cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/16402340
California socialite Rebecca Grossman sentenced to 15 to life for killing 2 kids in crosswalk
A wealthy California woman who co-founded a burn center foundation in the Los Angeles area was sentenced to 15 years to life in prison Monday for the hit-and-run killings of two children while they were in a crosswalk more than three years ago.
Rebecca Grossman was speeding when she struck and killed Mark Iskander, 11, and his brother Jacob, 8, while they were in a crosswalk in the Los Angeles-area city of Westlake Village on Sept. 29, 2020.
“The loss of these two innocent lives has devastated their family and our community. Ms. Grossman’s blatant disregard for human life is a stark reminder of the grave consequences of irresponsible behavior behind the wheel,” Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón said in a statement.
A jury convicted Grossman in February on two counts of second-degree murder, two counts of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence and one count of hit-and-run driving resulting in death.
The key pieces of evidence that led to Rebecca Grossman’s conviction for killing Mark and Jacob Iskander were:
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Eyewitness testimony that Grossman’s white Mercedes SUV struck the two boys in the crosswalk, including from Susan Manners who saw Grossman’s vehicle hit Mark, and Yasamin Eftekhari and Jake Sands who saw Grossman’s car hit Jacob.[3][4]
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Data from Grossman’s vehicle showing she was driving at excessive speeds of up to 81 mph in a 45 mph zone, braking lightly just 1.5 seconds before impact at 73 mph.[1][3]
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Physical evidence at the scene, including pieces of Grossman’s damaged Mercedes found near the crosswalk and the location of damage on the front of her vehicle consistent with striking the boys.[3][5]
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Grossman’s disoriented state when approached by a sheriff’s deputy after the crash, with her airbag deployed, suggesting impairment.[1][5]
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Testimony from Nancy Iskander, the boys’ mother, who witnessed the collision and was certain Grossman’s vehicle struck her sons despite Grossman’s denials.[1][5]
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Testimony disputing the defense’s claim that another vehicle driven by Grossman’s ex-boyfriend Scott Erickson struck the boys first, with witnesses stating Erickson’s black SUV did not hit them.[3][5]
The cumulative eyewitness accounts, vehicle data, physical evidence, and Grossman’s behavior provided overwhelming proof that she recklessly caused the deaths while driving under the influence.[1][3][4][5]
Citations: [1] Trial of Rebecca Grossman, accused of killing two boys with her car … https://www.courthousenews.com/trial-of-rebecca-grossman-accused-of-killing-two-boys-with-her-car-comes-to-a-close/ [2] Rebecca Grossman trial: Evidence that led to conviction in deadly … https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sh3zX9XM7lM [3] Rebecca Grossman jury must decide level of malice, dueling claims … https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2024-02-23/la-me-rebecca-grossman-case-closing [4] Rebecca Grossman found guilty of murder : r/LosAngeles - Reddit https://www.reddit.com/r/LosAngeles/comments/1aygwjm/rebecca_grossman_found_guilty_of_murder/ [5] Rebecca Grossman trial: Breaking down the evidence that led to … https://www.foxla.com/news/rebecca-grossman-trial-evidence-conviction
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What are the odds she gets her license back during parole? 🤔
A crosswalk in a 45 mph zone sounds like an accident waiting to happen. I’m not disputing that this woman belongs behind bars, though.
Ban cars, make it a 10 mph zone. Either one is fine
I take my kids across a 45 mph crosswalk. It has blinking red traffic lights if you push the crosswalk button. A large percentage of cars don’t even slow down. We wait for a row of cars to actually stop before crossing.
People can’t cross feeder roads?
15 years (which she probably won’t serve) doesn’t feel like accountability. It feels like a slap in the face.
If the kids were on bikes instead of on a crosswalk it would have been much less. If you want to kill someone, do it with a car.
Don’t forgot to be “fearful for your life”
Works with guns too btw
15 years ago was 2009. Minecraft has been out for 15 years and a month. It’s a long, long, long time for someone who didn’t actually intend to become a killer that day. It’s also not going to serve as a deterrent for anyone.
I’d agree with the sentence (or preferably even less time) if she hadn’t tried to run afterwards. It’s one thing to make a terrible mistake and own up to it. It’s another thing entirely to try to get away with it. Especially considering these were two kids. Fuck her.
As someone who views prison as rehabilitative and not punitive, I could not disagree more.
It is hard to believe they got even this token (she won’t serve it) sentence in the US. We seem to accept that killing someone with a car is fine.
Congratulations, you’ve put an old woman behind bars. Who wants to bet that they haven’t fixed the street design in the last 4 years to actually prevent this from happening again? Are we to assume that prison is a deterrent here?
I mean, sure, she killed two kids, she should go to jail, but any street design that would permit the sort of driving that makes killing those kids accidentally is more at fault than the unlucky idiot behind the wheel.
More at fault… are you serious?
This happened at a residential intersection with easily visible traffic lights and straight roads. This road looks hardly hazardous under normal traffic conditions.
She was going almost double the speed limit while likely impaired by alcohol. She is well beyond an unlucky idiot.
I’m not saying that she’s blameless, rather that a design of straight roads and traffic lights ensured that this was going to happen. If it wasn’t an old lady speeding, it would have been a dumb teen on their phone, or a middle-aged man “trying to catch the yellow”. If the road allows for dangerous driving, kids are going to die on it.
It’s weird how much I disagree or agree with different parts of this statement.
- She deserves her sentence. She should never be allowed to drive again for running over two children at twice the speed limit, trying to drive away with their blood all over her car as they die on the street. I don’t believe in prison as punishment in general, but she had her chance and turned a mistake into a double homicide. I think a better and much funnier sentence would be only being allowed to use the Metro for the rest of her life.
- Yes, the street design is a problem and you’re absolutely correct that if a street allows drivers to go 80 mph, some inevitably will. This can and should be resolved. Narrow the road, add an island, sidewalk curb extensions, there are many options and any could have naturally slowed this maniac of a driver down to a speed where being struck isn’t an immediate death sentence.
You’re right, but it’s going to take time to fix America’s roads. Right now the prosecution of people who fail to follow the road rules and cause death and injury will have to do as an example that may make the next reckless person hopefully think twice
