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Rebecca Grossman, the socialite convicted of striking and killing two boys while driving under the influence in Westlake Village in 2020, was sentenced to 15 years to life in prison on Monday.
Grossman, 60, was found guilty in February of two counts of second-degree murder, two counts of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence and one count of hit-and-run driving resulting in death in connection with the collision that killed Jacob, 8, and Mark Iskander, 11, on Sept. 29, 2020.
She was facing 34 years to life in prison.
In their sentencing memorandum, prosecutors argued that Grossman deserved the maximum sentence and that she has “not taken a modicum of responsibility” for her actions.
“The defendant has never shown an ounce of remorse for her choices on September 29, 2020…instead, she has only blamed others,” the memorandum stated. “She has lived a life of privilege and clearly felt that her wealth and notoriety would buy her freedom…this was not a tragic accident as the defense continually states, this was murder.”
Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón later expressed disappointment with the sentence.
“Our office pursued this case with the intent to seek justice for the victims and their loved ones, advocating for a sentence that would reflect the severity of the crime,” Gascón said in a statement. “We will continue to support the victims’ family during this difficult time.”
Grossman tried to secure a new trial last month; however, a judge found there was no conflict of interest related to one of her new attorney’s other clients – a woman charged with 11 felonies for allegedly misusing confidential law enforcement records.
Among those who made impact statements early Monday were Mark and Jacob’s uncle, grandmother and a neighbor whose children became close with the boys during the COVID-19 pandemic.
https://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local/rebecca-grossman-westlake-village-crash-sentence/3432639/
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Grossman Burn Foundation co-founder Rebecca Grossman was sentenced to 15 years to life in prison Monday for her conviction on second-degree murder and other charges stemming from a crash that killed two young boys in Westlake Village.
Prosecutors had asked Superior Court Judge Joseph Brandolino to sentence Grossman, who will turn 61 on Friday, to a longer term of 34 years to life in state prison for the September 2020 deaths of Mark and Jacob Iskander, ages 11 and 8. The young boys were in a marked crosswalk with their family in the community northwest of Los Angeles when they were struck by Grossman's white Mercedes-Benz SUV.
https://abc7.com/rebecca-grossman-phone-privileges-jail-west-lake-village-crash/14544323/
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Prosecutors filed court papers asking a judge to revoke Rebecca Grossman's privilege to make telephone calls while in jail, contending that she has used the calls to "engage in wholly improper conduct or potentially illegal conduct" after being convicted of second-degree murder and other charges involving a crash that killed two young boys in Westlake Village.
A hearing is set Friday in a Van Nuys courtroom involving the prosecution's request involving Grossman, a co-founder of the Grossman Burn Foundation.
In a 16-page filing first reported by the Los Angeles Times, Deputy District Attorneys Ryan Gould and Jamie Castro wrote that Grossman's recorded phone calls include "admissions to violating the court protective order regarding the disclosure of evidence on the internet and to the press" and also "document numerous potential criminal conspiracies such as requests to disclose more protected discovery, discussion of various attempts to interfere with witnesses and their testimony and attempts to influence (the judge) in regards to sentencing and motions for a new trial."
The prosecutors cited a series of phone calls in which Grossman spoke to her husband, Peter, and her daughter, Alexis, between Feb. 23 and Feb. 25. Those included a Feb. 23 call in which she told her daughter that she wanted her to "unblock the videos" and "put everything out" and another the following day in which asked her husband if a person she identified as "Tom" could call the judge and "ask him to please let us have a new trial," according to the prosecution's filing.
In a call the day after the verdict, Grossman told her daughter, "These were the worst jurors. I knew they were bad jurors ... Every single one of them, I could just tell. They weren't on my side from the beginning. I just knew it," according to the court papers.
The prosecution is requesting the judge grant a proposed court order that Grossman be housed in a portion of the jail where she has no access to a telephone and is not eligible for calls or visits other than with her attorneys, and that all of her incoming and outgoing mail be screened prior to distribution. The prosecutors contend that the same types of conversations can be conducted through those methods.
"While in custody the defendant immediately began using her phone privileges to engage in wholly improper conduct or potentially illegal conduct," Gould and Castro wrote.
"In-custody phone privileges are just that, a privilege, and the defendant is using this privilege to make phone calls in an attempt to commit crimes and unduly influence witnesses and this court. Therefore, this court should revoke this privilege."
The prosecution also alleges that "the defense is actively attempting to engage in jury tampering," writing that it is "clear" that a private investigator working for the defense showed up at three of the jurors' homes and was "not properly identifying himself as working for the defendant, Rebecca Grossman, which can only mean he is intentionally trying to mislead the jurors that he has contacted."
The deputy district attorneys contend that the court should immediately require Grossman's defense team to turn over all personal identifying information of jurors, noting that their names, addresses and telephone numbers were "sealed by operation of law upon recording the jury's verdict in a criminal case."
In a recorded phone call two days after the verdict, Grossman told her husband, "You should call Scott Erickson and tell him to get on a video and that he needs to confess ... I have a family," according to the prosecution's filing.
The deputy district attorneys wrote that Peter Grossman told his wife, "I know he needs to confess, but right now, I can't even talk about the case, but that guy needs to ... you're in jail for him, and it drives me crazy," and warned her that they "have to stop talking about the case on the recorded line" from county jail.
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Two days after Rebecca Grossman was convicted on several counts in the deadly hit-and-run crash that killed two young brothers, the Westlake Village community gathered to honor the victims’ young lives in a memorial.
Numerous bouquets of flowers were placed at the site of the 2020 crash where 11-year-old Mark Iskander and 8-year-old Jacob Iskander were killed. The boys were crossing the street at a marked crosswalk with their family when Grossman sped down the road and struck the boys with her vehicle.
She was convicted on Friday of two counts each of murder and vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence and one felony count of hit-and-run driving. Grossman faces up to 34 years to life in prison.
“We felt it was important to gather together because a lot of people couldn’t come to court and it was important to gather together and say a prayer for Mark and Jacob,” said Julie Cohen, a friend of the Iskander family.
Nancy and Karim Iskander, parents of the young boys, were unable to attend the memorial as they continue to process their grief over their sons’ deaths and relief over Grossman’s sentence. On Friday, however, the mourning parents spoke outside the courtroom following the trial.
"Mark and Jacob did not die. They were murdered," Nancy Iskander said on Friday. "I don't have any hate for her. My heart broke for her children. I'm a mother."
In honor of the boys, their parents have been working hard to give back to the community. In their memory, the Iskanders created a scholarship for foster children and have also contributed to other charitable works.
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Two days after a jury convicted socialite Rebecca Grossman in the hit-and-run deaths of two young brothers in Westlake Village, a memorial for the boys continues to grow in hopes of helping the family heal.
Grossman, wife of a prominent Los Angeles burn doctor, fatally struck Mark Iskander, 11, and brother Jacob, 8, while speeding behind a car driven by then-lover Scott Erickson, a former Dodgers pitcher.
On Friday, the jury found Grossman guilty on all counts: Two felony counts each of second-degree murder and gross vehicular manslaughter, and one felony count of hit-and-run driving resulting in death. She faces 34 years to life in prison.
