LOS ANGELES (AP) — A Los Angeles County grand jury has indicted Nick Reiner on murder charges in the killings of his parents, actor Rob Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner, and adds the allegation that he was lying in wait before attacking 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.
The director, actor and Hollywood luminary Rob Reiner 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. Nick Reiner was arrested hours later and charged two days later.
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.
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“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. “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.”
The unsealed indictment reveals few new details in a case that has been shrouded in secrecy. But the lying in wait allegation along with other circumstances mean Reiner is eligible for the death penalty. Prosecutors say they haven’t decided whether to seek it.
The indictment did not say how or why Reiner was lying in wait. It also includes an allegation that he used a knife in the killing. Authorities previously said the couple was stabbed. Many of the most basic questions about the killing remain unanswered publicly.
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Prosecutors have said nothing about possible motives, and leaks in the case have been virtually nonexistent on both 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.
The LA County Public Defender’s Office, which is representing Reiner, declined to comment on the indictment.
