Nick Reiner Insanity Defense EXPLAINED — What California Law Actually Requires

Today we're breaking down the defense strategy everyone's talking about — and why it almost never works.

Alan Jackson made his intentions clear before walking away from Nick Reiner's case: "Nick Reiner is NOT guilty of murder under California law." Translation: insanity defense.

Nick was reportedly being treated for schizophrenia at the time he allegedly killed his parents, Rob Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner. TMZ reports a schizoaffective disorder diagnosis. His medication was changed weeks before the killings, and sources describe his behavior as "erratic and dangerous."

But California doesn't care if you're mentally ill. It cares if you were legally insane at the exact moment of the crime. That's the M'Naghten Rule — and it's brutal. The defense must prove Nick either didn't understand what he was doing or couldn't tell right from wrong in that specific instant.

Less than one percent of defendants try this defense. Only about a quarter succeed.

Attorney and former prosecutor Eric Faddis joins us to explain how California's insanity defense actually works — the two-phase trial process, how medication changes factor in, and what evidence prosecutors will use to argue Nick knew exactly what he was doing.

We also examine the addiction angle. Nick has a documented history of cocaine and stimulant abuse. California recognizes "settled insanity" from long-term drug use — but psychosis from voluntary intoxication at the time of the crime doesn't qualify. How do these two factors interact?

If the defense wins, Nick goes to a state psychiatric facility. If it loses, he faces life in prison or worse.

Here's what you need to know about the hardest defense in criminal law.

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