Socialite jailed for 15 years after mowing down brothers aged eight and 11 while speeding after lover following boozy lunch
11 June 2024, 00:21
A US socialite has been jailed for 15 years after she was involved in a hit-and-run which killed two brothers, aged eight and 11, while speeding behind her lover's car.
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The court heard how Rebecca Grossman, 60, drank cocktails during a lunch with her baseball star ex-boyfriend, before getting behind the wheel on September 19, 2020.
Grossman hit Mark and Jacob Iskander, who were walking with their mother Nancy at the time, while travelling at 70mph in Westlake Village, California, as she drove behind Scott Erickson.
Grossman, who is married to a prominent Los Angeles burns doctor, was having an affair with Erickson, a former Los Angeles Dodgers player at the time of the incident.
After ploughing her vehicle into the two boys, she proceeded to carry on driving.
She was convicted by the court in February for the murder of the brothers, after being found guilty of two felony charges — two counts of second-degree murder and gross vehicular manslaughter — and one felony charge, primarily the hit-and-run driving that resulted in death of the two boys.
The charges facing Grossman are punishable by up to 34 years to life in prison in the county.
Prior to sentencing, Grossman appealed to leniency from the judge, explaining in a letter: “I swear to you, I would have driven my car into a tree to avoid hitting two little boys."
The court heard how she sat in her car for "20 minutes" following the hit and run as she came to terms with what had happened.
“From the very beginning, the facts have been distorted and misrepresented, turning the tragic accident into murder and me into a cold-blooded killer…" she said as she pleaded for leniancy.
"I am not a murderer, and I ask you to recognise that true fact.”
She continued: “My pain, my recognition of the pain the Iskanders suffer and the pain I watch my family endure are punishments that I already suffer and will for the rest of my life.
"Please consider this suffering when you consider what more punishment to impose on me in this case,” she added.
Speaking in front of the packed LA courtroom, Judge Joseph Brandolino said: "Her action was grossly negligent which led to the loss of two lives, and she engaged in incredibly selfish behaviour."
Sobbing in front of the press, Grossman was sentenced to 15 years to life for the killing of the brothers.
But as Nancy, the boys' mother, got up to leave, Grossman could be heard begging her to stay.
Sitting back down, Grossman said to her: "Please don't leave. All l ever wanted to tell you I'm sorry. I just wanted write to you.
"I just wanted to be a human to human, mother to mother. I wanted to leave this world because I didn't want to be here anymore."
According to prosecutors, Grossman could now be eligible for parole in just six years if she receives credit for good behaviour.
