The Los Angeles County District Attorney has said his office has chosen not to seek the death penalty against Nick Reiner, the son of Hollywood filmmaker Rob Reiner and photographer Michele Singer Reiner, who has pleaded not guilty to murdering his parents in their home last December.
District Attorney Nathan Hochman told reporters outside a downtown Los Angeles courthouse that prosecutors took into account the wishes of the surviving Reiner family members in reaching their decision.
The announcement came shortly before Nick Reiner, 33, was scheduled to appear for a pre-trial hearing where the judge is expected to set a preliminary trial date and consider various pleadings in the case.
Rob Reiner, 78, and his wife, Michele Singer Reiner, 70, were found stabbed to death in their home in Los Angeles’ Brentwood neighbourhood.
Nick Reiner, the younger of their two sons, was arrested later that day and charged with first-degree murder. He has pleaded not guilty.
The maximum penalty prosecutors said they would now seek against him is life in prison without parole.
A grand jury indicted Nick Reiner in August, allowing prosecutors to go to trial without a preliminary hearing.
He has acknowledged a years-long struggle with substance abuse and mental health issues.
Rob Reiner gained fame as a co-star in the 1970s hit television comedy All in the Family and later directed popular films including This Is Spinal Tap, The Princess Bride, and When Harry Met Sally.
Source: Reuters