Rob Reiner's Family Divided Over Accused Killer Nick Being Blocked From $1.5 Million Trust to 'Defend' Himself: Source

Nick Reiner's access to a $1.5 million trust established by his parents, Rob and Michele Reiner, has been blocked as he faces charges in their murders, but not everyone agrees with the decision, according to sources.

"Nick has to be presumed innocent. That is the law," a family insider told Rob Shuter's Naughty But Nice report on Monday, August 17. "Until he is convicted, he is an innocent man. He should have access to his own money, especially when he needs it to defend himself."

As OK! previously reported, the incoming fiduciary overseeing the trust, Jodi Pais Montgomery, blocked the 32-year-old's request to access the money in court documents filed earlier this month, citing a California law known as the "slayer statute."

The law is intended to block individuals from inheriting money or property from a person they killed "feloniously and intentionally," per The New York Times.

Nick requested the funds to cover legal fees and commissary costs while being detained at Twin Towers Correctional Facility.

"California has enacted no exception permitting a killer’s inheritance to be used for criminal defense costs," wrote Lauriann Wright, a lawyer for the professional fiduciary, who also has obligations to Nick's siblings, Romy Reiner and Jake Reiner.

Nick's attorney, Anita P. Wu, defended him in a statement to the outlet: "The slayer statute requires a determination, not a mere accusation. Nick is presumed innocent and has been convicted of nothing."

Nick faces two counts of murder in connection with the fatal stabbing of his parents at their Brentwood home in December 2025.

He's also accused of lying in wait before killing his parents, according to the indictment, which alleges he personally used a knife.

Nick pleaded not guilty to the charges. If convicted, the special-circumstances allegations could leave him facing life in prison without parole.

He took legal action in June to access his trust money, arguing in a Los Angeles probate court that the funds were separate from the criminal allegations involving his parents.

According to Shuter's report, "several family members" claim Rob and Michele "would want Nick to have every possible resource to defend himself and have his day in court," as they "believed deeply in due process."

Nick is set to return to court on September 1 for a pre-trial hearing.

Rob and Michele's eldest child, Jake, broke his silence on his parents' deaths in April, recalling the moment his sister told him about the slayings.

"The 45-minute Lyft ride from downtown to the west side was unendurable," he recalled in a personal essay. "My world, as I knew it, had collapsed. I was in a trance. The only thing I could focus on was that I needed to get to my childhood home. I needed to get to my sister. I needed to figure out what the h--- just happened."

Jake, 35, called the situation a "nightmare," adding, "I was robbed of so many things that day. My parents won’t be at my wedding, they won’t get to hold their future grandchild, and they won’t get to see me have the successful career I’m still seeking. It simultaneously breaks my heart and enrages me."

He continued, "We lost more than half of our family that night in the most violent way imaginable. Sure, any loss of a parent is devastating, but nothing compares to losing both of them at the same time and, on top of that, having your brother be at the center of it. It’s almost too impossible to process."