A socialite's bid to have her murder convictions overturned and granted a new trial was thrown out by the judge in Van Nuys, California.
Rebecca Grossman, 62, a wealthy socialite, was found guilty of the deaths of the two Iskander brothers, Mark, 11, and Jacob, 8 in a hit-and-run case in September 2020. She was charged with second-degree murder for for driving at high speed through a marked crosswalk in Westlake Village leading to the death of the young brothers.
However, her lawyer claimed in court that she deserves a retrial, arguing that the prosecutors provided 'insufficient' evidence and 'misled' the jury during her trial four months ago. But Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Joseph Brandolino dismissed Rebecca's plea, stating that prosecutors had convincingly demonstrated she acted with 'implied malice'.
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Rebecca, found guilty by a jury four months ago, is set to be sentenced next week and faces up to 34 years to life in prison. She appeared in the Van Nuys courtroom handcuffed and wearing brown jail overalls.
She mouthed "I love you" to her husband, Peter Grossman, a renowned plastic surgeon and their teen children, Alexis and Nicholas. Her legal team made every effort to delay the sentencing by filing a motion for a new trial, claiming prosecutors in her initial trial had not proved her to be guilty of murder.
James Spertus, her lead attorney told the court: "This was tragedy, not murder. Second degree murder charges are not supported by any evidence presented in this case."
He emphasised that Rebecca doesn't have a "malignant heart" and did not drive with "callousness" that day knowing someone could die. He said: "Her behaviour was bad. Nobody should speed. But Ms. Grossman does not have a malignant heart. Did the people prove their case beyond a reasonable doubt? They did not."
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Spertus accused prosecutors of "misleading" Judge Brandolino by allowing the jury to hear "unfair" testimony from a California Highway Patrol officer, who had given Rebecca a speeding ticket for driving 93mph seven years before the Iskander boys’ fatal crash and warned her that speeding could cause serious injury or death. He also criticised prosecutors for claiming Rebecca was impaired by alcohol at the time of the crash due to drinks she had earlier that day, even though she was not charged with DUI.
"The impairment issue was so prejudicial," he told the court. "The impairment evidence was misused by the prosecution. This trial had a lot of arguments about impairment, but this was not a DUI case."
Spertus also condemned the DA’s trial charges that Grossman fled the scene after the crash, failing to return and help the two fatally wounded boys. He claimed: "Ms. Grossman did not want to go fast and not care what happened. That has not been proven here. She asked 50 times about the children (when police were giving her sobriety tests after the accident)."
Judge Brandolino dismissed the defence's motion for a new trial, telling the court: "I find that the defendant's actions were sufficient for a finding of implied malice beyond a reasonable doubt. She chose to drive while drinking to the point of mild impairment... at speeds of 73-81 mph in a 45 mph speed limit. And she did leave the scene."
The judge added that he also considered "the fact that she was previously warned that speeding could kill or hurt someone." On February 23, after a gripping six-week trial, a jury of nine men and three women found Rebecca Grossman guilty of all five charges against her: two counts of second-degree murder, two counts of gross vehicular manslaughter, and one count of hit-and-run resulting in death. She had pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Earlier that day, Rebecca and her companion, Scott Erickson, who were romantically involved while she was separated from her husband, had been enjoying margaritas. The pair were racing each other at over 70 mph, with Erickson’s car just ahead of Rebecca’s when the fatal incident occurred.
Not only this, Rebecca is also facing fresh allegations of resorting to underhanded tactics in a bid to overturn her convictions. According to prosecutors, while behind bars, she instructed her husband and daughter to track down jurors and pressure witnesses to alter their testimonies, all in an attempt to persuade Judge Brandolino to grant her a new trial. Furthermore, she purportedly urged her daughter, Alexis, to publicly release a sheriff’s deputy’s body-camera video that had been sealed by the judge.