Jury tags Grossman, Erickson with additional $22.17M in punitive damages

Justice Served: $198 Million Total Award for Iskander Family

A Van Nuys Superior Court jury delivered a powerful message about accountability on Monday, ordering Rebecca Grossman to pay $21 million and former Dodgers pitcher Scott Erickson to pay $1.17 million in punitive damages for the 2020 crash that killed 11-year-old Mark and 8-year-old Jacob Iskander in their Westlake Village neighborhood.

The punitive award comes on top of the $176 million in compensatory damages awarded last week, bringing the total judgment to nearly $200 million. The massive verdict represents one of the largest awards in Los Angeles County history for a vehicular homicide case.

A Westlake Village Family's Unimaginable Loss

On the evening of September 29, 2020, the Iskander family was enjoying a routine walk to Westlake Lake when their lives changed forever. Mark, 11, and Jacob, 8, were crossing Triunfo Canyon Road at Saddle Mountain Drive in a marked crosswalk with their parents and siblings when they were struck by Grossman's Mercedes-Benz SUV.

Prosecutors argued that Grossman, co-founder of the prominent Grossman Burn Foundation, was driving 73 mph in a 45-mph zone after drinking with Erickson. The former MLB pitcher, who played 15 seasons including time with the Minnesota Twins and Los Angeles Dodgers, was allegedly racing Grossman when the tragedy occurred.

Mark died at the scene. Jacob died hours later at the hospital. Their mother, Nancy Iskander, testified that "part of me is simply dead" and "part of my heart is gone."

Criminal Justice and Civil Accountability

Grossman, now 62, was convicted in February 2024 of two counts each of second-degree murder and vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence, plus hit-and-run driving. She is serving 15 years to life in state prison.

On the same day as the punitive damages verdict, the California Supreme Court rejected Grossman's petition to review her criminal conviction, which was upheld by an appeals court in March.

Erickson escaped criminal charges after filming a public service announcement about safe driving. However, the civil trial revealed a different story, with jurors finding he acted with malice and even fraud in his testimony.

The Power of Punitive Damages

Iskander family attorney Brian Panish told jurors that punitive damages were "the most important part of the trial," emphasizing that such awards require extraordinarily egregious conduct. The Acorn reported that Panish accused both defendants of lying repeatedly, with recorded prison calls allegedly showing the Grossmans discussing strategies to hide their assets from the family.

With the Grossmans' net worth estimated at $42.2 million and Erickson's at $1.5 million, the jury came close to the amounts requested by the plaintiffs' attorneys.

Community Impact and Safety Changes

The tragedy sparked immediate action in Westlake Village. The City Council installed a $151,000 pedestrian hybrid beacon at the Triunfo Canyon Road intersection—resembling a traffic signal with flashing yellow and red lights. The sophisticated warning system was unlike any other crosswalk signal in the city.

Before the crash, city officials were aware that residents had raised safety concerns about the intersection, but no upgrades were made.

The Iskander family's fight for justice has transformed not just their intersection, but sparked broader conversations about pedestrian safety throughout Westlake Village. Their sons' memory lives on in the community's commitment to protecting other children from similar tragedies.