US6 min(s) read
Published 16:30 02 May 2026 GMT
The civil trial of former Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Scott Erickson and his former girlfriend, convicted murderer Rebecca Grossman, has heard fresh testimony this week as the family of two young brothers killed in a 2020 hit-and-run continue their fight for justice.
The wrongful-death trial, which opened in Van Nuys on April 24, follows Grossman's 2024 criminal conviction for the killing of brothers Mark and Jacob Iskander, aged 11 and 8, in a Westlake Village crosswalk in September 2020.
Grossman, a co-founder of the Grossman Burn Foundation, is currently serving 15 years to life in a California state prison.
But it is text messages Grossman and Erickson, as well friend and fellow ex-baseballer Royce Clayton that have brought renewed attention to the case, including one extraordinarily casual exchange in the aftermath of the deaths.
According to evidence presented across both Grossman's criminal trial and the wrongful death civil trial that began last week, Grossman, 62, and Erickson, 58, had spent the afternoon of September 29, 2020 drinking with another former Major League Baseball player, Royce Clayton.
Erickson had earlier had a beer at a Westlake bar called the Stonehaus, where he ran into Clayton, a friend of three decades.
The two then joined Grossman at Julio's Agave Grill, where - according to court testimony - Erickson drank two large margaritas while Grossman and Clayton each had one.
At around 7:00pm, Grossman and Erickson left in separate cars to head to Grossman's second home in Westlake Village.
Clayton went to the supermarket, intending to join them later.
What happened next has been the subject of two trials.
According to the Iskander family's lawyers, Grossman and Erickson were street racing their respective Mercedes SUVs at speeds reportedly more than 80mph in a 45mph zone.
Erickson's vehicle reportedly went through the crosswalk at Triunfo Canyon Road first, narrowly missing the boys' mother, Nancy, and her youngest son, Zachary.
Seconds later, Grossman's white Mercedes struck Mark and Jacob at 73mph, as confirmed by data recovered from her vehicle.
11-year-old Mark died at the scene, eight-year-old Jacob died later in hospital.
Grossman drove on for around a quarter of a mile before her car came to a stop.
In February 2024, Grossman was convicted of two counts of second-degree murder, two counts of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence, and one count of hit-and-run driving.
She was sentenced in June 2024 to 15 years to life and is currently incarcerated at the California Institution for Women in Chino.
An appeal court upheld her convictions in March 2026.
Erickson, who was driving the second vehicle, was charged with misdemeanour reckless driving.
That charge was later dismissed after he agreed to make a public service announcement about safe driving, according to The Acorn.
He has consistently denied any wrongdoing.
His attorney, Deborah Tropp, told the civil court last week that Erickson was travelling at around 50 to 55mph when he saw the Iskanders in the crosswalk, and made what she described as 'a crucial decision' to speed up to clear the intersection rather than risk braking and hitting them himself.
Behind him, she said, Erickson saw the boys still standing in his rearview mirror, before the second impact.
He has not been criminally charged in connection with the boys' deaths.
Royce Clayton, who was with the couple before the crash, took the stand on Friday (May 1) and broke down in tears as he gave his evidence.
According to Clayton, Erickson called him from the scene shortly after the crash.
"All I know is how he explained it to me," Clayton said, as reported by NBC Los Angeles.
"I don't know if he used the word racing, but they were traveling at a high rate of speed. She was directly behind him. And he said as they came up to this crosswalk, he saw the children."
Clayton testified that, according to Erickson, he had seen in his rearview mirror that Grossman had hit the boys.
The former shortstop also told jurors he believes Erickson should be held accountable, and that he and Erickson are no longer friends.
Erickson's attorneys have continued to dispute Clayton's framing of events.
In a separate strand of evidence, a tranche of WhatsApp messages between Grossman and Erickson has previously been reported by The Acorn after being submitted into evidence as part of the civil case in January.
According to The Acorn's reporting, the messages span from approximately a month after the crash through to February 23, 2024, the day Grossman was found guilty.
Across more than two years, the pair maintained what the Acorn described as an 'amorous correspondence,' complete with repeated 'I love you' messages, heart symbols, and references to their relationship.
In one message reportedly sent in the aftermath of the crash, Erickson allegedly wrote to Clayton: "Hey dude…..I'm drinking your last IPA you left here at the house…
"Nothing to worry about."
There is no reference in the message to the deaths, the police investigation, or the boys themselves.
Things between Grossman and Erickson turned sour in January 2024, when Erickson reportedly learned from his own attorney that Grossman's defence team intended to blame him for the boys' deaths.
"Can't believe my ears today, huge and very stupid mistake to let them make those accusations. I'm shocked," Erickson reportedly wrote, according to The Acorn. "Just lost your best eyewitness."
Hours after Grossman was found guilty in February 2024, Erickson reportedly asked if she could talk.
Her teenage son answered: "Please leave our family alone."
"Not my fault," Erickson reportedly replied. "Wasn't there."
The current civil trial, reported by FOX 11 Los Angeles to be seeking damages potentially exceeding $100 million, is being brought by Mark and Jacob's parents Nancy and Karim Iskander.
Both Grossman and Erickson are co-defendants, along with Grossman's husband, plastic surgeon Dr Peter Grossman, who owned the vehicle she was driving.
Grossman's defence team continues to argue that Erickson's vehicle struck the boys first and that there was, in their attorney Esther Holm's words, "a rush to judgment" in placing the blame entirely on Grossman.
Erickson's team insists that Grossman is solely responsible.
The trial is expected to last around two months. Erickson is set to take the stand. Grossman is not expected to testify in person.
For the family of the two boys killed in the crosswalk that night, the casual tone of the IPA message, "Nothing to worry about," is one piece of evidence among many that they will be asking the jury to weigh up.
