Indictment alleges Nick Reiner lay in wait before killing his parents, Rob Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner
Grand jury's new indictment unsealed as Nick Reiner enters not guilty plea
A Los Angeles County grand jury has indicted Nick Reiner on murder charges in the killings of his parents, Rob Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner, and adds the allegation that he was lying in wait before attacking them.
asserted
he → allege → them
The grand jury, which had been meeting in secret, returned the indictment on July 20, and it was unsealed Wednesday, when 32-year-old Nick Reiner entered a not guilty plea.
asserted
Reiner → meet → plea
Rob Reiner, a director, actor and Hollywood luminary, and his wife, photographer and producer Michele Singer Reiner, were stabbed to death in their home in the upscale Brentwood section of Los Angeles on Dec. 14.
asserted
Reiner → stab → Dec.
Nick Reiner was arrested within hours and charged two days later.
asserted
Reiner → arrest → hours
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.
"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.
"
asserted
Hochman → allow → statement
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."
asserted
it → hope → justice
The unsealed indictment reveals few new details in a case that has been shrouded in secrecy.
asserted
that → unseal → secrecy
But the lying in wait allegation, along with other circumstances, mean Reiner is eligible for the death penalty.
asserted
Reiner → lie → penalty
Prosecutors say they haven't decided whether to seek it.
asserted
they → say → it
The indictment did not say how or why Reiner was lying in wait.
asserted
Reiner → say → wait
It also includes an allegation that he used a knife in the killing.
asserted
he → include → killing
Authorities previously said the couple was stabbed.
asserted
couple → say → ?
Many of the most basic questions about the killing remain unanswered publicly.
asserted
Many → remain → killing
Prosecutors have said nothing about possible motives, and leaks in the case have been virtually non-existent on both sides.
asserted
leaks → say → sides
The Los Angeles County chief medical examiner told The Associated Press he would like to make their autopsy reports public, but a court order has prevented him from doing so.
Nick Reiner appears in court on murder charges in his parents' deaths
Nick Reiner pleads not guilty to murder in the killing of his parents
The indictment comes as Reiner is seeking unpaid money from a trust his parents established for him, saying he needs it to help in his defence.
Reiner said in a court petition that the trustees who oversee the funds have denied them to him without legal justification.
asserted
who → tell → justification
The money was to have gone to Nick Reiner even if his parents were alive, legal filings say.
asserted
filings → go → Reiner
The petition says the trust has at least $1.5 million US in assets, but trustees would not share the exact amount.
asserted
trustees → say → amount
"Nick loved his parents, and he is devastated by their deaths.
asserted
he → love → deaths
But the facts about what did and did not happen to them are not at issue in this trust litigation," the petition says.
asserted
petition → happen → litigation
He is seeking to hire back high-profile criminal defence lawyer Alan Jackson, who initially represented him before Reiner's siblings would no longer agree to fund his defence and a public defender took over.
asserted
defender → seek → defence
A hearing on the petition is set for next week.
asserted
hearing → set → week
The L.A. County Public Defender's Office, which is representing Reiner, declined to comment on the indictment.
asserted
which → represent → indictment
California prosecutors can charge a defendant and take the case through a preliminary hearing — a sort of trial in miniature where evidence is publicly aired and a judge decides whether it should be sent to trial, as recently happened with singer D4vd.
asserted
it → charge → D4vd
Or they can use a grand jury to go through the process in secret.
asserted
they → use → secret
They can also publicly file charges and later seek a secret grand jury indictment, essentially creating a new version of the case, as happened here and in the Los Angeles prosecution of Harvey Weinstein.
asserted
They → file → Weinstein
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.
asserted
Reiner → begin → O'Connor
Reiner won two Emmy awards for the role, and last month got a posthumous Emmy nomination for his work as a guest star on The Bear.
asserted
Reiner → win → Bear
He became a prolific director whose work included some of the most memorable and endlessly watchable movies of the 1980s and '90s.
asserted
work → become → 1980s
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.
asserted
he → include → Singer
They wed soon after and were married for 36 years.
asserted
They → we → years
Reiner was the second of the three children they had together.
asserted
they → have → children
Nick and his father co-wrote the script for the 2015 film Being Charlie, which was partly based on the younger Reiner's teenage struggles with addiction and homelessness.
asserted
which → co → addiction
His older brother Jake Reiner wrote in April that the experience of losing his parents and having his brother at the centre of it was "a living nightmare" that is "too devastating to comprehend."
asserted
that → write → it
The Aporia