Since the verdict, people have been bringing flowers, balloons, and signs to the crash site as a way to support the Iskander family.
A large crowd of residents, family friends and first responders gathered Saturday afternoon to honor the boys.
"We felt it was important to gather together because a lot of people couldn't come to court," said Julie Cohen. "There wasn't enough room, and it was very important for us to gather together and say a prayer together for Mark and Jacob."
The deadly crash occurred on the evening of Sept. 29, 2020.
Attending the court proceedings "felt like I am attending the funeral of the boys again, day after day," their mother, Nancy Iskander, told reporters after the verdict. "Someone is now held accountable. Mark and Jacob did not die, Mark and Jacob were murdered."
"So many waves of this tragedy going through everybody," said Jenni Nagel. "It's affected me personally. Mark used to play at my house. It's affected my sons that they don't have their friends anymore. It's been horrible."
Grossman was not charged with being under the influence, but former baseball player Royce Clayton testified he had joined her and Erickson at a nearby restaurant where Erickson had two margaritas and Grossman had one, the Los Angeles Times reported.
Prosecutors presented evidence that the data recorder in Grossman's white Mercedes showed she was speeding at up to 81 mph and tapped her brakes, slowing her to 73 mph, less than two seconds before a collision that set off her airbags.
The district attorney's office commended the jury for its ruling in a statement.
"This decision underscores our commitment to holding accountable those who drive with total disregard for human life," the statement said. "We know that this guilty verdict can never replace their lives but we hope it may provide some peace for the Iskander family as they continue a life-long journey of healing from this tragedy.
Grossman's lead defense attorney, Tony Buzbee, repeatedly blamed Erickson for the deaths, suggesting the retired baseball player's car hit Jacob, hurling him to a curb, and then hit Mark, throwing him into the path of Grossman's Mercedes, the Times reported.
Buzbee did not immediately return a request for comment after the verdict was read.
An attorney for Erickson has said the former ballplayer denies contributing in any way to the tragedy. Erickson was initially charged with a misdemeanor count of reckless driving but it was dismissed after he made a public service announcement, the Times said.
Nancy Iskander testified that the black SUV did not hit her sons but could have hit her and her 5-year-old son, Zachary. She said she dove out of the way and pulled Zachary to safety.
The mother said she did not see Mark and Jacob being struck but three eyewitnesses testified they saw a white or light-colored vehicle hit the boys.
Grossman's husband, Dr. Peter Grossman, medical director of the Grossman Burn Centers, was called to testify by his wife's defense. The Grossmans are founders of the Grossman Burn Foundation, which promotes care and support of burn survivors.
Peter Grossman said he and his wife were separated at the time, living separate lives under the same roof while dating other people. His wife was involved with Erickson in 2020, he testified.
Under prosecution questioning, Peter Grossman said that out of the hundreds of times he rode with Rebecca Grossman he had no recollection of her ever speeding.
https://abc7.com/rebecca-grossman-trial-boys-crash/14461388/
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Rebecca Grossman, co-founder of the Grossman Burn Foundation, was convicted of second-degree murder and other charges Friday for a 2020 crash in Westlake Village that left two young brothers dead.
The nine-man, three-woman jury reached its verdict on the second day of deliberations, mulling the evidence for a total of about nine hours before rejecting a defense contention that Grossman's then-boyfriend, former Dodger Scott Erickson, was the one who fatally struck 11-year-old Mark Iskander and his 8-year-old brother, Jacob, on Sept. 29, 2020.
Grossman, 60, was convicted of two counts each of second-degree murder and vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence and hit-and-run resulting in death. She could face up to 34 years to life in state prison. She remained free throughout the trial on $2 million bond.
Sentencing was scheduled for April 10.
Speaking to reporters outside court, the boys' mother - Nancy Iskander - said she bears no hatred for Grossman, saying her heart breaks for the defendant. She also said that coming to court every day for the trial was like attending her sons' funeral again.
"[The trial] wasn't easy, but it will bring me closure,'' she said.
She praised the prosecutors who handled the case.
"They worked tirelessly, three and a half years. They went above and beyond,'' she said. "They only cared about the truth. They wanted to tell the truth. They worked against some of the most evil defense attorneys."
"We're trusting the justice system," she said. "We have a justice system you can trust, from our experience. It's not a justice system where people get away with things based on the color of their skin or their wealth or anything. If you commit a crime, you will be held accountable, so we're very thankful, and it's now time to do good in the name of Mark and Jacob."
The boy's father said it's now time for him and his family to heal.
"We have been waiting for Mrs. Grossman to apologize, to take responsibility and she just chose to fight to the end and it was heartbreaking," he said.
"It allows me to just move on and heal and not allow any hatred or any loss of peace to affect how I feel," he added. "I hope everyone heals, everyone learns from this experience, including everyone involved from all sides and hopefully this saves lives, saves other kids in the future."
https://abc7.com/rebecca-grossman-murder-trial-jury-deliberations-brothers-killed/14457497/
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Jury deliberations have begun in the trial of Rebecca Grossman who is accused of hitting and killing two young brothers in Westlake Village in 2020.
The jury spent just over 4 1/2 hours in deliberations before going home for the day. The panel is due back at the Van Nuys courthouse Friday morning, when it is expected to hear the testimony read back of several witnesses, including two eyewitnesses.
Grossman is facing a total of five charges: two counts of murder, two counts of vehicular manslaughter and one count of hit-and-run causing death.
She's accused of speeding through a crosswalk where the two brothers, 11-year-old Mark Iskander and 8-year-old Jacob, were walking. Both of them were struck and killed.
In court Wednesday, Deputy District Attorney Jamie Castro started her opening arguments to the jury by saying: "This was not a tragic accident - this was murder."
Prosecutors reviewed the case, including witness statements that Grossman and former major league pitcher Scott Erikson were racing when they approached the crosswalk at high speed.
Castro reminded the jury of testimony from the boys' mother, Nancy Iskander, as to what she saw that night.
"I saw two cars coming towards us at an insane crazy speed. They were switching lanes like they were playing. I freaked. I put my hand up in the air."
Moments later, her two sons were hit.
Grossman's defense team contends Erikson hit the boys first. Castro said there's no evidence to substantiate that claim.
In court Thursday morning, Deputy D.A. Ryan Gould wrapped closing arguments by reminding the jury that there is no evidence that the black SUV driven by Erickson hit the boys first. All of the evidence points to Grossman, he said.
If convicted on all charges, Grossman is facing 34 years to life in prison. She did not testify during her trial.
https://www.audacy.com/knxnews/news/local/jury-hears-closing-arguments-in-grossman-murder-trial
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The jury heard closing arguments Wednesday in the murder trial for Rebecca Grossman, who is accused of hitting and killing two young brothers with her car in Westlake Village in 2020.
KNX News’ Margaret Carrero reported that the prosecutor told the jury that this was not a tragic accident. The prosecutor reminded the jury that an expert in the trial said that the amount of force behind Grossman's vehicle at the time it allegedly hit 11-year-old Mark Iskander and 8-year-old Jacob would be equivalent to taking a vehicle up 12 stories and dropping it on them.
