Nick Reiner Loses Star Lawyer, Now Faces Trial with Public Defender

Nick Reiner, the son of filmmaker Rob Reiner and photographer Michele Singer Reiner, will now be represented by a public defender after his high-profile lawyer, Alan Jackson, withdrew from the case on Wednesday.

The arraignment was postponed to February 23, and Nick, 32, appeared in court wearing a brown jail uniform. When the judge asked if he agreed to the change in representation, Nick replied, “Yeah, I agree to that.” His new attorney is Kimberly Greene.

Jackson did not explain the exact reason for stepping down, but said in court, “With Mr. Reiner’s consent, we ask to withdraw as counsel of record… We feel we have no choice but to withdraw as counsel.”

Nick is accused of murdering his parents in their Los Angeles home on December 14. Rob Reiner, who starred in All in the Family and directed films such as This is Spinal Tap and When Harry Met Sally, and Michele Reiner, a photographer and producer, were found dead in their Brentwood home.

LAPD Assistant Chief Dominic Choi told the police commission that the couple died from “multiple sharp force injuries” and Nick was arrested near a downtown gas station the same night. He faces two counts of first-degree murder, with the alleged weapon identified as a knife.

Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman said the charges include special circumstances of multiple murders with a deadly weapon, making Nick eligible for the death penalty if convicted.

He added that a judge would first need to determine Nick’s competency to stand trial. Hochman also confirmed that the office is still deciding whether to pursue the death penalty. California currently has a moratorium on executions under Governor Gavin Newsom.

Hochman declined to comment on Nick’s mental health history, separate from his well-documented struggles with addiction.

Nick first appeared in court on December 17, wearing a blue suicide-prevention gown and shackles. At the time, Jackson said it was too early to enter a plea and the arraignment was postponed. Jackson commented, “This is a devastating tragedy that has befallen the Reiner family. We all recognize that… They need to be thoroughly but very carefully dealt with and examined.”

Nick has a long history of drug addiction. He told People in 2016 that he first went to rehab at age 15 and went through more than a dozen rehab programs, experiencing periods of homelessness in Maine, New Jersey, and Texas. He later wrote a script based on his experiences, which became the 2016 film Being Charlie, directed by Rob Reiner.

Nick has admitted to past violent behavior while using drugs. In a 2018 podcast appearance on Dopey, he described destroying his parents’ guest house during a drug binge: “I went ten rounds with my guest house… everything in the guest house got wrecked. …I literally punched the TV.” He said he could not remember the specific cause of the outburst and described his actions as having “no logic.”

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