Nancy Iskander, mother of two boys killed by LA celebrity Rebecca Grossman, condemns the verdict

US News

From Nicholas McEntire

The heartbroken mother of the two little boys killed in a hit-and-run accident by a Los Angeles celebrity said it felt like a “stab in the heart” when she learned of the killer’s fate.

Rebecca Grossman was sentenced on Monday to 15 years to life in prison for the killing of her brothers Jacob (8) and Mark Iskander. The prosecution demanded the maximum sentence of 34 years to life in prison.

Nancy Iskander said it was painful to hear Grossman’s verdict because Superior Court Judge Joseph Brandolino had given a more lenient sentence, believing he had “lumped the two boys together” in his ruling.

“The 15-day life sentence was a stab in the heart,” Iskander told KABC. “In two different ways: First, he lumped the two boys together as if they were one. But they were not.”

“If you ask parents, they will tell you that their children are not the same person. They are different. They have two different personalities,” she added. “Especially children who have had their whole lives ahead of them. You can’t count two of them as one. That’s extremely unfair.”

The two boys were killed on September 29, 2020, while crossing the street in Westlake Village with their mother and younger brother Zachary.

As the two older boys entered the zebra crossing, they were fatally struck by a Mercedes GLE 43 AMG driven by Grossman before he fled the scene of the accident.

“Maybe if (Grossman) had been a little less drunk or had she been paying a little more attention, she could have avoided one of them,” Iskander said. “It only took one step, exactly one more step, for Jacob to survive and not get hit by her car.”

Prosecutors, who sought the maximum sentence of 34 years to life for Grossman, say the socialite went out for drinks with her then-lover, former Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Scott Erickson, before the two raced each other, reaching speeds of up to 80 mph (130 km/h) before the fatal crash.

Grossman spoke directly to the grieving Iskanders during their sentencing hearing on Monday.

“If I could bring Mark and Jacob back, I would give my life. I’m so sorry. I’ve wanted to talk to you for so long. I’m sorry that didn’t happen. I didn’t run away. My car stalled. My pain is nothing compared to your pain. I’m so sorry for what happened to you.”

Iskander called Grossman’s apology a fake and wanted to get up and leave the courtroom.

“I’ll tell you first what made me leave my place. I expected her to be the way she is: not sincere, right, I’m not sorry.”

Iskander said she stayed in her seat when Grossman begged her to stay because the mother believed something had changed about her son’s killer.

“When she started talking, it was exactly what I expected. It wasn’t real. It wasn’t ‘I’m sorry I killed her. It was ‘I’m sorry for your loss,'” Iskander said.

Grossman, 60, will be eligible for parole after nine years and was also ordered to pay $47,161.89 in restitution.

Iskander blamed Grossman for killing her sons – and a part of herself.

“If your child dies, you die. I have no doubt: a part of me is dead. And it’s dead because of her. And I have to function and take care of small children while I’m half dead.”

Iskander described the verdict as the “hardest day of the entire trial.”

“I would compare Monday to September 29, 2020, almost the same level of pain,” she told KTLA. “All I can say is I hope nine years is enough time for her heart to change. I’m not sure,” Iskander said.