Grossman’s alleged speed at the time of the impact was more than 70 mph.
The prosecutor also told jurors that she acted with absolute and utter disregard for human life. The prosecutor went over statements from multiple witnesses about seeing and hearing two cars – one black and one white – traveling at excessive speeds leading up to the deadly collision.
https://www.audacy.com/knxnews/news/local/grossmans-defense-rests-in-deadly-crash-murder-trial
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The defense rested its portion of the case Tuesday without calling Rebecca Grossman to the stand in her own defense on murder and other charges stemming from a crash that killed two young brothers in Westlake Village in 2020.
During a hearing outside the jury's presence, Grossman -- co-founder of the Grossman Burn Foundation -- told Superior Court Judge Joseph Brandolino that she understood she had a right to testify or not to testify.
After the defense rested, the prosecution called two brief rebuttal witnesses Tuesday morning, with a final rebuttal witness expected in the afternoon.
Jurors are expected to be instructed to return to the Van Nuys courtroom Wednesday for jury instructions. It has not yet been determined whether closing arguments will begin Wednesday or Thursday.
https://www.foxla.com/news/rebecca-grossman-trial-husband-testifies-murder-case
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Erickson was described by the prosecutor as Grossman's boyfriend at the time.
Under cross-examination by Deputy District Attorney Jamie Castro, the woman's husband said he had been in a vehicle "hundreds of times" while she was driving.
"I don't have a recollection of that," he said, when the prosecutor asked if his wife was "somebody you knew to drive over the speed limit."
At a hearing outside the jury's presence, prosecutors indicated that Rebecca Grossman had received four speeding tickets between 2000 and 2020. But jurors did not hear about the tickets during questioning of Grossman's husband.
He testified that he had never met Erickson but knew that his wife had decided to date him, saying that he had seen Erickson's vehicle.
He said under cross-examination that he knew his wife and Erickson had spoken after the collision, but said he wasn't aware when asked if the two had maintained their romantic relationship for a long time after the collision.
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A Los Angeles Superior Court judge denied a request by Rebecca Grossman’s legal team to dismiss murder charges against her in the 2020 hit-and-run deaths of two boys, as prosecutors rested their case Friday.
https://news.yahoo.com/rebecca-grossman-floored-gas-pedal-110030271.html
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Rebecca Grossman floored her high-powered Mercedes SUV on a quiet residential street, speeding up to 81 mph and barely braking before fatally striking two boys in a Westlake Village crosswalk, a veteran crash investigator testified at the L.A. socialite's murder trial Wednesday.
Grossman tapped the brakes a second and a half before she slammed into Mark and Jacob Iskander, traveling 73 mph in a 45-mph zone, according to Michael Hale, an investigator with the Orange County district attorney's office who analyzes vehicular homicide data.
Using information from the "black box" inside Grossman's vehicle — an event data recorder that depicts information such as speed, brake usage and airbag deployment — Hale said the last five seconds of Grossman's travels the night of Sept 29, 2020, were captured before a collision triggered her airbags. The "data is consistent with two strikes with small objects," he said.
Showing a chart of the data, Hale said the SUV's black box indicates that had Grossman been traveling the 45-mph speed limit, she would have driven 326 feet in five seconds, as opposed to the 559 feet she actually went. That timing, he said, would have allowed 11-year-old Mark and 8-year-old Jacob to make it safely across the intersection.
"Ultimately, had that vehicle been following the speed limit, there would have been no crash," he said.
https://www.theacorn.com/articles/coroner-describes-devastating-injuries-in-grossman-case
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Autopsy photographs of the bodies of Mark and Jacob Iskander were shown in a Van Nuys courtroom Feb. 6 during the murder trial of Rebecca Grossman—gut-wrenching evidence of the violent collisions that prosecutors say resulted when the defendant sped through a Westlake Village crosswalk in her Mercedes SUV in Sept. 2020.
Among the images were close-ups of devastating injuries, including severe fractures of 11-year-old Mark’s right forearm and the bottom of his skull. Jacob, 8, suffered a complete dislocation of the joint between the skull and the top of the cervical spine, according to Dr. Matthew Miller, the pathologist who performed the autopsies, which would have instantly caused a full-body paralysis. The cause of death for both boys was “blunt-force traumatic injuries,” Miller testified.
In his opinion, they would have been knocked unconscious almost immediately upon impact. Mark’s injuries were consistent with death “within seconds to minutes, in most cases.” His body was found 254 feet away from the crosswalk, an investigator has testified. Jacob had a heartbeat and was taken to the hospital before being pronounced dead.
The pathologist called attention to certain netlike “patterned abrasions” present on Mark’s rear thigh area, which he described as “a hybrid between an abrasion and a sharp-force injury.” Deputy District Attorney Jamie Castro showed Miller a photograph of the front of Grossman’s white Mercedes and asked if he had been able to compare the vehicle’s grille with these markings on the body.
“The patterning of the injuries essentially is almost an exact match to the patterning of that grille,” Miller said. He added that he wasn’t necessarily saying it was the grille on that particular car that caused the injuries. But a tire would not leave such markings.
The injuries to both boys were consistent with a high-speed single-vehicle collision, Miller told Castro. And he said it would be impossible to conclude definitively that more than one vehicle caused them, as she indicated a defense expert has stated.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8NiG0oc8e0s&t=3s
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In court, mom Nancy Iskander breaks down as photos taken by a witness of the brutal hit and run that killed her sons are shown in court. Iskander calls out her son's name, then runs out of the courtroom in tears. Just after 7pm on a September evening, the 6-member Iskander family is crossing at a three-way intersection when mother Nancy hears a speeding car barreling their way. The mom says her husband and daughter were father away from the street. She tries to signal to the two SUVs to slow down, then tries to pull the children back, only managing to grab her youngest son and dive out of the way. Jacob and Mark Iskander are hit. Jacob Iskander dies at the hospital. According to police, Mark was thrown 254 feet and found dead on the scene. Deputies reportedly catch up with a white Mercedes with significant front-end damage a third of a mile from the scene. Behind the wheel is Rebecca Grossman. The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department says they believe Grossman's vehicle was traveling over 80 miles an hour. Grossman’s breathalyzer test after the crash showed a blood-alcohol content of 0.076% according to local news reports. A blood sample taken three hours after the crash registered at 0.08%, the legal limit of intoxication. Rebecca Grossman is charged with two felony counts each of second-degree murder, vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence, and one felony count of hit-and-run driving resulting in death. Grossman has pleaded not guilty.
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A California plastic surgeon’s socialite wife accused in the hit-and-run killing of two boys whined in the emergency room that her Mercedes’s safety system disabled her car after the crash or “I would have been at home in my garage right now.”
Police found her next to her vehicle, which was disabled after the airbags when off following the crash, which her attorneys insist she was not involved in despite the heavy damage on the front end of her car.
An emergency room technician at Los Robles Regional Medical Center told the court on Thursday what Grossman said at the hospital, according to the Los Angeles Times.
