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Nick Reiner is asking a Los Angeles court to grant him access to a trust fund set up by parents Rob and Michele Reiner as he faces a criminal trial for their deaths.The late couple's 32-year-old son, who was arrested for on suspicion of first-degree murder in December, filed a petition on Monday, June 8, alleging he has been denied any of the money that he was entitled to when he turned 30, according to documents obtained by USA TODAY.The filing states the fund is separate from "the larger Reiner family trust" and is solely intended for Reiner to use "for his individual benefit." Without the funds, Reiner says he is unable to pay for his legal counsel or "basic necessities while incarcerated."Nick Reiner has been behind bars since Dec. 14, when law enforcement and prosecutors allege he used a knife to fatally stab his parents – the beloved "Princess Bride" director and his producer wife – at their Los Angeles home. He pleaded not guilty in February.Nick Reiner has more than $1.5 million in his trust fundThe filing says that the terms of the fund – which holds at least $1.5 million, although the filing does not reveal the total amount – requires half to be distributed to Nick Reiner when he turned 30 and the other half at 35.It further states that Rob and Michele Reiner "separately authorized the Trustee to make other discretionary distributions to Nick for his support, maintenance, health, and education, until all funds are released to him on his 35th birthday."While Nick Reiner allegedly requested the money multiple times in recent months, the filing claims the trustee "has offered a shifting series of excuses and justifications," such as "'concerns' about Nick's so-called competence to 'manage a trust.'" Reiner's attorneys argue the distribution dates are "mandatory," and the "trustees subjective views" are not valid reasons to withhold the funds.In January, Reiner's defense attorney Alan Jackson stepped down because of "circumstances beyond his control." In a declaration in the new petition, Jackson writes that his "firm stands ready, willing, and able to resume representation of Mr. Reiner" if the funds become available."Nick loved his parents, and he is devastated by their deaths," Reiner's lawyers say. "But the facts about what did and did not happen to them are not at issue in this Trust litigation. Nick's criminal defense attorneys will present those facts in the criminal case; this Petition neither requires nor invites this Court to weigh in on them. Like anyone accused of a crime, Nick is presumed innocent, and he is entitled to mount his defense with the resources that are lawfully his own."The filing adds "the stakes for Nick could not be higher," and maintains that Reiner "does not seek them from his parents' estate," but rather "his own funds."Reiner is facing charges on two counts of first-degree murder with a special circumstance of multiple murders, along with a special allegation of using a dangerous and deadly weapon, a knife. After his plea hearing in February, Los Angeles District Attorney Nathan Hochman said Reiner's case was "death penalty eligible," although the office has not made a decision on whether to seek it.Nick Reiner's next pretrial hearing is set for September.Rob and Michele Reiner met in 1988 on the set of "When Harry Met Sally" and tied the knot one year later. They welcomed their eldest son, Jake Reiner, in May 1991. Nick Reiner was born in 1993, followed by their daughter Romy Reiner in 1997. Rob Reiner was also father to his first wife Penny Marshall's daughter, Tracy Reiner, whom he adopted during the marriage.Contributing: Brendan Morrow, Edward Segarra, Bryan Alexander, USA TODAY
