Who is jailed socialite Rebecca Grossman? A former flight attendant and businesswoman who married the wealthy heir to a medical fortune, she’s serving 15 years to life for the killing of 2 young boys

Feb 17 , 2025

Jailed socialite Rebecca Grossman, here pictured with her husband Dr Peter Grossman in 2017, was sentenced over the deaths of two young boys in a car accident in 2020. Photo: Getty Images

Mark and Jacob Iskander were just 11 and 8 years old respectively when they were struck by Grossman’s car; her defence maintains that her ex-boyfriend is the real culprit

Philanthropist and socialite Rebecca Grossman, 61, is currently behind bars at the Central California Women’s Facility in Chowchilla, California, after being found guilty on multiple charges related to the deaths of two young boys. Grossman, the wealthy wife of Peter Grossman, the medical director of the world-famous Grossman Burn Centre, was driving her car in 2020 when she hit two young boys. Grossman’s defence team have consistently claimed her ex – former Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Scott Erickson – was driving his car in front of hers and struck the two children first.

Grossman, who is known for attending luxury galas and red-carpet events, was sentenced in June of last year. Now the parents of the children are preparing a civil suit against her.

Here is what you need to know.

The tragic car crash

Mark Iskander (right) and Jacob Iskander with Mickey Mouse. Photo: @justiceformarkandjacobiskander/Instagram

In 2020, brothers Mark Iskander, 11, and Jacob Iskander, 8, were crossing the road with their family in Westlake Village, California, when they were struck by a speeding car. Mark was killed instantly. His brother Jacob died eight hours later in hospital.

Per the BBC, Grossman and Erickson had cocktails just before the incident. Tests revealed Grossman was not over the legal alcohol limit.

In June of 2024, Grossman was sentenced to 15 years to life in prison after being found guilty by a jury in a dramatic six-week trial. Grossman alleged it was Erickson’s car that struck the boys first, a claim his legal team denied.

She was convicted of two counts each of second-degree murder, vehicular manslaughter and one count of hit-and-run driving. Grossman said she did not see the boys crossing the road and in the sentencing hearing said she would have rather “driven into a brick wall” than hit the boys. “My pain, my recognition of the pain the Iskanders suffer, and the pain I watch my family endure, are punishments that I already suffer and will for the rest of my life,” she wrote in a letter prior to her sentencing.

Pending civil lawsuit

Rebecca Grossman, second from left, with her husband, Dr Peter Grossman (left) and daughter heads to Van Nuys Courthouse West in Van Nuys, California. Photo: Getty Images

In September of 2024, Daily Mail reported that the parents of the two boys killed by Grossman in the accident were considering an unlawful death civil case against Grossman.

Nancy and Karim Iskander filed a motion asking judges to allow them to probe Grossman’s finances. They wanted to determine how much money she has, which will help them determine how much they will seek from her for the suffering they have gone through.