“If they didn’t disable my car, I would have been at home in my garage right now,” Teryl Grasso said, quoting Grossman said.
Grasso said she was in therapy for nine months. after the crash and still can’t “talk about that night without crying.” She took time to come forward, she said, while she sought guidance on whether doing so would violate the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).
https://abc7.com/rebecca-grossmna-murder-trial-today-updates-deputy-testimony/14377203/
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A Los Angeles County sheriff's deputy testified Wednesday in the murder trial of socialite Rebecca Grossman that he didn't find any evidence indicating that more than one vehicle was involved in a collision in Westlake Village that left two boys dead, saying he only saw debris from a white vehicle.
Deputy Rafael Mejia told the Van Nuys jury that he responded to the scene shortly after the Sept. 29, 2020, collision that left 11-year-old Mark Iskander and his 8-year-old brother Jacob dead, and said he was informed to look for a white vehicle with front-end damage.
Mejia said he found Grossman about three-tenths of a mile away standing outside her white Mercedes-Benz SUV, which had front-end damage.
"She told me that her vehicle was disabled by Mercedes-Benz," Mejia told jurors, saying that the airbags had gone off and that Grossman told him that she had hit something but she didn't know what she struck.
Grossman, the 60-year-old co-founder of the Grossman Burn Foundation, is charged with two felony counts each of murder and vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence, along with one felony count of hit-and-run driving resulting in death.
Under questioning by Deputy District Attorney Jamie Castro, the sheriff's deputy said he didn't find any debris consistent with a black SUV or any kind of black vehicle.
"We didn't see any indicators there was another vehicle," Mejia said, indicating that the debris at the scene indicated a white vehicle had been involved.
The deputy said a Mercedes-Benz emblem was found among the debris at the scene of the collision, adding later on cross-examination that another Mercedes-Benz emblem was discovered. He noted that the auto chain has multiple emblems on their vehicles.
Of his interaction with Grossman, the deputy said, "She kept telling me to call her husband ... Her husband could help those kids."
He said he smelled "alcohol coming from her person," and contacted a unit to come to perform a DUI investigation.
The deputy said he saw a person who identified herself as Grossman's daughter and said she was there to pick up her mother. He said he told her that she couldn't go home with her. He said he never saw a man hiding in the bushes watching the police investigation, and would have considered that highly suspicious.
https://www.foxla.com/video/1404227
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Deputy Rafael Mejia told the jury that he responded to the scene shortly after the Sept. 29, 2020, collision that left 11-year-old Mark Iskander and his 8-year-old brother Jacob dead, and said he was informed to look for a white vehicle with front-end damage.
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With a stern voice spoken through tears, Nancy Iskander told the jury she knew who killed her two sons, based on what she saw and heard in the moments before they died.
Rebecca Grossman, a Westlake Village socialite and wife of Dr. Peter Grossman faces two felony counts each of murder and vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence, plus one count of hit-and-run driving resulting in death.
She was driving a white Mercedes around 7 p.m. on Sept. 29, 2020. She was leaving a Mexican restaurant happy hour and on her way home.
Prosecutors allege she and her then-boyfriend, former Dodgers pitcher Scott Erickson, raced in their respective vehicles. Witnesses who testified Monday recall seeing and hearing two to three cars speeding.
One bicyclist described the force from the passing vehicles as if someone had physically tried pushing him toward the sidewalk. Another man said he was roughly a football field's length away, on the lake, when he heard the engines of the vehicles.
Prosecutors say Grossman's vehicle was traveling as fast as 81 mph. The speed limit on the street in question is 45 mph.
Around the same time as the alleged speeding, Iskander says she entered a crosswalk with her youngest son, Zachary, by her side. The two older boys, Mark, 11, and Jacob, 8, were a little over an arm's length behind, she said.
She and each of the boys were on wheels of some sort, between rollerblades, a skateboard and a scooter. Iskander said she was motivated to get the boys out of the house and spend time at the lake amid the pandemic.
While just over halfway through the crosswalk, Iskander testified seeing and hearing the two speeding vehicles. She described one, a black SUV, as slightly ahead of the other, a white SUV. Iskander says she waved but in a split decision grabbed her youngest son and dove toward the direction they were traveling. In her testimony, she stated she sees the vision of the front black bumper every night.
Iskander said she heard the engine of the first SUV as it passed, then moments later heard the engine of the second SUV along with a loud crash. She described looking back and seeing the white SUV drive right where her older boys were walking, then only saw the crosswalk.
(snipped)
The murder trial of Rebecca Grossman, accused of hitting two young boys with her car in Westlake Village back in 2020, killing the siblings, continues.
Nancy Iskander, the mother of the deceased brothers, took the witness stand Monday, and KNX News' Margaret Carrero was there outside the courthouse in Van Nuys.
According to Iskander's testimony, when she realized cars barreling down the street were not slowing down, she grabbed her youngest son – who was closest to her - and dove out of the way. When she looked back, she saw a white SUV going through the intersection, and her other two sons were no longer there.
Iskander said the car's driver kept going, and things became quiet.
She found eight-year-old Jacob lying on the floor nearby but could not see 11-year-old Mark.
Speaking through tears, Iskander testified that once she found Mark, she could see he had blood coming out of his mouth; every bone in his body was broken. She said she knew Mark was dead.
https://abc7.com/trial-rebecca-grossman-jury-selection-los-angeles-dui-crash/14329648/
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"It is a well-marked crosswalk and this is where our worlds collide," Gould said, noting that Grossman and Erickson were in separate vehicles heading back to her house on the lake to watch the presidential debate that night.
"They didn't have a chance," the deputy district attorney said of the two boys.
The prosecutor alleged that Grossman was "flooring it to get herself up to 81 mph on a 45 mile-per-hour street" and driving just over 70 miles per hour at the time of impact. He said she wouldn't have hit the boys if she had been driving at the speed limit."She continues to go past ... and doesn't stop for over a third of a mile away. ... She never goes back to that crosswalk," Gould said.
The prosecutor noted that blood testing done on Grossman after the crash determined she had alcohol and Valium in her system, but she is not charged with driving under the influence. Jurors don't need to find her guilty of that in order to convict her of the charges, he said.
https://patch.com/california/agourahills/rebecca-grossman-trial-mother-slain-children-testify-today
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"She hears the deafening sound of cars barreling down on her. She puts her hands up, realizing that they are not slowing down, and sees Mr. Erickson's black SUV barreling down on her, toward her — she has to make a split-second decision," Gould said.
"She grabs her youngest son, Zachary, and dives out of the way of the black SUV. She's able to save Zachary and when she looks back and sees the white SUV going through the intersection, her children are no longer there," Gould continued.
Jacob's body was found 50 to 70 feet away from the crosswalk, while Mark's body landed 254 feet down the road, Gould said.
Jacob was internally decapitated: The force of the collision severed his spinal cord. Mark died of traumatic blunt-force injuries, according to Gould.
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She maintains that she did not hit the boys, but their grieving mother, Nancy Iskander, said the two cars were traveling at an “insane” speed. Nancy herself was nearly hit but managed to grab her then-five-year-old son Zachery and dive out of the way.
