los angeles — A Los Angeles jury awarded $176 million to the parents of two young brothers killed in an accident Hit and run collision When they were hit by a California socialite’s car in a crosswalk nearly six years ago.
A jury found both Rebecca Grossman and Scott Erickson, a former Los Angeles Dodgers player, negligent in the deaths of 11-year-old Mark Iskander and 8-year-old Jacob Iskander.
The damages awarded Wednesday were for wrongful death and emotional distress. The trial judge will ultimately determine the amount each defendant must pay.
The court was scheduled to resume its work on Friday, with jurors still having to decide whether to award punitive damages to the boys’ parents, Nancy and Kareem Iskander.
Grossman was sentenced to serve in 2024 15 years to life imprisonment After being found guilty of second-degree murder, vehicular homicide and hit-and-run driving in a separate criminal trial. She is a co-founder of the Grossman Berne Foundation and the wife of a prominent burn doctor.
The boys’ parents also filed lawsuits in civil court against both Grossman and Erickson, who was driving in front of them when the Alexander brothers were killed. That trial began in April.
The fatal accident occurred on the evening of September 29, 2020, in Westlake Village, a city on the western edge of Los Angeles County.
Grossman and Erickson were driving recklessly after drinking margaritas together, said Brian Panish, the Iskander family’s attorney. The two were dating at a time when Grossman was separating from her husband.
Panich said Grossman was driving 73 mph (117 kph) when her car struck the boy at a crosswalk on a road where the posted speed limit was 45 mph (72 kph).
He said Grossman was following Erickson, who was also speeding and narrowly missed the family.
“This was a collision that was completely preventable,” Panish told the jury in closing arguments Wednesday. “They went out for a walk and never came home.”
Grossman’s lawyer, Esther Holm, denied that her client was drunk. She said Grossman was distracted when she saw the boys’ mother move out of the way of Erickson’s car.
“Ms. Grossman was not impaired driving,” Holm told the jury. “She did not see the children, she was distracted by Mrs. Iskandar.”
Erickson’s lawyer, Jeff Brown, described the boys’ deaths as a tragedy, but stressed that the car he was driving “did not make contact with the children.”