Nick Reiner is seeking immediate disbursement from his $1.5 million trust fund to aid in his defense against the murder charges related to the deaths of his parents, Rob and Michele Reiner.
On Monday, the writer of “Being Charlie” submitted a formal appeal to access the funds, which he asserts were due to him upon reaching the age of 30 in 2023.
According to documents accessed by People, Nick was entitled to receive half of the trust when he turned 30, with the remainder set to be distributed when he hits 35.
Facing accusations of murdering his parents, Nick claims in his petition that his repeated requests to the current trustee have been met with inconsistent excuses and vague concerns regarding his ability to “manage a trust.”
Now 32, Nick and his attorneys are pushing for the release of the initial portion of the trust to cover his legal expenses and to fund essential commissary purchases, such as socks and hygiene products, within the constraints of jail spending limits.
“These distributions are non-discretionary,” the petition stated. “The trust does not authorize the Trustee to condition these distribution points on any subjective assessment by the Trustee as to Nick’s intended use of those funds.”
Because the trust is “irrevocable,” Nick — who has been diagnosed with schizophrenia — claimed in the petition that the trustee is not sanctioned to withhold funds from a beneficiary, even if they are deemed incompetent.
The docs state that the trustee can only “modify the manner of distribution to an incompetent beneficiary.”
The court docs claimed that “there is no judicial declaration that Nick is incompetent, nor has he been determined to lack capacity by the written statement of two licensed physicians.”
Due to Nick’s “present circumstances” of being incarcerated and facing murder charges, the petition alleged it is an “abuse of the Trustee’s discretion to refuse those requests” as no “use of his funds could be more important.”
The petition also stated that Nick’s first attorney, Alan Jackson, was retained to represent the former “Dopey” podcast co-host with payment negotiated by “Nick’s siblings on his behalf.”
However, in January, Jackson was “forced to withdraw because funds were not made available from this Trust or the Reiner family trusts.”
“Nick loved his parents, and he is devastated by their deaths. But the facts about what did and did not happen to them are not at issue in this Trust litigation,” the petition read.
Page Six has reached out to Nick’s lawyer for comment but has not yet heard back.
Last December, Michele and Rob were found stabbed to death in their Brentwood, California, home. He was 78 and she was 70.
The film director and his wife’s death certificates stated that they died within “minutes” of receiving “multiple sharp force injuries” with a “knife, by another.”
Nick was arrested and charged with two counts of first-degree murder for the deaths. He is facing a maximum sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole or the death penalty.
In February, Nick pleaded not guilty to the double killings.