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The family of two Los Angeles children who were killed by a city socialite have been awarded $176 million by a jury.
Rebecca Grossman, the ex-wife of prominent Dr. Peter Grossman, was convicted of second-degree murder for the deaths of Mark and Jacob Iskander, 11 and 8 years old, respectively, after hitting them with her vehicle at nearly 80 mph in September 2020.
Grossman had prescription drugs and alcohol in his system at the time of the 2020 crash, prosecutors told PK Press Club Digital.
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Rebecca Grossman walks with her husband, Dr. Peter Grossman, and their daughter to the courthouse in Van Nuys, California. (Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times)
Although she was married to a prominent Los Angeles surgeon, Dr. Peter Grossman, she would race her boyfriend, former MLB pitcher Scott Erickson, home from a restaurant. Each of them was driving Mercedes-Benz SUVs at more than 70 mph and Grossman fled the scene.
Both were found negligent in the accident.
The boys were walking with their younger brother and mother, both of whom avoided the accident. The mother said she grabbed the younger son and moved away from Erickson’s car.
Rebecca Grossman, dressed in a burgundy blazer, enters the Van Nuys Courthouse in West Van Nuys, California, accompanied by her daughter. (Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
Erickson started 364 of his 389 games pitched, posting a 4.59 ERA with a 142-136 record. He pitched for the Minnesota Twins, Baltimore Orioles, New York Mets, Texas Rangers, Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Yankees.
Erickson made his name with the Twins, winning the World Series with them in 1991 and finishing in second place in Cy Young Award voting that season, well behind Roger Clemens. Erickson spent six seasons with the Twins and seven with the O’s before abbreviated stints with the others.
Grossman was sentenced to 15 years to life in prison in 2024.
Scott Erickson pitches for the Minnesota Twins against the Oakland Athletics during a Major League Baseball game at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum in Oakland, California, circa 1991. (Focus on sport/Getty Images)
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Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Joseph Brandolino rejected a request from prosecutors that Grossman be sentenced to 34 years to life in prison, saying such a long sentence was “simply not warranted here.” Fox Los Angeles reported. He said the children’s deaths were an “unimaginable loss,” but he noted Grossman’s lack of criminal record and philanthropic history.