After the boys were hit, Mark was launched more than 250 feet, killing him. Jacob died hours later in the hospital.
Grossman has been accused of racing her ex-MLB lover Scott Erickson, who was in another car at the time of the fatal accident. The socialite was allegedly driving 81 mph and blew a 0.076%. She maintains that she did not hit the boys.
The pair, allegedly then in a relationship, had been drinking at a nearby restaurant before the crash. Grossman was also found to have Valium in her blood.
The court will be allowed to prove to jurors that the surgeon’s wife was in the midst of a love affair with Erickson at the time of the crash, according to a recent ruling by Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Joseph Brandolino.
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Nancy Iskander was in the crosswalk of a quiet Westlake Village street with three of her children when she heard engines roaring. Two sport utility vehicles were barreling toward them.
Iskander put up her right hand in a desperate effort to stop the speeding vehicles and dived for safety, grabbing her 5-year-old son. Her next memory is of her two older boys — Jacob, 8, and Mark, 11 — crumpled on Triunfo Canyon Road.
Los Angeles County prosecutors say Rebecca Grossman was behind the wheel of a white Mercedes that fatally stuck the boys in the marked crosswalk. Witnesses say, she was driving as fast as 81 mph and traveled another half-mile after slamming into the children.
Grossman, 60 is charged with two counts of second-degree murder, two counts of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence and one count of hit-and-run driving resulting in death in connection with the fatal Sept. 29, 2020 collision
Grossman’s on-site breathalyzer test showed a blood-alcohol content of 0.076%, slightly below California’s legal limit of 0.08%. A blood sample taken three hours after the crash registered at the 0.08% mark.
Prosecutors Ryan Gould and Jamie Castro plan to introduce evidence that Valium was also found in Grossman’s system, and that together with the alcohol, the prescription drug impaired her driving.
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Jury selection began Tuesday in the trial of the wealthy socialite accused of running over and killing two young brothers in Westlake Village in 2020.
Superior Court Judge Joseph Brandolino instructed prospective jurors to fill out detailed questionnaires in the trial of Rebecca Grossman, telling them to return to the Van Nuys courthouse next Tuesday when they are expected to undergo questioning.
More than 50 other potential panelists were excused, with most of them claiming that it would be a hardship to serve on what the judge said he expected would be an approximately six-week trial.
The children, 8-year-old Jacob Iskander and 11-year-old Mark Iskander, were walking through a crosswalk with their mother in Westlake Village on Sept. 29, 2020 when prosecutors say Grossman was under the influence and fatally struck the two brothers while going 72 mph in her Mercedes-Benz. Grossman is also accused of fleeing the scene after hitting the boys.
Former MLB pitcher Scott Erickson was racing Grossman when she allegedly struck the children, according to investigators.
She faces two counts of second-degree murder, two counts of vehicular manslaughter and hit-and-run-driving. Grossman has pleaded not guilty to all counts.
Grossman is married to Dr. Peter Grossman and she is co-founder of the Grossman Burn Foundation.
In June of last year, Nancy Iskander, the mother of the two children, showed up to court expecting a trial date would be set for Grossman, but at that time the judge delayed the trial because attorneys were arguing over thousands of pages of discovery handed to prosecutors for review.
It was also at that time that Iskander recollected the moments of the fatal crash.
"There were these two cars speeding. One of them I was able to escape with my little son and then the other one hit Mark and Jacob," she said.
https://www.toacorn.com/articles/grossman-jury-wont-visit-scene/
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The jury that will decide Rebecca Grossman’s fate will not be allowed to view the scene of the alleged crime in person, a Van Nuys judge ruled Jan. 8 during the final pretrial hearing before her case goes to trial later this month.
Prosecutors wanted members of the panel to see for themselves where Mark and Jacob Iskander, 11 and 8 years old, were run down as they crossed a Westlake Village street with their mother and younger brother in September 2020.
https://www.theacorn.com/articles/high-profile-grossman-and-rauda-cases-dominate-23-court-dockets/
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Less than five miles away but a world removed from Rauda’s campsite lies the gated enclave of Hidden Hills, home to numerous celebrities. The phrase “Hidden Hills resident,” like the word “socialite,” has been attached to Rebecca Grossman’s name as a mark of the wealth and privilege that many believe have kept her out of jail since September 2020, when her speeding Mercedes-Benz fatally struck young brothers Mark and Jacob Iskander in a Westlake Village crosswalk, as authorities have alleged.
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Over numerous pretrial hearings this year in the Rebecca Grossman case, not much had been said of Scott Erickson, the former Dodgers pitcher charged with misdemeanor reckless driving in connection with the collision that led to Grossman’s double murder rap.
That changed Dec. 4 when the judge granted a motion by the prosecution to admit evidence of a romantic relationship between Grossman and Erickson. The Los Angeles County deputy district attorneys handling the case had agreed in June that the affair would not be relevant at trial unless it came up through the defense.
https://www.theacorn.com/articles/final-arguments-prepped-as-grossman-case-nears/
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Certain text messages sent by Rebecca Grossman concerning the fatal traffic collision in which she was involved will be allowed as evidence in her upcoming double murder trial, a judge ruled during a preliminary hearing in Van Nuys Nov. 3.
Grossman, a Hidden Hills resident, is charged in the deaths of Mark and Jacob Iskander, ages 11 and 8, who were struck by her speeding Mercedes as they crossed a Westlake Village street with their family three years ago, prosecutors say. She faces two counts each of second-degree murder and vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence, as well as one count of hit-andrun driving resulting in death.
Prosecutors Ryan Gould and Jamie Castro wanted to bring in a statement by the defendant to the effect that, while driving, she turned her head to the right a second or two longer than she should have when she saw a woman on rollerblades crashing to the right side of the road. The woman turned out to be Nancy Iskander, the mother of the boys who died.
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Joseph Brandolino decided to allow this, as well as an accompanying text in which Grossman allegedly said that she wished she had not turned her head toward the falling woman in the last few seconds, wondering what was happening.
https://www.theacorn.com/articles/honoring-mark-and-jacob/
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It’s been three years since the car collision that claimed the lives of Mark and Jacob Iskander in Westlake Village, but their memory is still held dear by the community as their family awaits the much-delayed trial of the driver charged with murder in their deaths.
On Sept. 29, a crowd of between 300 and 400 people came out to observe the anniversary of the brothers’ deaths, walking from Three Springs Park to the site of the fatal crash and back. The event doubled as a fundraiser for the Iskander family’s new charitable project, the Mark and Jacob Foster Care Ministry, and garnered more than $67,000 for the cause, plus a $20,000 matching pledge from the family.
Local first responders were represented by Los Angeles County Fire Department Assistant Chief Drew Smith and Lost Hills Sheriff’s Station commander Capt. Jennifer Seetoo, both of whom delivered remarks. Fire Department Station 144, which responded to the accident three years ago, was on site with its engine.
