Law&Crime Sidebar - Nick Reiner's Secret Grand Jury Note Fight Escalates!

Episode Date: October 7, 2026

Nick Reiner appeared in a Los Angeles courtroom for a hearing on Wednesday. The 33-year-old is accused of killing his celebrity parents, Rob and Michele Reiner, in December. After recently replacing his private attorneys with a team from the public defender's office, Reiner was back in court for a hearing about secret proceedings that led to his indictment. Law&Crime's Jesse Weber got details from inside court from investigative reporter Julia Deng.PLEASE SUPPORT THE SHOW: Get $15 off your first purchase on Whatnot using this link https://www.whatnot.com/invite/jesseweb09248💰 $10,000 GIVEAWAY! 💰 (20 Nintendo Switch 2's)To enter, create a new Whatnot account and make sure you're following @Whatnot in the app. But $15 is literally free money, you might as well use my link to download Whatnot! #whatnotpartnerOfficial rules: https://whatnot.pactsafe.io/legal.html#september-switch-giveaway HOST:Jesse Weber: https://twitter.com/jessecordweberLAW&CRIME SIDEBAR PRODUCTION:YouTube Management - Bobby SzokeVideo Editing - Michael Deininger, Jay Cruz, Christina O'Shea, & Andrew ZuckermanScript Writing & Producing - Savannah Williamson, Heather Berzak & Juliana BattagliaGuest Booking - Alyssa Fisher & Diane KayeSocial Media Management - Vanessa BeinSTAY UP-TO-DATE WITH THE LAW&CRIME NETWORK:Watch Law&Crime Network on YouTubeTV: https://bit.ly/3td2e3yWhere To Watch Law&Crime Network: https://bit.ly/3akxLK5Sign Up For Law&Crime's Daily Newsletter: https://bit.ly/LawandCrimeNewsletterRead Fascinating Articles From Law&Crime Network: https://bit.ly/3td2IqoLAW&CRIME NETWORK SOCIAL MEDIA:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lawandcrimeTwitter: https://twitter.com/LawCrimeNetworkFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/lawandcrimeTwitch: https://www.twitch.tv/lawandcrimenetworkTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@lawandcrimeSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Nick Reiner was back in court, and not only are you maybe going to be surprised by his appearance, but a very important issue regarding the secretive grand jury transcripts on this case came up. We're going to bring on our law and crime reporter, Julia Dang, who is inside that courtroom to tell us what happened. Welcome to Sidebar. Presented by Law and Crime. I'm Jesse Weber. Nick Reiner back in court. Got to talk about it. The 33-year-old son of 78-year-old Rob Reiner and his 70-year-old mother, Michelle,

charged with their alleged murders. They were found dead in their Brentwood home back on December 14th, 2025. The L.A. County Medical Examiner determined the couple died from, quote, multiple sharp force injuries. We know that Reiner was arrested at an Exposition Park Area gas station

on the same day that his parents' bodies were found. Surveillance footage actually captured that moment of the arrest. This was apparently near the UCLA campus. And to be clear, there wasn't a preliminary hearing in this case. There was a grand jury, right? And so we don't know all of the evidence, all of the facts, all of the details that are going to be presented by the prosecution. But what we do seem to know, putting this into a time frame, is that it was reported

that Nick Reiner had an argument with his father at Conan O'Brien's Christmas party the night before the alleged murders. We know that Reiner was in fact indicted by a grand jury, this kind of secretive proceeding. This grand jury indictment was unsealed in August. And it should also be noted that while he's charged with murder, they also carry special circumstances allegations, lying in wait, multiple murders, the allegation that he used a knife. He has pleaded not guilty. He faces life in prison without the possibility of parole.

the death penalty, even though this was a potential death penalty eligible case, that was taken off the table by the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office. Now, we're going to get into what happened today in this hearing, in court, how we appeared substantively what happened. It's significant. But we also have to tell you about something else to look out for in this story. So it has been reported that October 23rd, there is going to be a separate probate hearing that is very, very important here. Why? It is this hearing where it's been reported that Reiner is going to try to access money to seemingly pay for his defense. It's been reported more than $1.5 million, this trust fund that was set up as part of his parents' estate

planning. Actually, to be more specific, there is a claim from him that he is owed a $558,000 payment that was due in 2023. So this is well before the deaths of his parents. According to NBC4, Reiner, via court documents, has made the argument that he needs this money to rehire defense attorney Alan Jackson. Remember Karen Reed? You might recall Jackson stepped down from originally representing Nick Reiner. There was a report over a lack of funds. If you think about it, not entirely surprising because, look, Alan Jackson, high-powered attorney. Okay, you're getting a certain quality of representation. But also, if you're talking about a defense in this kind of case and potentially a mental health defense, all of this can get costly, let alone the experts that you

would need to call to do examinations of Nick Reiner. Now, the reason I bring this up and the reason this is significant is there is a big issue. What complicates this is California's Slayer statue, essentially saying you can't inherit money from someone that you killed. Make sense. Problem here is he's innocent unless proven guilty. And in a petition that was filed by his lawyer, it's It's quote, they were a commitment by Nick's parents in the most binding way the law of trust allows that these resources would belong to Nick for his use and benefit. Okay, before we go any further, I just got to tell you about this sponsor that helps support today's episode of Cybar. And this is something that I use. I'm not kidding you every night.

