Prosecution rests in Rebecca Grossman murder trial. Here's what comes next
After 10 days of testimony and dozens of witnesses, prosecutors in the Rebecca Grossman murder trial rested their case on Friday.
They say Grossman was driving her Mercedes SUV up to 81 mph seconds before she struck and killed Mark and Jacob Iskander in a Westlake Village crosswalk. The boys had been crossing Triunfo Canyon Road with their mom and younger brother on Sept, 29, 2020. The speed limit was 45 mph.
When asked about the cause of the crash, an expert witness for the prosecution responded: "Simply speed."
At 81 mph, all drivers would crash, said Jeffrey Muttart, a researcher who described his specialty as behaviors of drivers responding to hazards. At 45 mph, nearly all would avoid the crash, he said.
Grossman, 60, of Hidden Hills, faces two counts of second-degree murder, two counts of vehicular manslaughter and hit-and-run driving. She has pleaded not guilty to all counts.
Defense: Boys hit multiple times
Grossman’s defense team has told jurors in a Van Nuys courtroom another Mercedes SUV hit the boys first. Her attorneys say Mark and Jacob were hit by multiple vehicles and were outside of the crosswalk at the time of the crash.
Grossman was driving toward her home near Westlake Lake that evening, according to earlier witness testimony. She had drinks with friends and was headed to watch the presidential debate with Scott Erickson, her then-boyfriend.
She and Erickson left a nearby restaurant in separate Mercedes SUVs, a witness said. Erickson's was black, and Grossman's was white. Several people on or near Triunfo Canyon described seeing and hearing two vehicles speeding.
The boys' mom, Nancy Iskander, said she and her boys had already passed the halfway point in the road when she saw the SUVs speeding toward them. The black SUV — reportedly driven by Erickson — reached the crosswalk first, heading toward her and her youngest son. Iskander grabbed the 5-year-old, the closest boy to her, and dove out of the way.
She looked up and saw the white SUV go through the spot where Mark and Jacob had been, she said.
Testimony includes Erickson statement
The defense has blamed Erickson, a former professional baseball player, for the crash, saying the black vehicle hit the children first. But several experts and witnesses called by the prosecution disputed that happened.
During cross examination, lead defense attorney Tony Buzbee asked Muttart if it would be difficult for a driver to avoid a child who vaulted into the air after being struck by another vehicle and landed on the hood of the car.
The facts of the case don’t support that happening, Muttart said.
Later, the researcher was asked about a statement Erickson gave about the crash. Erickson said he didn’t hit anybody, that he saw two children in the crosswalk and a scooter, Muttart said. Zachary, the youngest Iskander boy, was on a scooter with reflective wheels, according to earlier testimony.
In 2021, Erickson was charged with reckless driving, a misdemeanor. The court ordered judicial diversion, and the case was later resolved.
Witness: Mistakes were made
On Friday, an accident reconstruction expert said a single-vehicle, high-speed crash had led to the boys injuries. John Grindey pointed to a photo of Grossman’s SUV while testifying how the front-end damage was consistent with two impacts.
When the SUV hit Mark, the impact happened near the middle of the front of the vehicle. The force had pushed the lip of the hood back several inches and damaged the grille, the former California Highway Patrol officer said. Jacob was struck close to the front passenger side.
No other vehicle was involved, Grindey said.
Under cross examination, Grindey told Buzbee that a deputy “made some mistakes” in the investigation. Sheriff’s personnel had photographed pieces of debris on the road but did not collect and book it as evidence. Officers also recorded surveillance video on a cellphone, which experts say makes it difficult, if not impossible, to analyze speed.
The surveillance video only captured the road and vehicles after the crash. A device in Grossman's SUV recorded the vehicle's speeds in the five seconds leading up to impact. The speed was 73 mph at the time of the crash. An investigator also used a formula based on various factors and calculated similar speeds.
Grindey told Deputy District Attorney Ryan Gould that he still was confident in his conclusions about how the crash happened.
Witness testifies about Grossman's text
On the stand, Rose Wiltshire read parts of a text message Grossman sent to her about the crash. In the message to her former colleague, Grossman said she turned her head when she saw a woman on Rollerblades fall, Wiltshire said.
Nancy Iskander and Jacob were on in-line skates as they crossed Triunfo. Her youngest was on the scooter, and Mark rode a skateboard.
“I do take accountability that I turned my head to the right probably one or two seconds longer than I should have when I saw a woman crashing on rollerblades on the right side of the road,” the text message says.
Grossman said she guessed she turned her head over her shoulder because the airbag bruised the left side of her face, according to the text.
Prosecution rests its case
After the prosecution rested its case Friday, Grossman’s attorney John Hobson asked the judge to dismiss the second-degree murder and hit-and-run driving counts against Grossman. Hobson said there was insufficient evidence for those charges.
Judge Joseph Brandolino denied the motion, saying he thought prosecutors had met their burden and the jury should decide.
Monday is a court holiday. The trial is expected to resume Tuesday with defense witnesses taking the stand.
Cheri Carlson covers the environment and county government for the Ventura County Star. Reach her at cheri.carlson@vcstar.com or 805-437-0260.
This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Prosecution rests in Grossman murder trial. Here's what comes next
