Nick Reiner Is Now Represented by Lawyer Defended Harvey Weinstein, Kevin Spacey and Karen Read

Nick Reiner, charged in the deaths of his parents — filmmaker and actor Rob Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner — has retained veteran defense attorney Alan Jackson, whose past high-profile clients have included Harvey Weinstein, Kevin Spacey and Karen Read.

Speaking to reporters outside Los Angeles Superior Court on Tuesday morning, Jackson confirmed he is representing Reiner and said his client would not be making an initial court appearance that day because he had not been medically cleared.

Reiner faces murder charges tied to the killings of Rob, 78, and Michele, 70, who were found dead Sunday, Dec. 14, at their Brentwood home in Los Angeles. The couple’s 28-year-old daughter, Romy, discovered the bodies that afternoon, sources told authorities.

Police arrested Nick Reiner, 32, a few hours later near the University of Southern California campus, according to officials. Jackson said Reiner is being held without bail at the Men’s Central Jail in Los Angeles.

Jackson is a partner at Werksman Jackson & Quinn LLP and has handled a number of headline-making cases. He helped secure an acquittal for Karen Read, who had been accused of killing her police officer boyfriend in Massachusetts. He also represented Kevin Spacey in a Massachusetts groping case that ended after the accuser dropped a related civil complaint. Jackson was part of the defense team for Harvey Weinstein’s California criminal trial; Weinstein was convicted of rape and sentenced to 16 years in prison.

Before moving into defense work, Jackson prosecuted record producer Phil Spector for the murder of actress Lana Clarkson. He also ran unsuccessfully for Los Angeles District Attorney in 2012.

Reiner has spoken publicly in the past about long-term struggles with substance abuse. He attended rehab 18 times and experienced prolonged homelessness, experiences that informed the semi-autobiographical 2015 film Being Charlie, which he made with his father. In a 2018 podcast appearance, he said he once trashed his parents’ guesthouse during a drug-fueled binge.

Multiple sources told reporters that the night before Rob and Michele were found dead, they and Nick attended Conan O’Brien’s Christmas party, where Rob and Nick allegedly had a “big” and “loud” argument. One source said Nick’s behavior “was freaking everyone out.”

Rob Reiner — the son of legendary comedian Carl Reiner — rose to fame playing Mike “Meathead” Stivic on the 1970s sitcom All in the Family. He later directed a string of well-known films, including This is Spinal Tap (1984), Stand by Me (1986), The Princess Bride (1987) and A Few Good Men (1992).

Rob and Michele married after meeting during the making of When Harry Met Sally… (1989). In addition to Nick and Romy, they shared an older son, Jake. Rob was also the adoptive father of Tracy Reiner, whose mother, Penny Marshall, was his first wife.