Prosecutors asked a judge to revoke Rebecca Grossman’s $2million bail and throw her in jail after accusing her of leaking confidential information about her case to a TV reporter and trying to influence the jury that’s currently deciding her fate.
Deputy District Attorney Ryan Gould told Judge Joseph Brandolino that on Thursday the wealthy socialite – charged with murdering two young brothers while speeding in her car – asked for the card of a Fox News journalist at her Van Nuys trial.
Soon afterward, the network aired a story saying it had received emailed material – including two videos – which alleged that information which could prove her innocence had been kept from the jury.
This was ‘a direct violation’ of a protective court order the judge made to exclude certain evidence from Grossman’s six-week trial, said Gould, adding that ‘it was a deliberate attempt to influence the jury.’
Rebecca Grossman, 62, is charged with murder over the September 29, 2020 crash that killed Jacob Iskander, 8, and his brother Mark, 11. Grossman is seen leaving court on Friday
Prosecutors have accused her of leaking confidential information about her case to a TV reporter and trying to influence the jury that’s currently deciding her fate
Grossman’s husband Dr. Peter Grossman has been by her side every day of the trial, along with her daughter Alexis
Defense attorney John Hobson told the court that he knew nothing about the leak and added that just because a reporter had received an email, ‘that didn’t mean it came from Mrs. Grossman’.
He pointed out the the jury had been warned at the start of the trial not to read or watch news reports about the case.
Mark and Jacob Iskander were killed in the horrific crash on September 29, 2020
Gould responded, ‘I do not believe it was the (defense) attorneys who violated the protection order. I believe it was Mrs Grossman.’
Judge Brandolino refused Gould’s request to revoke Grossman’s bail and have her remanded into custody.
But the judge said he would investigate the episode and warned Grossman, ‘I don’t want to hear of anything close to this again….you don’t want to end up being remanded.’
Despite the judge’s warning, Grossman got up and blurted out ‘Can I put on the record……’ before she was subdued by her attorneys as her husband, Dr. Peter Grossman yelled out ‘Rebecca’ to stop her outburst.
Grossman, 62, is charged with two counts of second degree murder in the tragic deaths of eight-year Jacob and Mark Iskander, 11, at a marked pedestrian crosswalk in September 2020.
She’s looking at a maximum sentence of 34 years to life in prison if the jury of nine men and three women now deliberating, convict her.
Nancy Iskander was crossing the road with the brothers and her youngest son Zachary, 5, when they were hit. Nancy and her husband Karim are pictured leaving court on February 6
Grossman’s white Mercedes SUV is pictured moments after the crash
Grossman blamed her former lover, ex-baseball star Scott Erickson, saying his car hit and killed the boys after they had been drinking margaritas at lunch. They are pictured together at a fundraising event in 2020
While prosecutors accuse Grossman of running down and killing the Iskander boys, her defense team claims that it was the black Mercedes SUV driven by her then-boyfriend, ex-pro baseball player Scott Erickson, 56 – with whom she had been drinking earlier on the day of the crash – that was to blame.
He was charged with misdemeanor reckless driving and his case was resolved in February 2022 with a judge ordering him to make a public service announcement for high school students about the importance of safe driving.
She is also facing two additional counts of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence, plus one of hit-and-run driving resulting in death.
Grossman – who wore a long gray sweater over a brown jacket and black pants in the court’s chilly A/C Friday – has pleaded not guilty to all charges and has a website proclaiming her innocence, titled The Truth Matters.
Her husband, a plastic surgeon and burns specialist, arrived at court as usual with his wife who has been free on the $2 million bail since her arrest more than three years ago. Their daughter Alexis, 19, was also in court.