Under a somber gray sky, a long procession moved down the sidewalk of Three Springs Drive, escorted by fire department and police vehicles. Many attendees wore T-shirts made for the event, with a picture of the boys on the front and “Slow Down, Save Lives” printed in bright red on the back. Some carried signs: “Take responsibility,” “Justice for Mark + Jacob,” “Stop killing our kids!!”
At Triunfo Canyon Road, the walkers turned right and headed to where the accident happened. The crowd crossed the street at Saddle Mountain Road—in the -cross walk where Mark and Jacob, ages 11 and 8, were run down as they strolled with their mother and younger brother—and gathered on the opposite side for a moment of silent prayer.
Poster-sized photographs of the brothers had been set up, and some people left flowers or donations for the foster care agency— toys, diapers, children’s books.
https://www.theacorn.com/articles/third-anniversary-grossman-trial-still-months-away/
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September brings two major anniversaries for the family of Mark and Jacob Iskander, and both days are being observed by those determined to honor the lives of the two boys.
On Sept. 29, it will be three years since the evening when Mark and Jacob, 11 and 8, were fatally struck by a car while they were walking with their family in a Westlake Village crosswalk.
In remembrance of the brothers’ lives, the Iskander family and their supporters are holding a memorial walk on that date. The route will begin and end at Three Springs Park, where the boys used to play, with a pause at the site of the crash on Triunfo Canyon Road at Saddle Mountain Drive.
On Sept. 18, which would have been Mark’s 14th birthday, the Iskanders’ charitable foundation signed a lease for the headquarters of their new project. It’s called the Mark and Jacob Foster Care Ministry and it will be at 890 Hampshire Road, Ste. A in Thousand Oaks.
“What we do is recruit, train and support families throughout the foster care process and help as many kids as we can through finding families for them,” said Nancy Iskander, Mark and Jacob’s mother.
https://www.theacorn.com/articles/defense-attacks-deputies-in-rebecca-grossman-case/
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Deputy gangs, the Kobe Bryant crash, and the street racing scene in “Grease” were all mentioned during a wide-ranging pretrial hearing in the Rebecca Grossman case Aug. 28 as the judge continued to rule on what evidence the two sides will be allowed to present to the jury.
The defendant is set to stand trial in Los Angeles County Superior Court starting Jan. 16 for charges including two counts of second-degree murder. Prosecutors say she was impaired by alcohol and a prescription drug when her speeding Mercedes fatally struck Mark and Jacob Iskander, ages 11 and 8, as they crossed a Westlake Village street with their family almost three years ago.
Grossman’s lawyers showed an eagerness to raise questions about how police handled the aftermath of the collision—in the words of her attorney Ryan Pigg, “the lackluster investigation that the defense is going to attack.”
One of the numerous motions considered by Judge Joseph Brandolino in his Van Nuys courtroom was about the admissibility of evidence regarding deputy gangs, which the defense wants to bring into the trial.
https://www.theacorn.com/articles/mercedes-driving-course-kept-out-of-trial/
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The judge in the Rebecca Grossman case dealt the prosecution a setback during a July 5 pretrial hearing, declining to allow evidence from a one-day driving course in which the defendant participated more than two years before she was involved in a fatal Westlake Village traffic collision.
Grossman faces two counts of second-degree murder in the deaths of brothers Mark and Jacob Iskander, ages 11 and 8—who were run down while crossing a Westlake street with their family in Sept. 2020—along with vehicular manslaughter and hit-and-run charges.
To convince jurors that Grossman was driving her Mercedes SUV in a way she knew was dangerous to human life when her car struck the boys, Los Angeles County Deputy District Attorney Ryan Gould wanted to call as a witness the AMG Driving Academy instructor who led the course she took at a track in Monterey County, California in April 2018.
“AMG Driving Academy is an intense, high-speed, high-adrenaline experience,” the course’s website says. “Six distinct levels provide thrill seekers the chance to push themselves and Mercedes AMG vehicles to the limit.”
In the Van Nuys courtroom of Judge Joseph Brandolino, Gould told the court that course participants executed such dangerous moves as driving at high speeds, slowing down at corners, accelerating on straightaways and braking from 60 to 0 mph while maintaining control of their vehicles. They were informed not to drink and drive, and that such high-risk maneuvers must not be attempted off the course, on city streets.
Prosecutors say that on the evening of the fatal accident, Grossman drank alcohol and then sped down Triunfo Canyon Road in a manner “substantially similar” to how she handled her Mercedes on the track.
Gould has argued that the waiver Grossman signed before taking the course—acknowledging the danger of what she was about to do—amounted to a warning that could be used at trial to establish implied malice, a conscious disregard for human life that can lead to a murder conviction, even for an unintentional killing.
https://www.foxla.com/news/family-upset-after-rebecca-grossman-shows-up-late-to-court
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The murder trial of Rebecca Grossman, who is charged in the deaths of Mark and Jacob Iskander, hasn’t begun yet but emotions are running high.
During a pre-trial hearing Thursday at the Van Nuys Courthouse, Grossman was not there at first. But after the judge ordered her to appear she did.
Grossman is well known in social circles. She is the co-founder of the renowned Grossman Burn Foundation.
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A Hidden Hills socialite who allegedly struck and killed two boys while driving intoxicated in Westlake Village nearly three years ago did not appear as expected in a Van Nuys courtroom on Thursday.
Instead, attorneys for Rebecca Grossman, co-founder of the Grossman Burn Foundation and wife of prominent plastic surgeon Dr. Peter Grossman, appeared on her behalf initially.
Grossman’s attorneys said they did not know that Grossman was required to appear, and once they learned that information, their client came to the court house.
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HCA Healthcare, one of the largest healthcare organizations in the world, is facing significant scrutiny and public backlash for its alleged financial and ethical improprieties surrounding its connection to the Grossman Burn Center. The controversy stems from the fact that the center's co-founder, Rebecca Grossman, is currently facing charges for the hit-and-run murder of two young boys. As questions arise regarding HCA's dedication to ethics and compliance, the reputation of this prominent healthcare organization hangs in the balance.
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The case against Rebecca Grossman continued in court April 25 with the judge denying a pair of defense motions, one concerning toxicology evidence from the prosecution that showed Valium in Grossman’s system at the time of the 2020 traffic collision that cost the lives of two Westlake Village boys who were hit while crossing a street.
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The trial of Rebecca Grossman, charged with fatally striking two boys with her car and fleeing the scene in 2020, is set to begin on July 5 with jury selection.
The start date was set during a pretrial conference Monday at the Van Nuys Courthouse West, according to Deputy District Attorney Ryan Gould. Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Joseph Brandolino also ordered that prosecutors and Grossman’s attorneys turn over all discovery evidence by April 3, Gould said. The next pretrial hearing is set for April 17.
https://www.theacorn.com/articles/issue-is-not-the-crosswalk/
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It has gotten to the point that I can hardly bear to read the latest update on the Grossman trial. With every delay, with every passing month that goes by in which legal manipulation and obstruction takes precedence over the suffering of this family, with every motion to prolong their misery while fomenting the usual domination of power and money over the loss of human life, my heart and faith in humanity sinks a little lower.