I go on it every night. I love it. It is called What Not. They're also given away 20 Nintendo Switch 2s, but more on that later. So What Not is the number one live streaming shopping app. And what you do is you connect with people who are as enthusiastic about the same things that you are. There's literally something for everyone at every age. Pokemon cards, sports cards, electronic tools, coins, toys, Lego, Funkos, fashion, snacks, candy, meat, seafood.

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Putting all that to the side, and again, we're going to get into this hearing today in a minute. I just have to give you a note, a sad note, because there is a personal aspect to this. There is a human aspect to this. It just came out. As you may know, there have been reports that Nick Reiner had been suffering from severe mental illness

that he was taking or apparently taking medications before the deaths of his parents goes into this idea of a potential mental health defense. But we also know he has a documented history of substance abuse. It just came out that actor Michael Douglas apparently spoke to Rob Reiner about the difficulties of having sons with addiction issues, Douglas referring to his son Cameron. This was revealed in his memoir, one hell of a ride. Here's a portion of the memoir, quote, we both had sons with serious drug issues and we both at times,

had been at the end of our rope. It was a heartbreaking confessional for us, but I know we gave each other some measure of comfort during the hard times. And when you just think about that, and you think about family, you talk family for a second, the personal, the human aspect of this. You know, it was reported that Nick Reiner's siblings, Jake and Romney, testified in front of the grand jury in this case. There were reports, in fact, that Romie had been the one to find her parents' bodies in that home. As for Jake, he actually spoke to ABC 7 in August saying it's been eight months. It feels like eight years at the same time and it also feels like eight minutes. Every moment that I wake up, I'm reminded of my reality. And then he would go on to say,

I mean, Nick is in jail. So, you know, it's like I physically lost my parents and then Nick was arrested. And it's like, now it's just me and Romney. It's a heartbreaking thing to think about. And at the same time, something actually also just came out too. So according to Us Magazine, Nick Reiner's aunt, Martine Singer, so this is Michelle's younger sister, told ABC7 news, quote, I'm functioning. I went back to work in January as best as I could, but it's always there.

It's always in my mind and in my heart. And when she was asked, if there was anything that she would say to her nephew, she replied, I appreciate the question. I'm not sure I can answer that. Sad. Just really, really sad. Let's get into what happened at the hearing today. Okay, I want to bring back in a special guest.

Somebody who was in that courtroom, she has been doing terrific reporting for us here at Law and Crime for each aspect of the Nick Reiner case. Bringing back in Long Crime correspondent, Julia Dang. Julia, so good to see you. Thank you so much for coming on. There's a lot I want to get into it. To be honest with you, as I'm bringing you on,

I really don't know what happened in the hearing, right? It's not permitted to have live. There's no cameras, obviously. There's no audio equipment. There's no live note taking. So I'm with you learning in this moment what happened. Let me just first start off. How did he look?

How did Nick Reiner appear? Let's start there. I'm glad you start there, Jesse. And it's great to be back with you. Short answer to that question, Nick Reiner, the first-degree murder defendant in this case, he actually didn't look terrible today. His hair was a little bit more grown out. He walked in on his own into that courtroom after the bailiff opened the door. So that was different. He didn't

appear to be shackled. He was not chained or handcuffed to his chair at the council table. He looked okay. He looked healthier, I would say, than last time. Last time when we were here, just over three weeks ago, I noted that he had lost weight. He had dark circles around his eyes. His eyes kind of looked sunken. You know, he had that waxy look on his face. He looked a lot healthier today. Now, Nick Reiner didn't actually speak during this hearing. The entire hearing this morning, which lasted under 20 minutes, the entire thing focused on the ceiling or unsealing of grand jury transcripts. So Nick didn't say a word in open court,

but I noticed this, Jesse, because I was sitting directly behind him with a clear view of the defendant, how he was moving, how he was looking at the action between different attorneys. He spoke with the bailiff on his way back out of the courtroom.

