Nick Reiner Case: Attorney Alan Jackson Dumps The Case

Nick Reiner, accused of allegedly killing his wealthy parents, Rob and Michele Reiner, retained a lawyer named Alan Jackson. At the time, lots of chatter arose online about whether his family trust was forking out the expensive fees. Well, in a surprise move on Wednesday, January 7, Jackson officially quit the case. Read on for more details.

The Arraignment Was A Surprise

When the Law&Crime Network shared the news, Chris Stewart reminded viewers that Rob and Michele were “found dead inside their Brentwood home in Los Angeles on December 14th.” He also confirmed that “prosecutors say the couple suffered multiple stab wounds.” In fact, although it hasn’t yet been confirmed, if Nick Reiner is found guilty, he could potentially face the “death penalty.”

During the arraignment, nothing happened as expected for true crime followers. Ahead of the actual hearing, Jackson privately chatted with the judge, and then announced that he was withdrawing from the case. What happened next didn’t seem great for Nick Reiner, because he ended up with a public defender named Kimberly Greene.

A Mystery Withdrawal 

Well, for Kimberly, it probably wasn’t much fun at all, as she didn’t have time to prepare. Strangely, many outlets reported that Nick Reiner didn’t seem worried, and actually laughed and “giggled” as he chatted with deputies.

Whatever went on with Alan Jackson remains a bit of a mystery. He’d said, “And you can take this to the bank. Is that pursuant to the laws of this state, pursuant to the law in California, Nick Reiner is not guilty of murder.”

The result is that no plea was entered in the case, and a lot of questions now arise. After all, Jackson is well known for taking on high-profile cases and staying with them to the bitter end. However, this time Jackson felt that “certain things happened that were simply out of his control and out of Nick’s control.”

A Complex Case?

Whatever happened isn’t known for sure, and the DA’s office isn’t pushing back with any leniency. In fact, they’re still adamant that they feel confident there’s enough evidence to prosecute Nick on murder charges for the deaths of Rob and Michelle Reiner.

What is known is that it seemed very likely Reiner would end up being examined for competency to stand trial, given a string of mental health issues. In fact, his alleged schizophrenia diagnosis and prior drug use are known to true crime enthusiasts and the court. However, it doesn’t seem as if that yet factored into the prosecution’s case. 

There has been speculation that when Nick was arrested on suspicion of murder the morning after an alleged confrontation at a party, that there might not have been correct paperwork done for the search warrant. However, there’s a lot of information that we don’t know, as a gag order arrived about the murders.

Viewers Respond

In the comments section of the video, true crime watchers naturally discussed the withdrawal of the high-profile lawyer. One of them opined, “Clearly the family put a stop to the money. You don’t go from Alan Jackson to a public defender.”

Of course, there’s a big possibility that something like that happened. Here are a few other responses in the discussion:

• Guy probably thought family would fork up to pay for their brother and found out they won’t.
• this lawyer abandoned an alleged innocent man apparently….PRINT THAT.
• The ambulance chaser Alan Jackson found out he wasn’t going to get paid.

Nick will appear in court again on February 23.

What are your thoughts? Do you believe that perhaps Jackson stepped back because of payment issues? Let us know in the comments below, and come back here often for all your true crime news and updates.