)<\/p>\n “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 Hochman said in a statement.<\/p>\n “We hope that by having a grand jury return an indictment in this case it will bring us one step closer to a trial and achieving justice.”<\/p>\n The unsealed indictment reveals few new details in a case that has been shrouded in secrecy.<\/p>\n But the lying in wait allegation along with other circumstances mean Nick Reiner is eligible for the death penalty.<\/p>\n Prosecutors say they have not decided whether to seek it.<\/p>\n Nick Reiner pleads not guilty to murder<\/a><\/p>\n Nick Reiner has pleaded not guilty to two counts of first-degree murder in the fatal stabbing of his parents in December last year.<\/p>\n The indictment did not say how or why Nick Reiner was lying in wait.<\/p>\n It also included an allegation that he used a knife in the killing.<\/p>\n Authorities previously said the couple was stabbed.<\/p>\n Many of the most basic questions about the killing remain publicly unanswered.<\/p>\n Prosecutors have said nothing about possible motives and leaks in the case have been virtually nonexistent on both sides.<\/p>\n The Los Angeles County chief medical examiner said he would like to make their autopsy reports public, but a court order has prevented him from doing so.<\/p>\n Seeking money from trust fund for defence<\/p>\n The LA County Public Defender’s Office, which is representing Nick Reiner, declined to comment on the indictment.<\/p>\n The indictment comes as Nick Reiner is seeking unpaid money from a trust his parents established for him, saying he needs it to help in his defence.<\/p>\n Nick Reiner said in a court petition that the trustees who oversaw the funds had denied them to him without legal justification.<\/p>\n Two people found dead inside director and actor Rob Reiner’s home <\/a><\/p>\n Rob Reiner, known for directing When Harry Met Sally… and A Few Good Men, was found dead alongside his wife inside their Los Angeles home.<\/p>\n The money was to have gone to Nick Reiner even if his parents were alive, legal filings said.<\/p>\n The petition says the trust has at least $US1.5 million ($2.1 million) in assets, but trustees would not share the exact amount.<\/p>\n “Nick loved his parents, and he is devastated by their deaths. But the facts about what did and did not happen to them are not at issue,” the petition says.<\/p>\n He is seeking to hire back high-profile criminal defence attorney Alan Jackson, who initially represented him before Reiner’s siblings would no longer agree to fund his defence<\/a> and a public defender took over.<\/p>\n A hearing on the petition is set for next week.<\/p>\n Grand jury process happens in secret<\/p>\n California prosecutors can charge a defendant and take the case through a preliminary hearing \u2014 a sort of trial in miniature where evidence is publicly aired and a judge decides whether it should be sent to trial \u2014 as recently happened with singer D4vd<\/a>.<\/p>\n Or they can use a grand jury to go through the process in secret.<\/p>\n Rob and Michele Singer Reiner met during the production of When Harry Met Sally\u2026 (AP: Kevin Wolf)<\/p>\n California prosecutors can also publicly file charges and later seek a secret grand jury indictment, essentially creating a new version of the case, as happened with Nick Reiner and in the Los Angeles prosecution of Harvey Weinstein<\/a>.<\/p>\n Rob Reiner had prolific career as actor and director<\/p>\n Rob Reiner began as an actor, starring in the TV sitcom All in the Family as Michael “Meathead” Stivic, the liberal son-in-law to a much more conservative and bigoted Archie Bunker, played by Carroll O’Connor.<\/p>\n He won two Emmy Awards for the role, and in July received a posthumous Emmy nomination for his work as a guest star on The Bear<\/a>.<\/p>\n He became a prolific director whose work included some of the most memorable and endlessly watchable movies<\/a> of the 1980s and 90s.<\/p>\n![\"Rob](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/4c3be28db5786f0598eb44c9a3cb62ba.jpeg\")
<\/p>\n![\"Rob](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/a528674ec76b96964b909e649514c832.jpeg\")
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