Star Lawyer Walks Away From Nick Reiner Case, Leaving More Questions Than Answers
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The high-powered defense attorney representing Nick Reiner, son of filmmaker Rob Reiner and photographer Michele Singer Reiner, abruptly withdrew from the double murder case Wednesday, forcing a delay in Reiner’s arraignment and raising new questions about what is happening behind the scenes. A Los Angeles judge immediately appointed a public defender and pushed the arraignment to February 23, leaving Reiner standing behind glass in a brown jail jumpsuit with no plea entered.
Sudden exit, no real explanation
In a brief hearing in Los Angeles Superior Court, attorney Alan Jackson told Judge Theresa McGonigle that his team had “no choice” but to ask to be relieved as counsel. Outside the courthouse, Jackson said “circumstances beyond our control, but more importantly, circumstances beyond Nick’s control” made it “impossible” to continue, adding that he was legally and ethically barred from saying more.
Legal analysts note that such last-minute withdrawals can stem from conflicts of interest, financial disputes, breakdowns in the attorney-client relationship, or other ethical constraints, but in this case, no on-the-record reason has been disclosed. The court also sealed a defense subpoena list Jackson had already issued, keeping the names of at least 10 individuals or entities his team had been probing out of public view for now.
From star counsel to public defender
With Jackson’s exit, Deputy Public Defender Kimberly Greene was assigned to take over the case on the spot. Greene told the court she had only spoken to Reiner for roughly 30 seconds before the hearing and requested more time to get up to speed, prompting the judge to reschedule the arraignment to late February.
Reiner, 32, is charged with two counts of first-degree murder in the fatal stabbings of his parents at their Brentwood home, where they were found dead in November. He remains held without bail and has yet to enter a formal plea.
Jackson still says Reiner is “not guilty”
Despite walking away, Jackson went out of his way to publicly insist he believes Reiner did not commit murder under California law. “We have examined this case thoroughly from every angle,” he told reporters, saying Reiner is “not guilty” of the murder charges even as he refused to explain why he was stepping aside.
Prosecutors have said they stand by the charges and expect to convince a jury, framing the case as a straightforward double homicide by the couple’s son in their upscale Los Angeles neighborhood. The Reiner family, through a spokesperson, has said only that they “have the utmost trust in the legal process” and will not comment further on the proceedings.
What the withdrawal means going forward
The immediate consequence of Jackson’s withdrawal is delay: the arraignment is now set for February 23, buying Greene a few weeks to review discovery and decide on strategy before Reiner enters any plea. A shift from a well-resourced private defense team to an overburdened public defender’s office also changes the dynamics of a case that was already drawing intense media scrutiny because of the Reiner name.
At the same time, the secrecy around Jackson’s departure – paired with his emphatic statement that Reiner is not guilty – will fuel speculation about what “circumstances” forced him off the case, and whether they relate to money, conflicts, or something else entirely.
Unless the court record is unsealed or one of the parties chooses to speak on the record, the real answer to why one of Los Angeles’ most prominent defense attorneys just walked away from one of the city’s highest profile murder cases may not be known anytime soon.
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