We previously reported that the former All In The Family star Rob Reiner was found dead along with his wife Michele on Sunday, December 14. They were allegedly stabbed to death by their own son Nick, who reportedly slit each of their throats. He has since been arrested and charged with their double murders.
Nick has been in jail for the past month. It remains to be seen if he will be declared fit to stand trial. Now, Nick’s chilling life behind bars has been revealed in a new Fox Nation documentary.
Nick Goes ‘Childlike In Jail’
“He is not competent to stand trial right now. He is almost childlike in jail, we’re told,” TMZ executive producer Harvey Levin said while appearing on Fox & Friends.
“[Nick] can’t process the consequences of what he’s done,” Levin continued. “He knows what he did. He just can’t understand where he is right now, and I know that sounds crazy, but he is out of his head right now.”
Nick, 32, reportedly had his medication changed one month before the murders. Doctors made this change because Nick was complaining of weight gain. According to Levin, this “messed Nick up.” The son of the director of When Harry Met Sally had previously been diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder. This can cause delusions, hallucinations and mood disorders.
Levin went on to say that the murders were “incredibly brutal.”
“We know people in the medical examiner’s office who are traumatized just by the pictures,” he lamented.
Watch Levin talk more about this in the video below.
Nick’s Medication Change
Levin went on to say that the murders of Rob and Michele have “all the markings of a meth murder.” He added that Nick had been using meth when he was “off the rails” after his medication switch-up. Levin then revealed that Nick was arrested in a drug den.
“It has the markings of somebody who was just wild, wildly strong. We have not gotten the confirmation of that, but we’ve talked to people,” Levin explained. “If he were just Nick Reiner without something additional, the carnage wouldn’t have been the way it was.”
Levin also opened up about why Alan Jackson, the high-profile attorney who previously represented Nick before stepping away from the case, is still saying that Nick was not guilty. According to Levin, this does not mean that Jackson thinks that Nick didn’t actually carry out the murders himself.
“[Jackson] says [Nick] is not guilty. What he’s really saying is, not guilty by reason of insanity,” Levin stated. “And I think that’s gonna be the plea in this case, because there’s no way he’ll plead not guilty.”
The Reiner Murders
Nick is the second of Rob and Michele’s three children. They were also parents to Jake, 34, and Romy, 28.
Rob and Michele were last seen on the night of Saturday, December 13, when they attended a Christmas party with Nick that was hosted by Conan O’Brien. There, Nick was seen acting strangely, and other guests saw him get into a heated argument with Rob.
“Nick was freaking everyone out, acting crazy, kept asking people if they were famous,” a source told People Magazine.
Rob, Michele, and Nick eventually left the party together. It is believed that Nick killed them in the early hours of Sunday morning.
Later that day, a masseuse arrived at the Reiner home for a prescheduled appointment. When nobody answered the door, the masseuse called the Reiners’ daughter Romy, who lives across the street.
Romy was able to enter the home, only to find the body of her father. She immediately fled and told her roommate, who was waiting outside, to call the police. Romy was so distraught by the bloody scene that she didn’t notice the body of her mother. She had to be told by paramedics upon their arrival that her mother was dead as well.
Nick was apprehended around six hours later near the University of Southern California campus. By then, he had checked into a local hotel, with his room there being covered in blood.
Jake And Romy Break Their Silence
Jake and Romy issued a brief statement honoring their parents days after their murders.
“Words cannot even begin to describe the unimaginable pain we are experiencing every moment of the day,” the brother and sister said at the time. “The horrific and devastating loss of our parents, Rob and Michele Reiner, is something that no one should ever experience. They weren’t just our parents; they were our best friends.”
“We are grateful for the outpouring of condolences, kindness, and support we have received not only from family and friends but people from all walks of life,” they continued. “We now ask for respect and privacy, for speculation to be tempered with compassion and humanity, and for our parents to be remembered for the incredible lives they lived and the love they gave.”
In the weeks since then, Jake and Romy have been staying out of the public eye as they grieve their parents.
Rob got his start as an actor, playing Meathead on the sitcom All In The Family from 1971-1979. He later became a prolific director, making beloved movies like The Princess Bride, When Harry Met Sally, Misery, A Few Good Men, and more.
Rob and Michele had been married for 36 years at the time of their deaths. May they both rest in peace.