LA Prosecutors Rule Out Death Penalty for Nick Reiner in Parents' Killing

Los Angeles County prosecutors have decided not to seek the death penalty against Nick Reiner, the 32-year-old charged in the killings of his parents, actor-director Rob Reiner and his wife Michele Singer Reiner.

The couple, aged 78 and 70, were stabbed at their Los Angeles home late last year. Nick Reiner was charged with first-degree murder on December 16, two days after the killings.

District Attorney Nathan Hochman said the special circumstances alleged in the case — including multiple killings and the use of a knife as a dangerous weapon — had made Reiner eligible for capital punishment. He added that the decision on whether to pursue it had been deferred while his office weighed the matter.

With the death penalty off the table, Hochman said the maximum sentence Reiner could receive if convicted is life in prison without the possibility of parole.

A grand jury allegation issued this summer stated that Reiner lay in wait before killing his parents.

Reiner has yet to enter a plea after two court hearings. His former defense attorney, Alan Jackson, said shortly after resigning from the case that "pursuant to the laws of California, Nick Reiner is not guilty of murder." Jackson withdrew for undisclosed reasons he described as beyond his and his client's control. A public defender has since taken over the representation.