{"id":358948,"date":"2025-12-19T23:48:15","date_gmt":"2025-12-19T23:48:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/358948\/"},"modified":"2025-12-19T23:48:15","modified_gmt":"2025-12-19T23:48:15","slug":"rob-and-michele-reiner-what-we-know-about-the-hours-before-and-after-their-fatal-stabbings","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/358948\/","title":{"rendered":"Rob and Michele Reiner: What we know about the hours before and after their fatal stabbings"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n In the hours after police discovered the bodies of Rob Reiner<\/a> and Michele Singer Reiner inside their Brentwood, California, home, speculation was rife over what could have led someone to murder the beloved Hollywood director and his other half, a charismatic photographer and producer.\n <\/p>\n

\n That speculation reached a fever pitch when it became clear authorities suspected the Reiners\u2019 middle son<\/a>, Nick, of killing his parents \u2013 and was further fueled by rampant interest in his past struggles with addiction.\n <\/p>\n

\n On Wednesday, three days after his parents were found dead, Nick Reiner stood before a judge in a Los Angeles courtroom, accused of their murders.\n <\/p>\n

\n The 32-year-old has been charged with fatally stabbing his parents<\/a> in the early morning hours Sunday.\n <\/p>\n

\n And his appearance in court, while brief, marked the first time Nick Reiner spoke publicly about the incident. He only said three words:\n <\/p>\n

\n \u201cYes, your honor,\u201d he said, acknowledging he was willing to waive his right to a speedy arraignment on the murder charges.\n <\/p>\n

\n If convicted, he could face life in prison without the possibility of parole or the death penalty.\n <\/p>\n

\n The Los Angeles Police Department and the city\u2019s district attorney\u2019s office have declined to share many details about the case as the investigation continues. But what sources have revealed to CNN paints a fragmented and fraught picture of the hours before and immediately after the Reiners\u2019 murders.\n <\/p>\n

\n By all accounts, Conan O\u2019Brien\u2019s annual Christmas Party is attended by a veritable who\u2019s who of comedy legends.\n <\/p>\n

\n Adam Sandler \u2013 O\u2019Brien\u2019s neighbor \u2013 has joked he looks forward to the gathering every year because of the ham.<\/a> Bill Hader once regaled O\u2019Brien\u2019s TV audience with a tale of a Christmas \u201cinferno\u201d<\/a> after a wayward flame ignited an outdoor couch.\n <\/p>\n

\n Tom Hanks has been known to stop by, as has comedian Martin Short.\n <\/p>\n

\n Rob Reiner \u2013 who had long cemented his place among Hollywood\u2019s comedy set with his affable nature and signature observational humor \u2013 fit right in at O\u2019Brien\u2019s festivities Saturday night.\n <\/p>\n

\n But, according to a source familiar with the incident, the holiday cheer that typically forms the soundtrack to the celebration was ruptured when an argument broke out between Rob Reiner and his son.\n <\/p>\n

\n The source did not share details of the argument, but they said Rob Reiner\u2019s wife, Michele, had also attended the party.\n <\/p>\n

\n Nick Reiner drew the attention of some partygoers earlier in the evening because of his scruffy appearance and how little he engaged with the other attendees, another source told CNN.\n <\/p>\n

\"Nick<\/p>\n

\n That partygoer recalled seeing Nick Reiner standing alone by the firepit, smoking a cigarette and speaking to no one. At a party where most guests were dressed up, the source told CNN, he was dressed casually in a hoodie, hat and jeans.\n <\/p>\n

\n Investigators are now zeroing in on the critical hours between when the Reiners left the holiday gathering and when their bodies were discovered the following afternoon.\n <\/p>\n

\n Romy Reiner lives across the street from her parents\u2019 home. The 27-year-old went to check on her mom and dad around 3 p.m. Sunday, according to an individual close to the situation.\n <\/p>\n

\n That\u2019s when she discovered their bodies, the source said.\n <\/p>\n

\"LAPD<\/p>\n

\n Romy Reiner fled the home, found a friend, and asked them to call 911, a source familiar with the incident told CNN. LAPD officers arrived at the house in Brentwood around 3:40 p.m.,<\/a> where the bodies were discovered in their bedroom.\n <\/p>\n

\n The Los Angeles County District Attorney\u2019s office said the Reiners were fatally stabbed, and a report from the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner\u2019s office cited their cause of death<\/a> as \u201cmultiple sharp force injuries.\u201d\n <\/p>\n

\n Through interviews with the Reiners\u2019 surviving family members, detectives learned that Nick Reiner had been staying in the guest house on his parents\u2019 property, a source told CNN.\n <\/p>\n

\n Detectives were also told about Nick Reiner\u2019s history of drug addiction \u2013 a topic he\u2019s been open about<\/a> \u2013 and the argument at the Christmas party the previous night, the source said.\n <\/p>\n

\n Rob Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner\u2019s deaths were declared a homicide, and investigators soon began searching for their son.\n <\/p>\n

\n According to a gas station employee, around 8:20 p.m. on Sunday evening, surveillance video captured Nick Reiner ambling across an ARCO gas station parking lot near the University of Southern California \u2013 nearly 15 miles<\/a> from his family\u2019s home.\n <\/p>\n

\n He appeared to be wearing a baseball cap, jeans and a jacket, and as he entered the store, he was carrying a red backpack slung over one shoulder.\n <\/p>\n

\n Inside, he begins to make his way toward the gas station\u2019s refrigerators before pivoting and immediately walking back out. About 12 seconds later, he re-enters again, walks to the back to grab a drink from the cooler, and stands in line at the register.\n <\/p>\n

\n Video obtained by CNN shows him swaying and pacing slightly and occasionally glancing over his shoulder as he waits for his turn in line. He appears to pay for the drink in cash before exiting the store.\n <\/p>\n

\"CNN<\/p>\n

\n The cameras outside the gas station captured Nick Reiner walking across the parking lot and into the night.\n <\/p>\n

\n Less than an hour later, the gas station\u2019s cameras were trained on the intersection of Exposition Blvd. and Vermont Ave. when an ambulance barrels through the intersection, closely followed by a police car.\n <\/p>\n

\n Then, as if synchronized, cars \u2013 that just moments before seemed to be waiting for the light to change \u2013 turn on their police lights and converge on a man standing across the street.\n <\/p>\n

\n Bathed in the flashing lights of multiple unmarked police vehicles, Nick Reiner put his hands up in the air. Police took him into custody at 9:15 p.m., according to a statement from the LAPD<\/a>.\n <\/p>\n

\n Two weeks before Rob Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner were killed, their daughter, Romy, posted a series of photos<\/a> from a family vacation.\n <\/p>\n

\n The images capture the Reiners smiling and laughing as they swim in clear blue water during a day at the beach. In the caption to the post, Romy wrote that she was \u201cthankful for family, health.\u201d\n <\/p>\n

\n But later that month, the family\u2019s life would be turned upside down.\n <\/p>\n

\"Flowers<\/p>\n

\n In a statement Wednesday, Jake and Romy, two of the Reiners\u2019 surviving children<\/a>, said \u201cwords cannot even begin to describe the unimaginable pain we are experiencing every moment of the day.\u201d\n <\/p>\n

\n \u201cThey weren\u2019t just our parents; they were our best friends,\u201d the siblings said.\n <\/p>\n

\n \u201cWe now ask for respect and privacy, for speculation to be tempered with compassion and humanity, and for our parents to be remembered for the incredible lives they lived and the love they gave.\u201d\n <\/p>\n

\n CNN\u2019s John Miller, Jason Kravarik, Nick Watt and Josh Campbell contributed to this report.\n <\/p>\n