When everything wrapped, he got up on his own and started to walk out on his own. So whatever is happening behind bars, whatever kind of medication or treatment he might be undergoing, my takeaway today, the short answer to that question was that he appears to be healthier. Look, it's a question I always have to ask when we are considering the possibility of a mental health defense. And when his mental health has been put in play as part of the reporting and substance abuse issues, and we're still trying to understand. Look, this is a

significant issue, the grand jury transcripts. I mentioned it before. This would essentially be our first glimpse into the witnesses, the actual evidence, what would be used to support the prosecution's case. So let's walk through this. What actually happened? What were the arguments in terms of sealing or unsealing the grand jury transcripts? So I'm going to start just about three weeks ago when we heard from the district attorney, the prosecutor here, D.A. Nathan Hoffman, he made it clear during a press conference addressing all media three weeks ago that he does not actually oppose the unsealing of grand jury transcripts. And just to recap, after secret grand jury proceedings, an indictment was handed down. That was July 12th. It was unsealed. It was unsealed.

a couple of weeks later, and we found out in August, this grand jury indicted Nick on the two first-degree murder counts that he was charged with previously in December after he was first arrested in the killings of both of his parents, Rob and Michelle Reiner. So the indictment has been unsealed for quite some time now. It's a four-page grand jury indictment, and aside from the initial charges, what it added was a special circumstance, lying in wait, which made the case eligible for the death penalty, which we now know the DA is not planning to pursue. But here is what is still in question. The actual transcripts, the word-by-word documentation of what happened during those grand jury proceedings, which until now have been secret. So the transcripts and the exhibits, which give us a sense of who testified,

at exactly what they said before this indictment came down, there was a conditional motion to seal those transcripts, those conversations. But the judge, Sam Ota, he made it clear three weeks ago. He was going to give media outlets an opportunity to oppose that motion. So that's what was argued this morning in court. Nothing actually came out of it. No decisions were made. from the setting of another date. So we're going to be back here on October 21st. So in two weeks,

they're going to revisit this because the public defender in this case, Kimberly Green, she filed a motion with just a couple internet clippings, asking the court to seal those grand jury transcripts and exhibits. Now, their argument is that this could potentially prejudice a pool of jurors here in L.A. County, but a media representative, a lawyer for a media coalition of journalists, of course, working to ensure transparency, she says they plan to file a motion to oppose that push to seal the transcripts before the end of today. So essentially, it sounds like both sides need more time, and we're going to be back here in two weeks to hear the same issue argued one more Let me break that down a little bit. So first, my first question is based on, and that was a

terrific recap, it seems to me that the prosecution didn't oppose this today. They, you know, they basically took the position, I imagine, when Nathan Hockman said, you know, you want to release the grand jury transcripts, release them. I imagine that's what they said, unless they said something else today, curious. But also, number two, did the defense explain what the contents of the grand jury transcripts were that they're most concerned about? Is there still? something that came out that they're more concerned about. Are they just, we don't know? We don't know. That's a great question, Jesse. And the judge lingered on that for quite some time, too. It actually sounded to me like he was getting a little bit impatient with both sides. And he asked very clearly in open court,

you know, what kind of test are we going to be looking at here? What is it that is being argued? He put the attorney for the media coalition on the spot and asked her, you know, do you plan to argue that these transcripts need to be unsealed on First Amendment rights? And he initially couldn't get a clear answer out of her. So it sounds like the two sides are clear on the outpins they want, but they don't yet have clear arguments. Prosecutors did not actually speak up in court. they were sitting off to the side. They didn't say anything until it came up that we had to set another hearing date to continue this issue. So Habib Billion and Jonathan Chung, they were sitting off to the side, and it was public defender Kimberly Green, who's now representing Nick Reiner seated beside

the media coalition attorney at the council table taking these questions from the judge. I can tell you this, though, and this came out the last time that we were here on September 15th during another pretrial hearing in this case. I can tell you that the defendant's siblings, younger sister Romney and older brother Jake, they've made it clear to the district attorney. They oppose the unsealing of these grand jury transcripts. Now, they haven't indicated why, but it sounds like both of them may have testified during these grand jury proceedings. So anything they might have said about their brother, who, again, is about to stand trial for the murders of their parents,

it sounds like they believe what might have been said, what might be in these transcripts, could do more harm, could cause more trauma than what they're already facing. So even though Nathan Hockman made it clear, He doesn't think this is going to actually prejudice a jury. He doesn't think this is going to compromise the integrity of his case. He is taking what the Reiner's siblings are saying into consideration. Not surprising.

Not surprising. And again, I've seen those reports as well that they testified. We talked about it earlier. I talked about their roles in all this Jake's comments. So it's not surprising they wouldn't want information like that released. It could have a traumatic effect. And this is interesting too. October 21st, the way that we understand it, is just two days before a separate hearing in a probate court where Nick Reiner is trying to get access to money to seemingly pay for his defense, possibly to rehire Alan Jackson.