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During a court hearing Tuesday, the judge did not set a trial date after the prosecutor noted that Grossman’s lawyers have yet to turn over all the evidence from their experts. A hearing was set for next month, likely pushing back the trial until late spring, prosecutors said
https://www.theacorn.com/articles/state-supreme-court-denies-grossman-murder-appeal/
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The California Supreme Court has ruled that Rebecca Grossman can stand trial on two counts of second-degree murder in connection with the September 2020 deaths of brothers Mark and Jacob Iskander of Westlake Village.
At an earlier hearing, defense attorney Jonathan Schneller admitted Grossman’s actions amounted to “undeniably dangerous conduct”—just like thousands of drivers around the state every day.
But the defense has maintained the collision was a “tragic accident” and that Grossman is being “overcharged” with murder.
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The Iskanders say they do not want her to escape justice using her wealth, resources and influence.
At a vigil in Three Springs Park — Mark and Jacob’s neighborhood playground — the boys’ mother, Nancy Iskander, revealed her anguish, courage and faith.
“Thank you Lord, thank you for Mark. Thank you for every smile he put on someone’s face when he told his jokes. Thank you for when he excelled at school. Thank you for Jacob,” she said.
Despite the loss, family and community members want to focus on the positive elements that have come out of this tragedy, such as a foundation created in the brothers’ names.
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Data from the "black box" in Grossman's white SUV indicated she was traveling at 73 mph five seconds before the collision, up to 81 mph at two seconds before the collision and then 73 mph at the time of the collision, according to the prosecutor's filing.
The CHP officer who made the 2013 traffic stop told investigators that radar indicated Grossman had been driving approximately 92 mph on the 101 Freeway, and that he warned the woman that traveling at such a speed could kill or injure someone, Los Angeles County sheriff's Detective Scott Shean testified at that hearing.
The CHP officer said he remembered the stop because the woman told him he'd better hope he never needs to go to the Grossman Burn Center, according to Shean, adding that the CHP officer said he thought he'd be denied services at the facility if he ever needed them.
The sheriff's detective testified that a blood-alcohol sample taken from Grossman after she struck the boys showed that her blood-alcohol level was 0.08%.
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The mother of the boys spoke Wednesday outside the Van Nuys Court, "It's been extremely tough as you might imagine. We miss the boys every day. We've been taken through his almost two years now, I haven't seen Mark and Jacob. They haven't been in their beds and I'm here in court," Nancy Iskander told FOX 11 News.
At that hearing in May, Superior Court Judge Shellie Samuels said, “I cannot with a clear conscience dismiss the murder charges.” The judge said then that she believed that the actions of the Hidden Hills woman “went well beyond gross negligence.”
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Friday's hearing was short but the nearly two years leading up to it have been far too long for Nancy Iskander, the mother of the two boys who were killed.
"Well, it was another step, another arraignment, another time I see the defendant pleading not guilty and not taking responsibility for the murder of the boys," Iskander said.
"It’s another burden we carry, right? So the loss of the boys was one thing and this is yet another loss we carry of the time we have to wait to see any justice," Iskander said.
Iskander says her boys deserve justice.
"Mark wanted to be a neurosurgeon, Jacob wanted to be my bodyguard," she said. "He was a tough guy and a runner and he would say 'mom, you should never worry about any attacks because I’m your bodyguard.' But I had to see him die," Iskander said.
https://www.nbclosangeles.com/local/mom-of-boys-killed-in-hit-and-run-speaks-after-grossman-burn-foundation-co-founders-not-guilty-plea/2909644/ At Justice for Mark and Jacob Iskander Court Reporting, we specialize in providing high-quality court reporting services for legal professionals. Our team of experienced reporters is dedicated to delivering accurate, reliable transcripts on time and within budget.
https://www.foxla.com/video/1062674
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For the first time since the deaths of Jacob and Mark, we are hearing from a Westlake Village socialite after a crash that took the lives of the two children. Rebecca Grossman is in day three of her preliminary hearing.
"The killing of my sons were direct consequences of those extremely reckless actions that basically used the car as a weapon. I don’t see a difference between that and shooting a gun randomly", said the victim’s father Karim Iskander.
Mark and Jacob’s father was in court but his wife was not. Nancy Iskander tearfully testified the first day of the preliminary hearing about seeing her two sons after the crash.
https://abc7.com/los-angeles-rebecca-grossman-court-appearance-witness-testimony/11794292/
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Much of the testimony on Tuesday surrounded around what two eyewitnesses saw moments before the collision that killed 11-year-old Mark and 8-year-old Jacob Iskander.
They described what they saw back in Sept. 2020 as the Iskander family was crossing the street. Both said the car driven by former Major League pitcher Scott Erickson passed the family, while the car driven by Grossman struck the boys.
The driver of another car who witnessed the crash got emotional when she recalled holding one of the boys in her lap as they laid along on the curb.
https://abc7.com/los-angeles-rebecca-grossman-court-appearance-witness-testimony/11794292/
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Much of the testimony on Tuesday surrounded around what two eyewitnesses saw moments before the collision that killed 11-year-old Mark and 8-year-old Jacob Iskander.
They described what they saw back in Sept. 2020 as the Iskander family was crossing the street. Both said the car driven by former Major League pitcher Scott Erickson passed the family, while the car driven by Grossman struck the boys.
The driver of another car who witnessed the crash got emotional when she recalled holding one of the boys in her lap as they laid along on the curb.
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Nancy Iskander, the boy’s mother, was the first on the stand.
She testified that she heard engines, and then saw two SUV's coming toward her and her children in the crosswalk. She said that she waved to try and get the drivers' attention before pushing her 5-year-old son out of the way. Iskander said that she looked back and something had happened to Mark and Jacob.
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"I still see it every night. It haunts me every night," Iskander said.
Nancy Iskander was clustered with her three sons – she and Jacob were on roller skates, Mark rode a skateboard and Zachary, 5, took his scooter.
"It was the pandemic. Jacob and Zachary were holed up all day and wanted to get some fresh air," the mother of four said.
I heard the engines from two SUVs coming at us at insane speeds," Iskander said.
She said she looked up to see two vehicles, one black and one white, zig-zagging between lanes as they approached the crosswalk heading northbound. Iskander held her hand up to indicate they were crossing, but as the black car approached the intersection first, she quickly realized the car was not going to stop.
"I heard a really loud noise, I looked back and I either felt or saw the other car speeding also," Iskander said. "I realized something happened to Mark and Jacob."
When she turned, she saw Jacob lying in the roadway "as if he was sleeping," but Mark was nowhere to be found. He was eventually located up the roadway, his skateboard broken and his shoes off his feet. Both children were pronounced dead that night.
"Did anyone come back to the scene indicating they were the drivers of those cars?" asked Ryan Gould, the prosecutor in the case.
"No sir," Iskander responded.
https://www.theacorn.com/articles/media-allowed-at-grossman-preliminary-hearing/
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The April 21-22 motions hearing was requested by defense attorneys Alan Eisner and Robert Hill to ask, among other things, that certain pieces of evidence be excluded from the preliminary hearing and that the session be closed over concerns that pretrial publicity would harm their client’s right to a fair proceeding.
