Attorneys will start their closing arguments on June 1 as a wrongful death trial against Rebecca Grossman and Scott Erickson continues in a Van Nuys courtroom.
On Sept. 29, 2020, Mark and Jacob Iskander, 11 and 8, were struck and killed in a Westlake Village crosswalk. The boys were crossing Triunfo Canyon Road with their mom and younger brother when witnesses said they saw and heard vehicles speeding toward them.
Grossman, wife of plastic surgeon Dr. Peter Grossman, and Erickson, her then-boyfriend and a former Major League Baseball player, were headed to her home near Westlake Lake. They drove in separate vehicles – Grossman in a white SUV, and Erickson in a black one – after having drinks nearby.
The boys’ mom Nancy Iskander said she grabbed her youngest son, the closest to her, and dove out of the path of the black vehicle. She looked up and saw the white SUV pass the spot where Mark and Jacob had been. Experts said Grossman was driving 73 mph in the 45 mph zone at the time of the crash.
The Iskander family brought the wrongful death suit against Grossman and Erickson. After weeks of testimony in Los Angeles County Superior Court, the case will go to the jury after closing arguments.
On May 29, Judge Huey Cotton read them pages of instructions about the law and what they may consider while deliberating. He told them not to do any of their own research and not allow anything that happened outside of the courtroom to affect their decision.
“You must consider all the evidence and then decide what you think happened,” Cotton told the panel.
What can jurors consider while deliberating?
Erickson was charged with reckless driving, a misdemeanor, in 2021. The court ordered judicial diversion, and the case was later resolved, officials said.
In 2024, a jury found Grossman, now 62, guilty of two counts of second-degree murder. She was sentenced to 15 years to life and is currently in state prison.
A state appellate court upheld her murder conviction in March, and she has since petitioned the California Supreme Court to review her case.
In the civil trial, the judge told attorneys that Grossman’s criminal proceedings and sentencing would be off limits. She has not testified, and on Friday, Cotton told jurors she has a constitutional right not to give testimony.
“Do not consider for any reason at all the fact that she invoked her right not to testify,” the judge said. “Do not discuss that fact during your deliberations or let it influence your decision in any way.”
Erickson testified over multiple days, saying he had sped up to avoid hitting the boys in the crosswalk and had not been racing at the time. He also testified that he deleted possibly months of messages between Grossman and himself after the crash and lied about what vehicle he drove.
On Friday, Cotton told jurors that from the evening of the fatal collision and for years thereafter, Erickson intentionally provided false and misleading information related to the vehicle he drove.
Because his actions were intentional and inhibited timely discovery about the case, the judge said jurors may conclude that if Erickson had provided “prompt and truthful” information, it would have been unfavorable to him.
The jury was asked to return by 9 a.m. Monday for closing arguments.
Cheri Carlson is a reporter for the Ventura County Star. Reach her at cheri.carlson@vcstar.com.
This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Closing arguments to start in Rebecca Grossman, Scott Erickson trial
Reporting by Cheri Carlson, Ventura County Star / Ventura County Star
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
