A judge in California refused to take away phone rights from a socialite in Los Angeles who was found guilty in February of hitting and killing two young brothers while speeding through an intersection in 2020.
Superior Court Judge Joseph A. Brandolino mentioned Rebecca Grossman's 'naivete' when asking her husband and daughter to release sealed videos and other conversations that prosecutors said were attempts to interfere with witnesses, testimony, and the judge's decisions about sentencing and a new trial. The Los Angeles Daily News reported this..
The judge said he will not limit any of her rights, but warned the 60-year-old that he could change his mind if he finds she is tampering with witnesses.
The judge said, 'I think there's a lot of naivete going on here by the defendant. She's upset and she's naive… She's entitled to her beliefs.'
Deputy District Attorneys Jamie Castro disagreed, saying that she and her plastic surgeon husband are paying for 10 defense attorneys to advise her.
Castro said, 'She should know better, your honor.'
Grossman was convicted of second-degree murder and other crimes on February 23 and is now due to be sentenced on June 10, a two-month delay from the original date as her attorneys seek a new trial. A hearing on that request is scheduled for June 3.
Grossman has been in jail since a jury found her guilty of killing 11-year-old Mark Iskander and his 8-year-old brother Jacob Iskander as they crossed an intersection with their family on September 29, 2020. This was reported by CrimeOnline.Grossman was out drinking with her lover, former Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Scott Erickson, and they were in separate cars driving to another location when she hit the boys and then kept driving until her vehicle shut down and would not start again.
She insisted that Erickson hit the children and in one of the phone calls referenced by prosecutors, she demanded that her husband 'call Scott Erickson and tell him to get on a video and that he needs to confess… I have a family.' The Daily News mentioned this.
Peter Grossman told his wife that they 'have to stop talking about the case on the recorded line' from county jail.
Erickson did not testify in Grossman's trial for either the prosecution or the defense.
The request to take away her phone rights was based on phone calls made between February 23 and 25 where she told her daughter to 'unblock the videos' and 'put everything out,' referring to sealed videos.
Her lawyer argued that she believed the videos could be released now that the trial was over, but Brandolino told her that the order to seal the videos 'still remains in place.' He said that if any material is released, it could lead to the removal of her privileges, financial penalties, and a report to the California bar against her attorneys.
[Featured image: Mark and Jacob Iskander/Archangel Michael Coptic Orthodox Church of Ventura County; Inset: Rebecca Grossman/Grossman Burn Foundation]