Mother of boys hit and killed by celebrity Rebecca Grossman is dismayed at lenient sentence

Travis Schlepp and Sandra Mitchell

10 minutes ago

LOS ANGELES (KTLA) – The mother of two boys hit and killed by California socialite Rebecca Grossman is expressing disappointment at Grossman’s recent verdict.

Grossman, 60, was found guilty in February of two counts of first-degree murder, two counts of vehicular manslaughter and one count of hit-and-run causing death in connection with the collision that killed 8-year-old Jacob and 11-year-old Mark Iskander on September 29, 2020.

The co-founder of the Grossman Burn Foundation and wife of the well-known plastic surgeon Dr. Peter Grossman had written a letter to the judge from prison before the verdict was announced, asking for mercy.

On Monday, Grossman was sentenced to between 15 and life in prison. She could be eligible for parole after just nine years.

The prosecution had asked for the maximum sentence, but it was more than twice the sentence it had received.

The surprising verdict reopened old wounds for the boys’ mother, Nancy Iskander.

“It was the hardest day of the whole process,” Iskander said. “I would compare Monday to September 29, 2020, the pain was almost the same.”

In an interview at the family home on Wednesday, Iskander told Nexstar’s KTLA that the judge’s sentence was not strict enough and did not do justice to the lives of her two sons.

“He counted them both as one,” Iskander said. “There were two, I promise. There were two.”

“All I can say is that I hope nine years is enough time for her heart to change. I’m not sure,” Iskander said.

During the four-year legal ordeal, Grossman never admitted guilt in the running over of 11-year-old Mark and 8-year-old Jacob.

Despite all the trauma and heartache, Iskander says she loves the person who turned her life upside down.

“I serve a God who teaches me to love, and I love her, I love her family, I love her children, she is human,” she said.

Iskander says the woman responsible for her sons’ deaths offered to build a building near her husband’s burn hospital and name it after them.

Nancy says she is not ready for that.

“This is not something I would accept from her,” Iskander said. “She cannot honor her memory. I am sorry, but I cannot allow this.”

Instead, the Iskander family has established their own foundation to honor Jacob and Mark. Nancy hopes this will be a fitting tribute and do justice to their memory.

“Every day I ask myself: Are they proud? Do they look down on me and are they proud of me? Or not? That’s so important and I can’t ask them,” she said.