Rob Reiner case update: rob reiner’s alleged killer son sees no family visits as he awaits trial
Nick Reiner, accused of fatally stabbing his parents Rob Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner, remains confined in a mental‑health unit at Twin Towers Correctional Facility and has received no family visits while the case moves through pretrial steps. The isolation and the murder charges — including a special‑circumstance allegation that can bring life without parole or the death penalty — have left relatives torn between grief and disbelief.
Conditions at Twin Towers Correctional Facility and visiting-room silence
The visiting room at Twin Towers is designed for contact, but family members have not used it. Nick has been housed in a downtown Los Angeles mental‑health unit at Twin Towers, initially placed on suicide watch and later removed from that status. He now remains in high‑observation housing, confined alone in a cell, monitored every 15 minutes, escorted by deputies and watched on camera whenever he leaves the unit.
He eats alone, sleeps alone, and is allowed contact only with legal counsel and jail staff. On paper he can receive family visitors; in reality, no relatives have come. Relatives describe their state as "grief layered on top of horror, " and insiders say the collective silence reflects boundaries and survival rather than vengeance.
What prosecutors have charged and the special‑circumstance allegation
Prosecutors have charged Nick with two counts of first‑degree murder and have alleged a special‑circumstance of multiple murders. That special‑circumstance allegation carries a maximum sentence of life without parole or the death penalty, and in California it places a case at the most serious end of the sentencing spectrum.
District attorney Nathan Hochman has said his office has not yet decided whether it will seek the death penalty, noting that the decision "goes through a very rigorous process" and that prosecutors will consider aggravating and mitigating circumstances.
Court appearances, changing lawyers and conflicting procedural reports
Accounts of recent court activity vary. One set of reports says Nick has not yet entered a plea and that a fresh court date was set for Feb. 23 after high‑profile attorney Alan Jackson abruptly withdrew last month. Jackson told others he stepped aside because of "circumstances beyond my control" and later said he believed his former client was not guilty under California law; a public defender then took over.
Other accounts say the 32‑year‑old pleaded not guilty more than two months after his parents' deaths, with deputy public defender Kimberly Greene entering the plea on his behalf while he stood behind glass in an enclosed custody area of a crowded Los Angeles courtroom. In that appearance he had a shaved head and light facial hair, wore brown jail clothes, spoke briefly with his lawyer through the glass, crouched to speak face‑to‑face through a low door at one point, and answered "yes" when asked if he waived his right for the next steps to proceed speedily.
Upcoming dates, Judge Sam Ohta and pretrial process
The judge in one account ordered Reiner to return to court on April 29 for scheduling of a preliminary hearing, at which prosecutors will present evidence and a new judge will decide whether there is enough to send the case to trial. The case will be handled by long‑time Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Sam Ohta, who has presided over many prominent murder, manslaughter and public‑corruption cases in recent years, though none have drawn the same level of national attention.
Behind the headline steps, the case is moving toward discovery, pretrial motions, psychological evaluations and disputes over what a jury will be allowed to hear.
Scene of the deaths, arrest timeline and family details
Rob, 78, and Michele, 70, were found with multiple sharp‑force injuries at their Brentwood home; one account places their deaths on December 14, 2025, and says prosecutors allege the attack occurred on South Chadbourne Avenue in the early hours of Dec. 14 before the suspect fled and was arrested later that evening in Exposition Park. Other reports describe the arrest as occurring in mid‑December and say he was taken into custody hours after the couple were found dead.
Nick is 32. Accounts differ on his place in the family: one report described him as the eldest of Rob and Michele's three children, naming siblings Max and Robbie; other reports identify him as the third of Rob Reiner's four children. The siblings chosen response so far has been silence: no public statements beyond early shock and no apparent contact with the brother in custody. One insider put the family’s emotions bluntly: "He killed their parents. That changes everything. " Another source said, "They're mourning their parents while also trying to comprehend what he's done. You don't just walk into a visiting room after that. "
