Nick Reiner denied access to trust fund ahead of murder trial, as trustees cite ‘slayer statute’

Nick Reiner, who stands accused of killing his parents Rob Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner, has been denied access to the $1.5-million US trust fund he was seeking to use to fund his legal defence.

According to a June filing, Reiner had been seeking allegedly unpaid money from a trust fund his parents established for him in 1993.

In court papers obtained by CBC News, trustees rejected Reiner’s request for the funds, citing a portion of California law known as the "slayer statute," which prevents individuals from inheriting money, property, or trusts from someone they have “feloniously and intentionally” killed.

Rob Reiner, a celebrated director and actor, and his wife Michele, a photographer and producer, were stabbed to death in their California home on Dec. 14. Hours later, their son Nick Reiner was arrested.

The 32-year-old was indicted on murder charges on July 20. He has pleaded not guilty.

The indictment by a Los Angeles County grand jury, unsealed earlier this month, alleges that Reiner was lying in wait before attacking his parents. This detail, along with other circumstances, means he is eligible for the death penalty. District Attorney Nathan Hochman has said his office has not yet decided whether to seek it.

Indictment alleges Nick Reiner lay in wait before killing his parents, Rob Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner

Reiner is scheduled to return to court for a pretrial hearing in September. He is currently being represented by public defender Kimberly Greene, to whom CBC News has reached out for comment.

The June filing said that apart from the family trust fund, smaller individual trust funds had been established for the Reiner children, in their names. Nick Reiner was entitled to half of his trust fund when he turned 30, according to the document, and the rest at 35.

But he claimed in the petition that he had never received the funds he was meant to at 30, alleging that the trustees were denying him access to money to which he was legally entitled.

"Like anyone accused of a crime, Nick is presumed innocent, and he is entitled to mount his defense with the resources that are lawfully his own,” the petition said, adding that the assets in the fund added up to at least $1.5 million US.

High-profile private lawyer Alan Jackson was originally retained to represent Reiner, but left after less than a month without sharing the reason. The June filing revealed that Reiner’s siblings, Jake and Romy Reiner, had initially agreed to pay their brother's legal fees before reversing course.

Jackson said in a declaration accompanying the petition that he would be willing to rejoin the case if the funds were available to retain him.

The two siblings have not publicly commented on the legal proceedings.