close
close
Local

Rebecca Grossman sentenced to prison after saying she had suffered enough

A Los Angeles socialite who was convicted of murder for killing two young boys with her car during a chase with her lover complained to the judge that she had suffered enough – then collapsed when She was sentenced to 15 years to life in prison.

Rebecca Grossman, 60 — who killed her brothers Jacob, 8, and Mark Iskander, 11, in a hit-and-run in 2020 — made a desperate plea to Superior Court Judge Joseph Brandolino to be lenient with her as prosecutors demanded she receive a maximum of 34 years to life in prison.

Her lawyers argued for her to be released on probation.

But Brandolino gave her 15 years to life and ordered her to pay $47,000 in restitution — saying she was “not a monster like prosecutors have portrayed her to be.”

The judge cited Grossman's story of a philanthropist in giving him the most lenient sentence.

Rebecca Grossman, left, was convicted of murdering two young brothers in a drunken hit-and-run. Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

“I am not a murderer and I ask that you acknowledge this true fact,” Grossman wrote in a letter to the judge — despite being convicted of second-degree murder in February.

“My pain, my recognition of the pain that the Iskanders are suffering and the pain that I see my family endure are punishments that I already suffer and will suffer for the rest of my life,” she added.

“Please consider this suffering when considering what further punishment to impose on me in this matter.”

Rebecca Grossman's family after the sentencing. David Buchan/New York Post
His family submitted letters to the court, along with about three dozen of Grossman's supporters, asking for a sentence of probation. David Buchan/New York Post
Her husband Peter Grossman, daughter Alexis and son Nick arrived in black at Rebecca's sentencing hearing. David Buchan/New York Post

Her husband, famed plastic surgeon Dr. Peter Grossman and daughter Alexis and son Nick, also submitted letters to the court along with about three dozen of Grossman's supporters asking for a probation sentence.

All three also arrived in court Monday for sentencing, where Rebecca Grossman confronted the victims' relatives.

“My pain is only a fraction of your pain,” a tearful Grossman told the young victims’ mother, Nancy Iskander, according to the Los Angeles Times.

“I’ve never seen anyone. I never saw anyone,” Grossman also reportedly said in court, saying she entered a state of denial after the accident.

“I would have hit a brick wall…. I don't know why God didn't take my life.

Iskander asked Judge Brandolino to slap Grossman with a sentence that matched the tragic deaths of his two sons, according to the newspaper.

“She’s a coward,” she reportedly said of Grossman.

Peter Grossman stood by his wife throughout her trial, despite revelations that she was drinking with her then-lover, former Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Scott Erickson, before the accident.

Mark and Jacob Iskander were crossing the street on September 29, 2020 when Grossman hit them.

Rebecca Grossman also continued to dodge responsibility in the letter, saying that while the “tragic accident” that killed the brothers continues to haunt her, she “didn't see anyone or anything on the road” on the day his car hit Jacob and Mark. .

Prosecutors say she was racing Erickson in her Mercedes GLE 43 AMG and reached speeds of up to 81 mph before the fatal crash.

“I can only imagine the pain that (the boys' parents) Nancy and Karim Iskander are feeling minute by minute,” Grossman wrote. “I will carry my pain for the rest of my life.”

Grossman maintains that she was neither drunk nor intoxicated when Jacob and Mark were killed.

Prosecutors say the married philanthropist was drinking at brunch with her then-lover, Erickson, then proceeded to chase him down a residential street, where she hit the boys then fled the scene.

“The voices demanding vengeance and retribution are responding to the tragic loss of Mark and Jacob, but they do not accurately portray me or who I am. I’m not a murderer,” she concluded.

The mother of the two boys speaks outside the Van Nuys courthouse on June 10, 2024. P.A.
Grieving parents Nancy and Karim Iskander arrived at the Los Angeles courthouse Monday. David Buchan/New York Post

The letter to the judge was notably similar to one she wrote to Nancy and Karim Iskander, in which the family claimed she had made the letter about her and suggested she buy a house and transform into a family burn and trauma center dedicated to their son.

Prosecutors called Grossman a narcissist who believed “her wealth and fame would buy her freedom,” adding that she tried to blame Erickson for the fatal crash.

“From the beginning, the facts were twisted and distorted, turning this tragic accident into a murder and me into a cold-blooded killer,” she added.

Grossman's car hit the boys with such force that one of them flew more than 250 feet. Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department

“The defendant's actions from September 29, 2020 to the present show a complete lack of remorse and narcissistic superiority that lead to only one conclusion, namely that she deserves no leniency,” prosecutors said .

Along with the letter to the judge, a website was created called “Notes on Behalf of Rebecca”, urging readers not to form a “biased opinion” of her and including testimonies from anonymous people imploring the state to 'have pity on her.

“This image of my mother being a rich and entitled woman is absurd to me because she is the most humble and selfless woman I have ever met,” Alexis wrote in court.

Grossman maintains she did not see the boys crossing the street that day and says she was not drunk or impaired.

“[A probationary sentence] would allow him to live out his remorse by continually serving and contributing to society, especially in ways that honor the memory of the Iskander children,” Peter wrote.

Grossman was convicted in February of two counts of second-degree murder, two counts of vehicular manslaughter and one count of hit-and-run.

Prosecutors said Mark and Jacob were crossing the street at the crosswalk with their mother and younger brother when Grossman crashed into them and fled, leaving the boys for dead.

The socialite hit the boys with such force that the older brother flew more than 250 feet.

Related Articles

Back to top button