Rob Reiner Death Records Sealed “Until Further Notice” Amid LAPD Probe

Previously known details of how Rob Reiner and his wife Michele were killed have now been released by the Los Angeles County medical examiner under a court order requested by the LAPD. The department wants to keep its findings sealed and away from the prying eyes of the “media and public” as it attempts to make substantial progress ahead of a potentially decisive hearing next week.

Banning “the public release of any investigative information, notes, reports or photos” about the Reiners’ deaths, the order approved by the judge took effect Dec. 29. The order specifically states that the medical examiner can only provide his or her findings to “designated investigators.”

The Reiners’ youngest son Nick was arrested on December 14, just hours after their daughter Romy discovered the couple’s mutilated bodies.

On suicide watch behind bars in downtown Los Angeles, the 32-year-old faces the death penalty after being charged with two counts of first-degree murder with “special circumstances” on Dec. 16 by the Los Angeles County District Attorney.

Noting that “the causes of Mr. and Mrs. Reiner’s deaths have already been made public,” the LAPD said today that “the order was requested solely to ensure that Robbery-Homicide Division detectives became aware of important information regarding their deaths before the media and public.” » Cognizant of the aspect of this highly publicized case that has shaken and saddened the Hollywood community during the holiday season, the cops added: “the order was not requested to undermine transparency.”

While it’s not unprecedented, sealing records like the Reiners’ after they’ve already been there for a few weeks is a rare development. Yet even in a creative community, a police bureau and a prosecutor’s office accustomed to spotlighting crimes and cases, the tragedy of the Reiners’ deaths struck intensely, drawing worldwide attention and an almost universal outpouring of grief.

The Reiners’ official cause of death was revealed on December 17 as being due to “multiple force injuries” three days prior. Five days after the long-married couple’s remains were cremated, the medical examiner released death certificates for the two elder Reiners, describing their deaths as a “homicide” “by knife, by another.”

All of this has been scrubbed from the medical examiner’s online portal and elsewhere now.

“On December 24 at 10:30 a.m., the Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner (Department) received a court order, initiated by the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), to place a security measure on Medical Examiner Case File Numbers 2025-19480 and 2025-19481, Robert and Michele Reiner,” the medical examiner’s office said Monday. “Although the cause and manner of death were previously disclosed in these cases, due to the court order the information is no longer available. No further information or records about the case, including the medical examiner’s report, may be released or posted on the website until further notice.

“The department understands the public interest in these matters and remains committed to transparency where possible. Information will be made available once the court order is lifted.”

Police’s successful Christmas Eve sealing request comes as the investigation into the 78-year-old’s death is ongoing. Some good men The 68-year-old director and photographer digs in with more details about what really happened in the couple’s Brentwood home on the first night of Hanukkah. According to police sources, the sealing was in part intended to allow police uninterrupted review of facts and timelines before Nick Reiner’s scheduled Jan. 7 hearing.

At that, police are still trying to determine the sequence of events that led to what they believe were Nick Reiner’s attacks on his parents in the master bedroom of their home earlier in the day on Dec. 14, sources tell me.

Having struggled very publicly with addiction and the effects of the disease for years, Nick Reiner had been living in the guest house on his parents’ property for several weeks before their deaths. The context in which the apparently rapid stabbing occurred could prove key to both the defense led by Alan Jackson and the prosecution – particularly whether or not the younger Reiner was aware of what he was doing, as is alleged.

Simultaneously and very sensitively, Prosecutor Nathan Hochman’s office is attempting to arrange a face-to-face meeting with the grieving Reiner family, I am told. As the prosecutor said the week before Christmas, he and his team want to sit down with the family, particularly siblings Romy, brother Jake and adoptee Tracy, to hear their views on whether prosecutors should seek life in prison without parole for Nick Reiner or the death penalty.

The death penalty is rare in California but remains authorized in “special circumstances” like those of which the young Reiner was accused.

Neither the Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office nor defense attorney Jackson responded Tuesday to Deadline’s requests for comment on the sealing of the Reiners’ death records.