Socialite 'kills brothers while racing with sports star lover after boozy lunch'

17 January 2024 , 08:40

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Rebecca Grossman, co-founder of the Grossman Burn Foundation, leaves Van Nuys Courthouse during a break from her preliminary hearing (Image: Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

A married socialite is accused of having a boozy lunch with her ex-LA Dodgers star lover before getting into her Mercedes SUV and fatally hitting two boys.

Rebecca Grossman, 60, has been charged with second-degree murder over the crash that killed Jacob Iskander, eight, and his brother Mark, 11, on September 29, 2020.

Jury selection for her trial in Van Nuys, LA county began on Tuesday. Grossman insists she did not hit the boys and denies driving at 81mph. Her alleged lover, Scott Erickson, was reportedly driving a separate SUV after their lunch at Julio's in Westlake Village.

Grossman, who is married to burn surgeon Dr Peter Grossman, and Erickson were heading in their two cars to a Westlake Village apartment when the tragedy occurred, according to prosecutors. Erickson, now 55, was charged with a misdemeanour, and his case was resolved in February 2022 with a judge ordering him to make a public service announcement about safe driving for high school students.

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Mark and Jacob were out walking with their family when they were killed (VCCF)

Erickson played with the Los Angeles' Dodgers in 2005 and ended his career with the New York Yankees in 2006. He is now divorced. Grossman's murder charges are unusual as there was no charge of driving under the influence. Her breathalyser test showed a blood alcohol content of 0.076 percent - slightly below California's legal limit of 0.08 percent. A blood sample taken three hours after the crash registered at the 0.08 percent mark.

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Former Dodgers star Scott Erickson (Getty Images)

Erickson was a pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers (Getty Images)

Prosecutors will argue in court that Grossman was under the influence of Valium when she got behind the wheel. In her defence, Grossman - whose husband Dr Peter Grossman is a top plastic surgeon - will claim that another vehicle hit the boys, clearing her and Erickson of blame.

Prosecutor Jaime Castro will argue that Grossman and Erickson were "racing" their SUVs before hitting the boys. He said they hadn't planned to reveal Grossman's affair with Erickson, but it became relevant because "the defence intends to argue that the black car involved is not Erickson's."

Nancy Iskander and her husband Karim leave Van Nuys Courthouse (Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

He told The Los Angeles Times: "The people intend to put forth evidence that it was, in fact, Erickson. We're not looking to get into any salacious information." Nancy Iskander, the mother of the boys, has said she couldn't see which of the two vehicles hit her sons.

She said that she and Jacob were on inline skates while crossing the road at the crosswalk, while Mark was on his skateboard and her youngest son, five year old Zachary, was on his scooter. Her husband and daughter were jogging nearby. "The speed was insane," she said of the two SUVs. "They were zigzagging with each other as if they were playing or racing.

Grossman's Mercedes after the incident (VCCF)

"They didn't stop before the intersection. They didn't stop at the intersection. They didn't stop when an 11 year old was on the hood of the car. Nobody stopped."

The jury is set to hear from a California Highway Patrol officer who once pulled over Grossman for speeding at 92 mph and warned her about the potential danger.

The court will also likely hear from Robert Apodaca, a former L.A. County sheriff's deputy, who specialises in traffic crashes.

During the preliminary hearing, The LA Times reported, he testified that he calculated Grossman was driving 71.7 mph when she struck the boys and that the car computer showed 73 mph.

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Rebecca Grossman and Dr. Peter Grossman accept the Betty Fisher Legacy Award at Evening of Hope 2017 (Getty Images North America)

He said 11 year old Mark was thrown 254 feet - the farthest he has known a human to be tossed in a crash.

Another deputy, Rafael Mejia, testified he had found Grossman a third of a mile away from the crash. She had pulled over, and was saying she did not know why her airbag had been triggered. Grossman has been out on $2 million bond.

Her trial is expected to last six weeks: If convicted of all charges, she could face up to 34 years in prison.

Charlie Jones