A mother whose two young children were beaten and killed by Rebecca Grossman says the socialite’s sentence is a sickening “stab in the heart.”
Grossman fatally struck 11-year-old Mark Iskander and his 8-year-old brother Jacob while they were speeding. The couple was taking a family walk in their Los Angeles County neighborhood when the fatal accident occurred on the night of September 29, 2020.
A jury found her guilty in February of two felony counts each of second-degree murder and felony vehicular manslaughter, and one felony count of hit-and-run resulting in death.
Grossman on Monday received two concurrent sentences of 15 years to life in prison, plus three years for fleeing the scene of the fatal accident that would run concurrently with the other two sentences.
But the children’s mother, Nancy Iskander, has now criticized the sentences, claiming the judge treated their deaths as if they were “one child” even though they had lost “two different lives.”
Nancy Iskander, whose two young children were beaten and killed by Rebecca Grossman, calls the socialite’s sentence a sickening “stab in the heart.” Iskander is pictured outside Los Angeles Superior Court on June 10, 2024 prior to Grossman’s sentencing.
Rebecca fatally struck Mark Iskander, 11, and his brother Jacob, 8, while speeding in September 2020. A judge on Monday gave Grossman two concurrent sentences of 15 years to life in prison, plus three years for fleeing the scene of the fatal accident than running simultaneously with the other two sentences
Iskander believes Grossman’s sentences should have been imposed consecutively.
“I feel like it was a stab in the heart for me that he counted these two lovely children as one child,” she said. Los Angeles Times on Tuesday. ‘These are two different lives. They are two guys and they don’t do two for one.
More than a dozen of Iskander’s loved ones appeared before the judge, detailing the pain Mark and Jacob’s deaths have caused and asking that Grossman serve a long sentence.
During the trial, prosecutors presented evidence that the data recorder in Grossman’s white Mercedes showed she was accelerating at 81 mph and braked, slowing to 73 mph, less than two seconds before the collision.
After fatally striking the brothers, who were in a crosswalk, Grossman fled the scene.
Grossman, before the judge handed down his sentence, told the court that he did not flee the scene, but rather stood by his car for 20 minutes and was in a “state of denial.”
Prosecutors have repeatedly said that the socialite has shown no remorse for her crimes and Superior Court Judge Joseph Brandolino, during sentencing, called Grossman’s actions “reckless and unquestionably negligent.”
Iskander, speaking to the Times, said: “There’s no such thing as killing them a little bit.” She killed them.
The Iskander boys, Mark and Jacob, ages 11 and 8, died at the scene after Grossman’s Mercedes hit them at high speed.
Nancy Iskander broke down in tears while testifying during Grossman’s trial in January 2024.
Just before receiving his sentence, Grossman spoke directly to the Iskander family on Monday. He spoke so loudly and cried that he was barely coherent.
The children’s mother stood up and was about to leave the court when Grossman begged her to stay, saying he wanted to talk to her.
Grossman said: ‘Please don’t leave. I’ve waited almost four years to contact you.’
Iskander leaned back in his seat and rested his head in front of her as Grossman continued to speak directly to the grieving mother.
Grossman continued: ‘All I’ve ever wanted to do is tell him how sorry I am. And yes I wrote. I don’t know if the prosecution ever gave them to you. …They said I would tamper with witnesses if I contacted you. … I am very sorry that I was not able to do it because I was threatened by the prosecutor.
‘I just wanted to be a human being. When I couldn’t be a human being and talk to you from father to father, from mother to mother… I wanted to leave this world because I didn’t want to be here anymore and you have to believe me. And I believe God is in this room right now and I believe He knows the truth.
‘He knows that if he had seen anyone, he would have thrown me against the brick wall. He wanted God to take my life. I don’t know why God didn’t take my life.
‘I wish he would take my life. And if I could give my life right now and say to God, ‘Could you bring back Mark and Jacob?’, I would tell God to take my life. Very sorry!’
Mark and Nancy Iskander leave court after Grossman’s sentencing on Monday
As he struggled to catch his breath, Grossman added that he did not flee the scene.
‘I just had a break with reality and everything was moving in slow motion. My pain is nothing compared to your pain. Not even a fraction. That’s why I wish there was something I could do,” she said.
After she spoke, Grossman laid his head on the table and continued to gasp and sob loudly.
The children’s father, Karim Iskander, listened to Grossman, but did not look directly at her. He caressed her wife’s back as she continued to sob silently into her hands.
The sentencing came after months of moving testimony, including from Jacob’s best friend, Bodie Wallace, who told the court that the song ‘10,000 Reasons’ bothers him now as he thinks about the many reasons Grossman never apologized for immediate, the Los Angeles Times reports.
Upon hearing his comments, Grossman lost control again and doubled over sobbing in his chair.
Citing a lack of remorse for their actions, prosecutors had asked for the maximum penalty of two consecutive sentences of 15 years to life in prison, one for each child.
However, prosecutors noted that he could be eligible for parole in six or seven years if he gets credit for good behavior.
Pictured is the grave of Mark and Jacob Iskander. Rebecca Grossman fatally hit the brothers while she was speeding in September 2020
Grossman’s defense attorney, Samuel Josephs, asked the judge to consider leniency, arguing that the charges are at the “lower end” of malice cases.
“This was an absolutely tragic accident,” Josephs said. “What Ms. Grossman did at the scene is consistent with someone in complete shock.”
Josephs also added that it was actually the prosecution who told his client not to contact the family, and that now the prosecution was trying to “weaponize this.”
He said prosecutors and the media have unfairly portrayed Grossman as a socialite and highlighted his work in the community and with female burn victims.
Grossman’s son, Nick, also asked the court for leniency, telling the judge, “My mother is not the bad person the media has portrayed.”
“Nothing compares to what the Iskanders are going through, but since the accident, I feel like the world hates my mother and everyone is against our family.”