Nick Reiner, accused of killing his parents in Los Angeles last year, has petitioned a court for access to at least $1.5 million from a trust fund to pay for his legal defense.
The 32-year-old filed the petition Monday in Los Angeles County court. He is accused of stabbing to death his father, film director Rob Reiner, and his mother, photographer and producer Michele Singer Reiner, at their Brentwood home on Dec. 14. Reiner has pleaded not guilty to two counts of murder. His former lawyer Alan Jackson said his firm is ready to resume representation if the funds are released. The petition states that trustees have denied the money without legal justification, despite instructions in the 1993 trust that Reiner should receive half the assets at age 30. Reiner is scheduled to return to court for a pretrial hearing in September. He is eligible for the death penalty, though the district attorney has not decided whether to seek it.