Rebecca Grossman and former major leaguer Scott Erickson are responsible for the deaths of two siblings who were hit by Grossman’s SUV at a Westlake Village intersection, a jury ruled Wednesday.
Grossman, 62, is already serving 15 years in prison after being convicted of murder for killing Mark and Jacob Iskander, 11 and 8, with his car on September 29, 2020.
A jury, after an eight-week trial, awarded the boys’ parents, Nancy and Karim Iskander, and their younger brother, Zachary, $176 million for wrongful death and emotional damages.
Erickson, 58, was in a separate SUV ahead of Grossman’s car and was negligent in the fatal crash, jurors found. Although it was Grossman’s Mercedes that hit the boys, the jury found that the couple “were performing in concert in the course of their employment which resulted in the fatal collision.”
The jury ruled that Grossman also committed cruelty and oppression and that Erickson committed cruelty, oppression, or fraud. That decision means judges can also award punitive damages, which could lead to millions more being awarded. The second phase of the trial to deal with those damages will begin on Thursday.
According to witness testimony in the criminal and civil cases, the two had been drinking margaritas at a Westlake Village cantina before they decided to drive their separate SUVs to Grossman’s home to watch a presidential debate.
At the same time, Mark and Jacob Iskander, 11 and 8, were with their mother and younger sibling approaching the intersection of Triunfo Canyon Road. Experts stated that Erickson and Grossman were speeding on the road. As the family entered the intersection, Erickson drove alongside them and avoided a collision. But Grossman did not hit the two boys at 73 mph, according to expert witnesses.
The Iskander family sued Grossman and Erickson as part of a wrongful death lawsuit, saying the two were negligent in the September 2020 crash. Their attorney, Brian Panish, asked the jury to award his clients more than $430 million, arguing that evidence that Grossman and Erickson were speeding on the road and the verdict would be a “day of reckoning” for the two.
“It’s not dangerous if you’re speeding, and drinking, and driving impaired,” said Panish, on behalf of Nancy and Karim Iskander, and their surviving son, Zachary. “Who would do that except someone who thinks they can do whatever they want and there are no consequences?”
Jurors in Van Nuys began deliberating Tuesday morning after closing arguments, with attorneys for Grossman and Erickson saying that, while the incident was horrific, there was no evidence that they were speeding or impaired to warrant a $100 million award.
Grossman is the founder of the Grossman Burn Foundation and is the wife of renowned plastic surgeon Dr. Peter Grossman. They were separated when the accident happened. Erickson is a former Los Angeles Dodger pitcher.
During the trial, Nancy Iskander testified that she first crossed Triunfo Canyon Road at Saddle Mountain Drive in rowboats with her young son, Zachary, next to her on his scooter. Mark, on a skateboard, and Jacob, also in inline skates, followed a little more than an arm’s length behind. He said Erickson’s black Mercedes reminded him and his boys badly.
Rebecca Grossman, left, at the Van Nuys Courthouse during her February 2024 hearing.
(Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)
Grossman’s car hit the boys while traveling 73 mph, Panish told the judge. Mark’s body was found more than 250 meters away with car grill marks on his body. Jacob was found across the street, experts testified.
With Grossman’s trial and the civil case in Van Nuys, Erickson’s attorneys sought to separate their client’s behavior from that of her ex-lover, Grossman, saying they did not chase each other after leaving the restaurant. During closing arguments before the judge on Tuesday, Grossman’s attorney, Esther Holm, emphasized that point.
He told jurors that his client was not impaired by alcohol or valium at the time of the crash and was going about 52 mph, about 7 mph over the speed limit, and was not speeding. Grossman did not try to leave the scene after the crash, Holm said.
“He wasn’t running; this is all speculation,” Holm said, insisting that Grossman never saw the children before his car crashed because he was distracted by the boys’ mother “getting out of the way” of Erickson’s car.
Karim Iskander, right, and wife Nancy, center, outside the Van Nuys courthouse in June 2024.
(Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times)
Apart from that, Holm told the judges, trees and cars reduce the ability of drivers to see the pedestrian crossing sign that warns them about the crosswalk, and said that Grossman’s Mercedes data is confusing which means they should ignore it.
He also reminded jurors that the city had received a complaint about that intersection before, saying, “The city’s role is as important as Ms. Grossman’s and Mr. Erickson’s. The city was aware of the problem.”
Jeff Braun, Erickson’s attorney, insisted to jurors that his client never hit either boy, and that the evidence showed that the retired miller was not at fault or negligent in the death.
“My client made some stupid, stupid decisions regarding this case,” he said. “My client lied to the police. He lied to his attorneys in this case. And that’s a tough, tough hole to dig.”
He argued with the jury on Monday that “the fair amount of this loss is $10 million.”
Panish said Braun’s figure would be $340 a day in terms of the boys’ lives, and he was looking for about $430 million.
“He is running fast and killing them; he is chasing him,” said Panish. “Why are we here? Because they don’t get it. They don’t accept a single bit of responsibility.”
