Rebecca Grossman civil trial jury deliberations continue

LOS ANGELES - Jurors resumed deliberations on Wednesday to decide a high-stakes civil lawsuit against socialite Rebecca Grossman and former baseball player Scott Erickson. 

The family of Mark and Jacob Iskander, the 11- and 8-year-old brothers killed in a tragic 2020 collision, is seeking hundreds of millions of dollars in damages following a lengthy trial that concluded closing arguments on Monday.

What we know:

The civil lawsuit, originally filed in January 2021 by parents Nancy and Karim Iskander along with their surviving son Zachary, stems from a fatal incident on September 29, 2020. 

The plaintiffs argue that Grossman and her then-boyfriend, former Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Scott Erickson, consumed cocktails before engaging in an impromptu street race along Triunfo Canyon Road in Westlake Village. 

According to the family's legal team, Grossman’s vehicle struck the boys in a pedestrian crosswalk at approximately 80 mph in a 45 mph zone. 

Grossman's husband, Dr. Peter Grossman—a renowned plastic surgeon—is also named as a defendant because he owned the vehicle she was driving.

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Grossman is currently serving a sentence of 15 years to life in prison. Her criminal conviction for two counts each of second-degree murder and vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence, alongside one count of hit-and-run driving, was upheld by the Second District Court of Appeal in March.

During the civil trial, the defense teams pushed back heavily against the narrative of a street race. Grossman’s attorney, Esther Holm, maintained that her client was driving around 52 mph, was not racing, and was distracted right before the impact when she saw the boys' mother diving out of the way of Erickson's leading vehicle.

What we don't know:

While all 11 trial witnesses agreed that both vehicles were speeding, jurors must determine whether the high-speed driving legally constituted a coordinated "speed contest." 

Additionally, the jury must decide how much fault, if any, lies with Erickson; while the plaintiffs claim he actively participated in the fatal race, his defense maintains his actions did not directly cause the collision.

What they're saying:

During closing arguments, plaintiff attorney Brian Panish delivered an emotional appeal to the panel, presenting large photographs of the victims and lambasting the defendants' behavior.

"It's not an accident when you speed and you drink and you drive impaired. Who would act like that except someone who thinks they can do whatever they want and there's no consequences?"

Panish also noted that while Grossman's blood-alcohol level was measured at 0.08 hours after the crash due to her demanding a search warrant, it was likely between 0.11 and 0.13 at the time of the impact. He added, "She has still not once admitted she killed the boys. They know they're responsible, they know they were racing."

In defense of Grossman, attorney Esther Holm argued that the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department "locked in" on her client prematurely and ignored external factors, such as nearby trees and parked cars blocking the visibility of the pedestrian-crossing sign.

Erickson’s defense attorney, Jeff Braun, asked the jury to cap any potential damages at $10 million. However, Braun openly acknowledged his client's severe credibility issues on the stand, stating, "My client lied to the police and to lawyers in this case."

Braun argued that while Erickson made "stupid" decisions and dug himself a difficult hole, his dishonesty did not prove that an active race occurred.

What's next:

The jury will continue sorting through weeks of conflicting testimony, witness speed estimates, and damage calculations on Wednesday. 

If the panel finds that Grossman and Erickson acted with a conscious disregard for safety, they will move to assess punitive damages on top of compensatory awards for the Iskander family's emotional and financial loss.