Autopsy reports for Hollywood film director Rob Reiner and his wife, Michelle Singer Reiner, have not yet been completed, a Los Angeles court heard on Wednesday, as the couple’s son, Nick Reiner, who is accused of a double murder, made a brief appearance.
Nick Rayner appears in court
Nick appeared Wednesday for a hearing that was intended to determine whether there was enough evidence to stand trial. However, lawyers said they were still gathering evidence, with the prosecutor telling the judge that autopsy reports were still pending.Rayner, who has a history of addiction, had previously pleaded “not guilty” to the charges. He was ordered to return to court on September 15 and remains in prison in the meantime.
Nick Rayner is charged with double murder
Nick faces two counts of first-degree murder for the double murder that shocked Hollywood days before Christmas. The 32-year-old was arrested on December 14 after the bodies of his director father and photographer mother Michelle Singer Rainer were discovered in their home in the upscale Brentwood neighborhood of Los Angeles.Prosecutors said 79-year-old Rob Reiner – who directed blockbuster films including “When Harry Met Sally” and “A Few Good Men” – and his wife, 70, were stabbed to death.
If convicted as charged, Reiner could face life in prison without parole, or the death penalty, although California does not typically carry out the death penalty.
Jake Reiner pays tribute to parents
Last week, his brother paid an emotional tribute to the men’s parents, describing their deaths as “almost impossible to process.”“We lost more than half our family that night in the most brutal way imaginable,” Jake Reiner wrote in his first detailed public statements about the gruesome killings.“Any loss of a parent is devastating, but nothing compares to losing both at the same time, and on top of that, having your sibling at the center of it,” he wrote in a subreddit titled “Mom and Dad.”
About Rob Reiner
Rob Reiner, the son of legendary comedian Carl Reiner, began his acting career.He gained fame playing the gruff brother-in-law Michael “Meathead” Stevich in the groundbreaking 1970s sitcom “All in the Family”, before moving on to directing.As a director, he struck gold in Hollywood. His output includes such classics as the 1984 rock mockumentary “This is Spinal Tap,” the fantasy gem “The Princess Bride” from 1987, and the groundbreaking “Stand By Me.”“A Few Good Men,” starring Hollywood stars Tom Cruise and Jack Nicholson, received an Academy Award nomination for Best Picture.
