A Los Angeles County grand jury has indicted Nick Reiner in the killings of his parents, filmmaker and actor Rob Reiner and photographer and producer Michele Singer Reiner, adding a new allegation that he lay in wait before attacking them.
The allegation, combined with other special circumstances already included in the case, could make the 32-year-old eligible for the death penalty if convicted. Prosecutors have not yet decided whether they will seek it.
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Rob Reiner and his wife Michele, their son Nick Reiner
(Photo: Amy Sussman/Getty Images, Michael Loccisano/Getty Images)
Reiner pleaded not guilty Wednesday, when the indictment was unsealed.
The grand jury returned the indictment on July 20 after meeting in secret. It includes two murder counts and alleges that Reiner used a knife in the killings.
Rob Reiner, 78, and his wife were found stabbed to death in their home in the upscale Brentwood neighborhood of Los Angeles on December 14, 2025. Their son was arrested hours later.
Two days after the killings, prosecutors charged him with two counts of first-degree murder, along with the special circumstance of multiple murders and an allegation that he used a knife as a deadly weapon.
The newly unsealed indictment adds the allegation that Reiner was lying in wait before the attack, a significant development because it could further support death penalty eligibility under California law.
The indictment does not explain how or why prosecutors believe Reiner lay in wait.
Many of the most basic questions surrounding the killings also remain unanswered publicly. Prosecutors have not disclosed a possible motive, and few details about the evidence have emerged.
Rob Reiner
(Photo: Andreas Rentz/Getty Images)
“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.”
Why the grand jury matters
In the United States, prosecutors often bring criminal charges directly, but serious cases can also proceed through a grand jury, as happened here.
A grand jury reviews evidence presented by prosecutors behind closed doors and determines whether there is sufficient basis to issue an indictment.
By obtaining a grand jury indictment, prosecutors can bypass California’s preliminary hearing process, during which evidence would ordinarily be presented publicly before the case advances toward trial.
That helps explain why so little new information about the investigation has emerged.
According to the Associated Press, the newly released indictment contains few additional details about the circumstances of the killings or the prosecution’s evidence.
The allegation that Reiner lay in wait is therefore one of the most consequential new details to become public.
The Los Angeles County chief medical examiner has said he would like to release the autopsy reports for Rob and Michele Reiner, but a court order has prevented him from doing so.
The Los Angeles County Public Defender’s Office, which is representing Nick Reiner, declined to comment on the indictment.
The case now takes another major step toward trial, though key questions remain unresolved, including what prosecutors believe led to the killings and whether they will ultimately seek capital punishment.
Rob Reiner was one of Hollywood’s most prominent directors and actors, with a career that included films such as "When Harry Met Sally...", "The Princess Bride", "Stand by Me", "Misery" and "A Few Good Men".
Michele Singer Reiner was a photographer and producer. The couple had been married for more than 35 years.