Andrew Dalton
Los Angeles: Nick Reiner, the 32-year-old son of Hollywood luminary Rob Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner, pleaded not guilty Monday to two counts of first-degree murder more than two months after their deaths, denying for the first time that he fatally stabbed his parents.
Reiner’s attorney, deputy public defender Kimberly Greene, entered the plea on her client’s behalf as he stood behind glass in an enclosed custody area of the packed Los Angeles courtroom.
The third of Rob Reiner’s four children, Nick Reiner has been held without bail since his arrest hours after the beloved actor-director and his wife, a photographer and producer, were found dead on December 14 at their home in the upscale Brentwood area of Los Angeles.
Nick Reiner appeared in court with a shaved head and facial hair, wearing brown jail clothes. He talked to his lawyer briefly through the glass before the judge began the hearing.
At one point a low door in the enclosure was opened and they crouched down and spoke face to face. During the hearing, Reiner spoke only to answer yes when the judge asked if he waived his right for next steps of the case to proceed speedily.
Reiner was not wearing the suicide prevention smock he wore in his first court appearance in December days after his parents’ deaths. Monday’s hearing was the third time he had been set to enter a plea, but issues surrounding the high-profile case, including a surprising change in defence lawyers, prevented it happening previously.
The judge told Reiner to return to court on April 29 for the scheduling of a preliminary hearing where prosecutors will present evidence and a new judge will decide if it’s enough for Reiner to stand trial.
The case will now be handled by longtime Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Sam Ohta. He has overseen many prominent murder and public corruption cases in his courtroom in recent years, but none have drawn the national media attention this case has.
District Attorney Nathan Hochman said outside court that his office still hadn’t decided whether it would seek the death penalty for Reiner if he was found guilty. Hochman said the decision “goes through a very rigorous process. We will be looking at all aggravating and mitigating circumstances.”
Reiner’s plea of not guilty is common for criminal defendants at this stage of the case, whatever their longer-term plan might be.
Reiner’s former attorney, high-profile lawyer Alan Jackson, had to quit the case at the previous hearing, citing reasons beyond his and his client’s control that ethics wouldn’t let him reveal. But in parting, he adamantly declared that “pursuant to the laws of California, Nick Reiner is not guilty of murder”.
Authorities have said nothing about possible motives, and leaks in the case have been virtually non-existent on both sides, which has left some of the most basic questions about the killings unanswered publicly.
Rob Reiner, 78, and Michele Singer Reiner, 70, died from “multiple sharp force injuries”, the LA County Medical Examiner said in initial findings. Authorities said they were killed hours before the bodies were discovered. A court order has prevented the public release of more details.
Deputy District Attorney Habib Balian said on Monday that his office was awaiting the full autopsy report from the medical examiner, but all other evidence had been turned over to the defence.
Rob Reiner was a prolific director whose work included some of the most memorable and endlessly watchable movies of the 1980s and ’90s.
His credits included This is Spinal Tap, Stand By Me, A Few Good Men, and When Harry Met Sally… , during the production of which he met photographer Michele Singer. They wed soon after and were married for 36 years.
AP
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