Nick Reiner: Family Fortune Funds His Murder Defense?

There’s a bit of a mystery revolving around the Rob and Michele Reiner murder case, and true crime followers might all ask the same question: how is the suspect son, Nick Reiner, able to afford a celebrity lawyer?

Unemployed With A Hot-Shot Lawyer?

It’s a bit of a puzzle, given that Nick was without a job and stayed in his parents’ guest house for free. Nicole and Nancy Loo from NewsNation discussed the matter on Friday. In the conversation, they mentioned that Nick’s lawyer, Alan Jackson, provides good services, but is said to charge more than “$2,000 per hour.”

Nancy Loo alleged that the funds possibly come from the Reiner Family Estate, which, by the way, is valued at about “$100 million,” or more. Who exactly is signing the checks is still somewhat of a riddle, but true crime reporters have a few clues.

Are Siblings Behind The Payments?

Rob and Michele Reiner left behind two other children, Jake and Romy, and Rob had an older daughter, Tracy, from his marriage to Penny Marshall. Being the heirs, they could have approached the estate trustee with a request to give out the money.

Due to Nick’s long history with mental health and addiction, they may want their brother to have a great lawyer. Well, it seems that a trustee can allocate money to “protect” a beneficiary’s interests, at least until a verdict is out.

The Slayer Statute 

As Nancy pointed out, there is a thing called California’s “Slayer Statute.” The statute forbids a killer from inheriting from his victims. In the case of Nick Reiner’s potential conviction, obviously, he’d likely be the last person to get a dime from that inheritance. However, since he’s “innocent until proven guilty,” the same money probably can be spent to keep him out of jail.

Alan Jackson was shown in a clip during the report on YouTube, and he seemed rather brief in his comments: he merely termed the case “complex” and said it requires “careful handling.” Probably, he referred to the well-known substance abuse and previous homeless circumstances of Nick Reiner.

Hoping To Avoid Prison

Most likely, the legal team and the family might hope for psychiatric confinement instead of life imprisonment. The victims’ fortune being used to defend the person accused of killing them seems rather strange, but probably isn’t illegal.

The next court hearing was set for early January, but Alan Jackson hoped for more time to prepare the case. People who follow the case should find out soon if the hearing will be delayed.

Reactions From Viewers

In the comments section, many true crime followers wanted to say something about the legal funding. One person opined, “Carl Reiner would probably be rolling over in his grave if he knew Nick is using the money to stay out of prison after killing his son Rob and his wife Michelle.”

Meanwhile, someone said ironically, “the comedy writes itself.”

Here are a few more responses from the discussion:

• If I were his siblings, I’d move all the $$ and remove his name or maybe put a FREEZE on the accounts. Utterly DISGUSTING!!
• Imagine paying for the legal cost of your own personal murderer.
• I get that his siblings may want to see that he goes into a locked down mental institution for life rather than say…San Quentin. I can imagine that they know…better than anyone…how much this toxic, troubled brother was still loved by their parents…

What are your thoughts? Let us know in the comments below, and come back often for all your true crime news and updates.