Jury finds socialite and MLB pitcher negligent in boys' deaths in crosswalk

Socialite Rebecca Grossman and former MLB pitcher Scott Erickson were both found negligent by a Los Angeles jury Wednesday in a wrongful death lawsuit arising from the 2020 deaths of young brothers Mark and Jacob Iskander.

Both defendants' conduct was found to have substantially contributed to the deaths, and both were found to have acted with malice.

The jury awarded compensatory damages of $176 million for all three plaintiffs together.

The jury was sent home for the day. Punitive damages were to be addressed on Thursday.

Panish made a short comment: "We got more work to do with this next phase of the trial."

He reserved additional comments on the case until after tomorrow.

The plaintiffs, who seek $400 million in damages, were represented at trial by Panish | Shea | Ravipudi LLP, led by firm partner Brian J. Panish and attorneys Andrew Owen and Andrew Gianelli.

In 2020, the boys, ages 11 and 8, were struck and killed while crossing a residential street with their family in Westlake Village. While Erickson was not criminally charged, Grossman was convicted of five felony counts including murder, vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence and hit-and-run driving resulting in death.

She is serving a state prison sentence of 15 years to life, which was upheld in March.

Grossman's civil trial counsel was led by Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith LLP partner Esther P. Holm.

McNeil Tropp & Braun LLP partner Jeff I. Braun represented Erickson.

The civil case, filed in 2021 on behalf of the Iskander family, alleged that Grossman and Erickson were out drinking alcohol before getting into separate vehicles and racing at high speeds through Westlake Village, culminating in the collision that killed Mark and Jacob. Iskander et al. v. Grossman et al., 21STCV01600 (L.A. Super. Ct., filed Jan. 28, 2021).

The alleged speeds before impact were over 70 mph in a 45-mph zone, according to the plaintiffs, which both defendants contended weren't supported by the scientific evidence.

While the Iskander family contended Grossman and Erickson acted with conscious disregard for the safety of others, the defendants denied they were impaired, racing or driving recklessly.

Throughout the civil trial, Grossman's attorneys challenged the plaintiffs' intoxication, speed and accident reconstruction evidence, while Erickson's counsel maintained his vehicle never struck the boys and that his conduct was not a substantial factor in causing their deaths.

The verdict followed weeks of testimony that centered on whether Grossman and Erickson were engaged in a street race and whether their conduct leading up to the collision made them jointly responsible for the boys' deaths.

During closing arguments, Panish told jurors the evidence showed the defendants spent the afternoon drinking before driving through Westlake Village at dangerous speeds. He pointed to field sobriety testing, blood-alcohol evidence, eyewitness testimony and accident-reconstruction analysis, arguing Grossman was traveling more than 70 mph when she struck the boys and that Erickson's conduct was part of the same course of activity that led to their deaths.

Holm, for Grossman, argued the plaintiffs' theories relied more on speculation than science. She contended alcohol tests administered after the crash showed a blood alcohol level around the legal limit hours later and could not reliably establish her level of impairment at the moment of impact.

The plaintiffs' counsel argued that because Grossman delayed the testing, her blood alcohol level was much higher at the time of impact.

Braun, for Erickson, acknowledged his client had lied about aspects of the evening in the years following the crash, and even during his live testimony, but maintained Erickson's vehicle never struck the boys and that the plaintiffs failed to prove his conduct was a substantial factor in causing their deaths.

If found negligent, Braun argued the most reasonable punishment against Erickson would be $10 million.