So that's going to be a busy week. And it's interesting because you have a front row seat to see how he's currently being represented. And, you know, the idea that he wants those funds to potentially get private counsel, I think, is a front row seat. interesting. This is an interesting twist in the case. So going back to when this started in December, mid-December, with these horrific killings and then Nick's subsequent arrest. So he immediately retained a private defense attorney. I think we're all familiar with this name. Alan Jackson, high profile, very pricey. So he took on the case immediately after he got the call when he was at a York, but he later withdrew.

He withdrew earlier this year. I believe it was in January. And he has stated over and over, it wasn't because of money. It wasn't directly because he didn't get paid. In fact, he has been paid. But he said it was because of circumstances out of his control and out of the defendant's control. So that was when this LA County Public Defender Kimberly Green, who I just chatted with in the hallway

after this hearing, that was when she was appointed to this case. And she's been representing him since. But you're right, Jessie. There's an upcoming probate hearing that I think every journalist in the criminal courtroom this morning is planning to attend on October 23rd. And the reason that relates directly to this criminal case is because Alan Jackson has actually been standing beside the probate attorney in that case. trying to argue for the defendant, Nick Reiner, to access money in a trust fund that was set aside for him by his parents the year that he was born. It was reportedly created in December of 1993 before Nick had even turned 100 days old. So just in a nutshell, what was supposed to happen with this trust was that a fractional payment was supposed to be distributed. to Nick Reiner when he turned 30 years old. Now, that didn't happen, and it's been reported the trustee

who was supposed to do that, who was supposed to give him this fractional payment totaling more than half a million dollars. It should have come out to about $558,000. They decided that he wasn't confidence. Nick has been struggling with substance abuse issues, mental health issues. That has been well documented.

But the argument now is that he should have had that money. He should have had more than half a million dollars from that trust that was set aside for him. And he should have had access to it two years before these killings. And had that happened the way that it was supposed to, he would have money now to select and pay for defense, which he needs. It's gotten to a point now where that's the way that's the way. not the only thing on the line. They're saying he has to ask for permission to even get $50 transferred into his commissary account so he can purchase basic hygiene items like shampoo. So something that's been cited on is the California Slayer statute and the probate attorney

who filed a 136-page brief in this case back in June. Her name is Anita Huo. She is arguing that doesn't actually apply here because the Slayer statute can only be applied in the state of California to funds that would have been paid out after somebody is deceased. For example, money that's left behind in a will. And again, that's not the case here. This trust was supposed to have a fractional payment for Nick as soon as he turned 30. Yeah. And again, I mentioned this before about why he might need those funds, particularly if you're dealing with the mental health defense and experts. Now, before we go any further, I just have to say this is a big case that we've been following

here on Sidebar from the very beginning. And with these big cases, sometimes we just can't show you every piece of material, document, evidence. That is why we got the case file section on the Long Crime Plus app. So we're opening up the evidence vault so you can inspect things like the raw body cam cam footage, the 911 calls, the crime scene photos, the full trial tapes all firsthand on all these big cases, plus you get ad-free streaming of all your favorite long crime and court TV shows. And right now, we got a special offer.

You use my promo code, sidefall. You get your first three months of long crime plus for just $2.99 a month. That is 50% off the regular monthly price. Hope you can check that out. Before I let you go, Julia, real quick, you just said, and correct me for wrong, you had a chance to speak with the public defender. Can you tell us the substance of that conversation at all? I did.

I did. We walked outside of the courtroom, and you know this courthouse, Jesse. It's packed upstairs. It's a mad rush for the elevators. And I just happened to be in the hallway waiting for the elevators beside Kimberly Green, the public defender who's now reppping Nick, and who has been ever since Ellen Jackson withdrew in January. And she was actually chatting with the two prosecutors leading this case, Habib and Jonathan. So they all seem well acquainted. They all seem friendly. You know, no new information about the case itself. We were kind of just chatting about the judge. You know, we noted this morning was kind of a

relaxed atmosphere. Judge Sam Ota came in with his hair down. He was rocking his side part. He wasn't wearing a bow tie this morning. He was wearing a tie, but he didn't even have his robes on when he walked into the courtroom. You know, we walked. launched him putting the rogues on, and then he heard a separate matter before getting to the Nick Reiner hearing. But overall, you know, pretty relaxed atmosphere, and we're just waiting to see what happens with this motion to seal the grand jury transcripts and exhibits. You're going to let us know.

You've been our eyes and our ears. Excellent reporting. You really put us there. I can feel like I'm in the courtroom. I can see what happened. Thank you so much. We value you so much. We appreciate you so much.

Julia Dang, looking forward to our next conversation. That's all we have for you right now here on Sidebar. Everybody really appreciate it. I'll see you next time. I'm Jesse Weber.