Jury deliberations to start in Westlake Village crash civil trial – NBC Los Angeles

Jury deliberation are to start Tuesday within the civil trial over a Westlake Village crash involving Rebecca Grossman, co-founder of the Grossman Burn Basis, and former MLB pitcher Scott Erickson that killed two younger brothers.

An legal professional for the household of two boys killed within the alleged avenue race between Grossman and Erickson requested jurors Monday to evaluate a whole bunch of tens of millions of {dollars} in damages. The request from legal professional Brian Panish, chatting with the Van Nuys Superior Courtroom panel initially of closing arguments, got here after weeks of testimony within the carefully watched civil trial.

“It is not an accident once you pace and also you drink and also you drive impaired, who would act like that besides somebody who thinks they’ll do no matter they need and there is not any penalties?” Panish mentioned.

Grossman legal professional Esther Holm denied Grossman was impaired from alcohol or valium and mentioned she by no means tried to flee and was not racing.

“She wasn’t racing, that is all hypothesis,” Holm mentioned.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nn_QgDUoohM

The plaintiffs within the civil go well with filed in January 2021 are Nancy Iskander, her husband Karim and son Zachary. They contend that Grossman and then-boyfriend Erickson, who briefly pitched for six groups throughout a 15-year MLB profession, had cocktails and later engaged in a pace contest alongside Triunfo Canyon Highway till they reached a crosswalk the place the kids — Mark and Jacob Iskander, ages 11 and eight — had been struck at about 80 mph in a forty five mph zone on Sept. 29, 2020.

Of their court docket papers, the Iskander attorneys contend that the 62-year-old Grossman tried to flee the scene and certain would have succeeded had her automobile not routinely shut down as a consequence of it sensing the large affect that had simply occurred.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cm1pwZ7bLB0

Grossman was discovered responsible Feb. 23, 2024, of two counts every of second- diploma homicide and vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence and one rely of hit-and-run driving, and is serving a sentence of 15 years to life in jail. In March, a panel of the Second District Courtroom of Attraction upheld the legal case conviction.

After the crash, Grossman then lied to regulation enforcement about her pace and the way a lot she needed to drink, and contended she didn’t know why her airbag abruptly deployed regardless of her automobile sustaining large front-end injury, the Iskander attorneys additional state. Grossman and Erickson have blamed one another for hitting the boys.

The mom of the 2 younger boys who had been killed after they had been hit by a automotive pushed by Rebecca Grossman delivered a heartbreaking testimony in court docket. Camilla Rambaldi studies for the NBC4 Information at 5 p.m. on Tuesday, Could 19, 2026.

Erickson testified he wasn’t “racing” Grossman earlier than the crash though he did admit to driving 55 miles per hour in a 45-mile zone.

Earlier, his former teammate Royce Clayton mentioned throughout his testimony he had margaritas with Erickson and Grossman earlier than the crash. Erickson mentioned he now not considers Clayton a buddy after he urged Erickson and Grossman, had been rushing.

Holm additionally mentioned the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Division “locked in” on Grossman throughout its investigation and did not have a look at anything, however her shopper nonetheless cooperated with deputies.

The visibility to motorists of the pedestrian crossing signal warning drivers of the crosswalk forward was impaired by bushes and parked automobiles, Grossman didn’t try to flee the scene, her gait and speech had been regular when examined for sobriety and she or he didn’t end a margarita she had earlier than the accident, in response to Holm, who added that the Grossmans had been separated on the time and had determined to not divorce after 26 years of marriage.

The trial has included testimony from the boys’ mother and father, regulation enforcement officers, crash scene investigation specialists and a psychiatrist, who testified that Nancy Iskander has demonstrated a number of signs of post-traumatic stress dysfunction since witnessing Grossman run over and kill two of her sons.

Scott Erickson admitted to deleting textual content messages between him and Grossman after his then-girlfriend crashed right into a Westlake Village household, killing two younger brothers. Keenan Willard studies for the NBC4 Information at 4 p.m. on Monday, Could 11, 2026.

On the stand, Nancy Iskander described occasions like birthdays and Mom’s Day.

“A part of me is solely lifeless,” Iskander mentioned. “A part of my coronary heart is gone.

“I needed them to be finest associates in life.”

Iskander mentioned she replays the tragic chain of occasions that led to the deaths of her sons in her head, six years after the lethal crash. She mentioned the household usually went on walks in the identical space.

Socialite Rebecca Grossman is serving jail sentence for crashing into the younger brothers in 2020. Camilla Rambaldi studies for the NBC4 Information at 4 p.m. on Thursday, Could 14, 2026.

Mark was on a skateboard. Jacob was on skates. The neighborhood was quiet till she heard the sounds of automotive engines.

“I additionally stored my eye on the street like each mother or father would do, proper, simply maintain your eye on the street,” Iskander mentioned. “I heard the roaring engines in two automobiles, one black, one white, coming in the direction of us. I believed for a second, ‘What’s occurring?’ They had been accelerating towards the crosswalk is what I noticed.”

Iskander mentioned she needed to seize her different son Zachary out of the best way of one of many automobiles. She mentioned she noticed the white automotive passing the place she final noticed her different two sons.

“After which I take care of and I didn’t discover them, and I began screaming,” Iskander mentioned.

She later testified, “I went from the happiest I might be to probably the most devastated I might be.”

The boys’ father, Karim Iskander, took the stand final week. Throughout his testimony, the court docket was proven movies of the brothers and relations as Karim Iskander described what was occurring within the clips. He was requested to talk at size about his youngsters, their pursuits and aspirations.

Iskander described the boys as kind-hearted and caring. He recalled the final birthday he spent with Mark on the seaside, a couple of days earlier than the lethal crash.

“We spent the day there, and it was wonderful,” Iskander mentioned. “Once I got here again, I informed my spouse I had a lot enjoyable, I wish to do that on a regular basis, at the very least month-to-month.”

Throughout emotional testimony, he described Jacob in glowing phrases.

“Jacob is the boy I all the time wished to be. My complete life,” Iskander mentioned.