Nick Reiner’s Attorney Speaks Out as Client Is Accused of Murdering Parents

Nick Reiner‘s attorney, Alan Jackson, spoke outside court as his client made his first court appearance related to the alleged murder of his parents, Hollywood director Rob Reiner and photographer Michele Singer Reiner.

“Most importantly, this is a devastating tragedy that has befallen the Reiner family, we all recognize that,” Jackson told the press following the court appearance Wednesday morning, where the defendant did not enter a plea. “Our hearts go out to the entire Reiner family.”

“There are very, very complex and serious issues that are associated with this case,” said Jackson. “Those need to be thoroughly, but very carefully, dealt with and examined and looked at and analyzed.”

“We ask that throughout the process, you allow the system to move forward in the way that it was designed to move forward. Not with a rush to judgment, not with jumping to conclusions, but with restraint and with dignity and with the respect that this system and this process deserves and that the family deserves.”

Rob, 78, and Michele, 70 were found dead in their bedroom, a source with knowledge of the investigation told PEOPLE on Tuesday. The pair had been killed with a knife.

Nick, 32, was arrested hours after their death and faces two counts of first-degree murder with prosecutors requesting a special circumstance of multiple murders and a special allegation he used a “dangerous and deadly” weapon, Los Angeles Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman announced at a press conference on Dec. 16.

At his first court appearance Wednesday, Nick — clad in a blue sleeveless vest and wearing a grim expression, said “Yes, your honor” when asked if he consented to waive his right to a speedy arraignment. He did not enter a plea on Wednesday; the arraignment will continue on Jan. 7, Jackson said.

If Nick is found guilty, he could face a maximum of life in prison or even the death penalty, Hochman said.

PEOPLE previously reported the couple’s daughter, Romy Reiner, had discovered her father dead inside the home. This week, The New York Times also reported Romy fled the home after finding her father dead and didn’t initially realize her mother had also been killed until a paramedic later informed her.

The district attorney announced in a press release that the Reiners were killed in “approximately the early morning hours” of Sunday, Dec. 14. Their murders took place just hours after Rob and Nick got into what was described to PEOPLE as a “big fight” at a Christmas party hosted by Conan O’Brien on Saturday night, according to one of two sources who described the fight.

“Nick was freaking everyone out, acting crazy, kept asking people if they were famous,” one source said.

Rob and Michele first met while he was directing When Harry Met Sally… and later married in 1989. The couple had three children: Jake, 34, Nick, 32, and Romy, 28.

Rob also shares daughter Tracey, 61, with his first wife, the late actress Penny Marshall. “I came from the greatest family ever,” Tracy told NBC News after her parents’ murders. “I don’t know what to say. I’m in shock.”

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Nick’s arrest has drawn increased attention to his past issues with addiction and mental health.

Nick previously spoke out about his struggles with addiction and homelessness, which began in his teens, telling PEOPLE in 2016 he cycled in and out of rehab beginning around the age of 15. As Nick’s addiction escalated, he said he drifted farther from home and spent significant stretches of his life homeless in multiple states.

Nick and his father’s 2015 film together, Being Charlie, was partly inspired by his years battling addiction and homelessness.

Rob was the director of a number of iconic films, including This Is Spinal Tap (1984), Stand By Me, The Princess Bride (1987), and A Few Good Men (1992), among others.

The son of legendary comedian Carl Reiner, Rob broke into Hollywood on the legendary sitcom All in the Family.