On day one, Eisner highlighted two stories he objected to from the Daily Mail newspaper regarding the Grossman case. On day two, he added to his motion a report from The Acorn that included a headline that, while factual, he took issue with.
Samuels did not agree that allowing news reporting from the hearing, where witnesses and law enforcement will make their first appearance, would harm Grossman’s case.
“I haven’t witnessed an excess of pretrial publicity,” Samuels said, adding that in her many years on the bench she’s never closed a preliminary hearing.
Three pieces of evidence Gould wanted the judge to consider—the speeding ticket (in which she was once clocked at 92 mph on a freeway), a magazine article Grossman wrote in 2019 about a friend who was paralyzed in a car crash when the two were in high school, and a 2018 Mercedes AMG academy attended by Grossman, billed as “an intense, high-speed, high-adrenaline experience (providing) thrill seekers the chance to push themselves and Mercedes-AMG vehicles to the limit”—were challenged by the defense.
Samuels said she would exclude the magazine article and the AMG academy from the courtroom.
https://www.theacorn.com/articles/grossman-team-wants-media-banned-2/
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Attorneys for Rebecca Grossman, the Hidden Hills woman accused of second-degree murder in the September 2020 deaths of brothers Mark and Jacob Iskander, are asking a judge to bar media and the public from Grossman’s preliminary hearing set for April 25.
Hill and co-counsel Alan Eisner also filed a motion to close Grossman’s preliminary hearing next week due to pre-trial publicity that could possibly taint the jury pool.
https://www.theacorn.com/articles/grossman-prelim-set-for-april-25/
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As part of a brief hearing March 9, Grossman’s attorneys filed a motion used by defendants who allege police lied or used excessive force in an arrest.
The motion will be heard March 29. A preliminary hearing, in which the judge determines whether evidence warrants a trial, is set to start April 25. The preliminary could last two days.
Outside court, Iskander called the deaths “a tragedy . . . a huge loss.”
“But God’s bigger and Christ is bigger, and we are full of hope in the just God we serve, and the justice system,” she said.
As for Samuels keeping the preliminary hearing intact for April, Iskander said, “We’re very thankful. Thankful to the judge.”
Addressing the possibility of delaying the preliminary hearing further, Samuels said, “We’re hopefully for sure going to be ready. "This case has taken way too long.”
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"This case has taken way too long,"Samuels said to Grossman's attorneys. "I hope you understand how difficult it has been for the victims' family."
On Wednesday morning, about 25 supporters and friends of the Iskanders appeared at the Van Nuys courthouse for the hearing, although only one person was allowed inside the courtroom to accompany the victims' mother, Nancy Iskander.
In addition to the April 25 hearing, Grossman's attorneys will appear in court on March 29 after filing a Pitchess motion to obtain personnel records for deputies involved in the arrest.
https://www.theacorn.com/articles/grossman-booking-pic-wont-be-released-2/
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“Since a booking photo is considered part of an investigatory file, it is exempt from (the public records act). The California attorney general has opined that booking photos are not public records,” the sheriff’s department said in response to a public records request by The Acorn to see Grossman’s arrest photo.
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Investigators told KABC-TV he was racing with Rebecca Grossman on Sept. 29, moments before she struck and killed 11-year-old Mark Iskander and his 8-year-old brother Jacob as they crossed the street in Westlake Village, a suburb 30 miles northwest of downtown Los Angeles.
*The boys were crossing the street in a marked crosswalk with their parents.
https://www.theacorn.com/articles/grossman-charged-with-murder/
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To prove murder in a drunk-driving case, prosecutors must invoke People vs. Watson, a 1981 California Supreme Court decision that gave counsel the green light to charge second-degree murder in certain DUI accidents if they can prove “implied malice.”
Implied malice is when a defendant engages in activity that they know is likely to lead to a death and does so without the thought of consequences. It typically requires a prior DUI conviction but not always. Grossman does not have a prior drunk driving conviction, but she is alleged to have been driving under the influence while simultaneously racing the second driver.
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The victims, 11-year-old Mark Iskander and 8-year-old Jacob Iskander, were crossing the street in a marked crosswalk with their parents and siblings on Triunfo Canyon Road in Westlake Village the evening of Sept. 29 when Grossman allegedly struck them.
She continued driving but stopped about a quarter of a mile away when her engine cut off, according to the L.A. County District Attorney’s Office.
https://www.theacorn.com/articles/westlake-gets-serious-about-traffic-scofflaws/
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Westlake Village residents spoke loud and clear when they told the City Council, they believe there’s a problem with traffic speeders in the community. The outcry came following the Sept. 29 collision that claimed the lives of local boys Mark and Jacob Iskander.
“We had a deputy get dressed up as Santa Claus and cross the road at four different crosswalks and a deputy on a motorcycle parked nearby,” Westlake Village City Councilmember Brad Halpern said.
“When drivers didn’t stop they were cited. The Santa part was for added visibility.”
And some of the drivers still didn’t stop.
“I got a call from a resident in Three Springs chewing me out, saying we were being sneaky, that it was tacky that we did it at the crosswalk where the Iskanders got hit,” Halpern said. “The same people complaining are the ones saying the city needs to do more. If people aren’t willing to stop for a large man dressed in red, they’re not going to stop for anyone.”
https://www.theacorn.com/articles/second-driver-questioned-in-grossman-investigation/
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The captain of the Lost Hills Sheriff’s Station has confirmed that investigators believe Rebecca Grossman was speeding to either stay ahead or catch up to a second vehicle the night she struck two young brothers in a crosswalk while they were out for a walk with their family near Westlake Lake.
Some in the community have accused the department of favoritism for not releasing Grossman’s mug shot (in California, mug shots are not considered public record and are therefore released at the discretion of the law enforcement agencies) because of her wealth and social status.
Photos taken the day after the crash show no signs of brake marks before or after the crosswalk at Triunfo and Saddle Mountain Drive.
https://www.theacorn.com/articles/dual-tragedies-point-to-the-evil-of-dui/
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On Sept. 29, a Hidden Hills socialite was arrested for impaired driving after her car struck and killed two brothers, 11 and 9 years old, in a Westlake Village crosswalk.
And on Oct. 16, a former local high school star and National Football League player was allegedly driving under the influence in Thousand Oaks when his car collided with another vehicle and caused the death of an elderly man.
The hundreds of comments we saw on social media in subsequent days expressed horror that the two defendants implicated in the tragedies—Rebecca Grossman, co-founder of the high-profile nonprofit Grossman Burn Foundation, and Mike Seidman, former Westlake High School and NFL player—are not only people of high standing in the community, but that they apparently made the singular decision to drink and drive after clearly knowing the danger of what might happen.
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A boy was killed and another hospitalized Tuesday evening with injuries sustained when they were struck by a vehicle on a street in Westlake Village and a person of interest was detained by authorities.
Deputies from the Malibu/Lost Hills Sheriff’s Station responded to a crash in the area of Triunfo Canyon Road and Saddle Mountain Drive about 7:10 p.m. and located two injured children, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.
One boy was pronounced dead at the scene and another was taken to a hospital in unknown condition, the department said.