A socialite from Los Angeles has been found guilty of murder after two young brothers were killed in a hit-and-run in 2020.
Rebecca Grossman, the wife of prominent LA plastic surgeon Dr Peter Grossman, fatally struck Mark Iskander, 11, and his brother Jacob, 8, while speeding in the city of Westlake Village on 29 September 2020.
She was found guilty of two counts of second-degree murder and gross vehicular manslaughter, and one felony count of hit-and-run driving resulting in death.
Grossman, 60, faces 34 years to life in prison.
The boys’ mother said attending the court proceedings “felt like I am attending the funeral of the boys again, day after day”.
“Someone is now held accountable. Mark and Jacob did not die, Mark and Jacob were murdered,” Nancy Iskander said after the verdict.
Data from Grossman’s white Mercedes showed she was travelling at 81mph, slowing to 73mph less than two seconds before a collision that set off her airbags.
Before the crash, she had been at a nearby restaurant with her then lover Scott Erickson, a former Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher.
Grossman had one margarita cocktail and Erickson had two, The Los Angeles Times reported that former baseball player Royce Clayton had testified.
Her lawyers argued that her car was driving behind Erickson’s and he was responsible for the deaths of the boys.
The Iskander brothers had been approaching a road to cross at around 7pm with their mother Ms Iskander and their younger brother Zachary, 5.
During the trial, three eyewitnesses testified that they saw a white or light-coloured vehicle hit the boys.
Ms Isklander also testified that the former baseball player’s car did not hit her children but could have hit her and Zachary.
However, Grossman’s lawyer Tony Buzbee argued Erickson’s black SUV hit Jacob, hurling him to a curb, and then hit Mark, throwing him into the path of Grossman’s car, according to The LA Times.
Erickson denied contributing to the crash in any way. He was initially charged with a misdemeanor count of reckless driving but it was dismissed after he made a public service announcement, the Times said.
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Dr Grossman, medical director of the Grossman Burn Centers – which specialises in reconstructive surgery for burn victims – was called to testify during the trial.
He said he and Grossman were separated at the time of the crash, living separate lives under the same roof while dating other people.
Dr Grossman said that out of the hundreds of times he was in the car with his wife he had no recollection of her ever speeding.
