On Monday, Scott Erickson, a former professional baseball player and ex-partner of convicted child killer Rebecca Grossman, made a rare public appearance.
Clad in a somewhat disheveled black suit and a cream shirt with an open collar, the 6-foot-4 Erickson appeared somewhat dazed as he observed the courtroom proceedings. He sat quietly, wearing glasses, as a dozen lawyers interacted with Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Huey Cotton.
The absence of the World Series-winning pitcher was notable during Grossman’s six-week murder trial two years ago, and he has avoided the public eye since then.
However, Erickson, now 58, was present in the Van Nuys, CA courtroom on Monday for the jury selection of a civil trial. Both he and the affluent socialite face accusations of causing the tragic deaths of two young brothers in a devastating car accident.
Once a pitcher for the Minnesota Twins, Erickson has remained out of the spotlight since being implicated in the case. Allegations suggest he was racing Grossman, 64, after a lunch involving cocktails in LA’s Westwood Village in September 2020.
Grossman’s white Mercedes ended up hitting and killing Mark Iskander, 11, and his brother Jacob, eight.
She was sentenced to 15 years to life in prison after a jury found her guilty of two counts each of second degree murder and vehicular manslaughter, plus one of hit-and-run in 2024.
Now both Grossman and Erickson, 58, are being sued by the boys parents Karim and Nancy Iskander.
Scott Erickson arrived at court in Van Nuys, California on Monday morning
Rebecca Grossman’s ex-lover, baseball star Scott Erickson has thrown her under the bus in newly filed court documents on the eve of their wrongful death trial, the Daily Mail can reveal
Erickson was a pitcher in the Twins’ World Series winning year of 1991. He was also selected for the All Star game that year. He also played for the Baltimore Orioles, Texas Rangers, Los Angeles Dodgers and both the New York Mets and Yankees during a 17-year career. He pitched one no-hitter for the Twins in 1994.
In court documents filed last week and obtained by the Daily Mail, Erickson denies racing, drinking, or causing the collision – instead saying Grossman was the ‘negligent cause’ of the fatal incident.
The explosive claim is a stark break from the pair’s once intimate affair during which they exchanged affectionate text messages that may be used as evidence in the civil trial which is expected to last several weeks.
Grossman was estranged from her husband, renowned plastic surgen Peter Grossman at the time.
In a brief address last week before jury selection the Iskanders’ attorney Brian Panish said they were seeking ‘tens and tens and tens of millions’ for the loss of their boys.
The defense strategy by Grossman’s criminal trial attorneys was to blame the accident on Erickson who was allegedly racing her in his black Mercedes after the two had earlier had a boozy lunch.
The defense strategy by Grossman’s criminal trial attorneys was to blame the accident on Erickson who was allegedly racing her in his black Mercedes after the two had earlier shared cocktails.
But he was only given a slap-on-the-wrist misdemeanor reckless driving charge that was dismissed after he made a public service announcement to high school students about the importance of safe driving.
Mark and Jacob Iskander were killed on September 29, 2020, after Grossman slammed her Mercedes into them at high speed as they crossed the street
Erickson has kept a low profile since the brothers were killed nearly six years ago
Despite the lack of criminal charges against Erickson – who was conspicuous by his absence from Grossman’s murder trial – the Iskanders named him in their civil lawsuit alongside her, holding him equally responsible for the fatal crash.
In a trial brief uncovered by Daily Mail, Erickson’s attorneys attempt to distance him from Grossman’s guilt and the Iskanders’ accusations against him.
They argue that Erickson:
- Was not the cause of the accident – ‘There is no evidence that his vehicle made contact with’ the brothers;
- ‘Was not racing anyone’ at the time of the crash;
- ‘Was not intoxicated/driving under the influence’
In other pre-trial court filings, the presiding justice in the case, Judge Huey Cotton, revealed last week that Rebecca Grossman sent a letter to him last month which is a legal no-no.
Telling the court subsequently that he found the letter ‘absolutely unacceptable’, he said that he sealed it without reading it and after the trial he will hold a hearing where Grossman could be fined $10,000.
In addresses to the court Monday, the Iskanders’ attorney Brian Panish said the legal team was seeking ‘substantial damages, tens and tens and tens of millions for this loss’.
In her address Monday Grossman’s attorney Esther Holm called the crash a ‘tragic, horrible accident.’ and added that ‘there were other factors involved…problems with the roadway, visibility, lighting,’ and said that Grossman ‘never saw’ the children.
She warned prospective jurors, ’This is going to be a very hard case. I ask you to follow the law.’
Erickson’s lawyer, Deborah Tropp, pointed the finger of blame at Grossman, telling the court that evidence showed ‘that Rebecca Grossman drove her Mercedes Benz through the crosswalk, violently striking and killing the boys’.
She insisted that Erickson – who was driving ahead of Grossman – saw the Iskander brothers as he drove through the crosswalk, without hitting them. ‘There’s absolutely no evidence’ to contradict that,, she said.
Tropp said her client was driving at about 50mph through the crosswalk and when he looked through his rear-view mirror he ‘saw no other vehicle’ behind him.
Rebecca Grossman’s husband, renowned plastic surgeon Peter Grossman also was in court Monday for the start of jury selection
Grossman and Erickson were photographed attending a fundraising event in 2020 shortly before the accident. Erickson was charged with misdemeanor reckless driving and his case was resolved in February 2022
The boys’ parents, Karim and Nancy Iskander filed a civil suit against Grossman and Erickson seeking damages over their sons’ tragic deaths. They are pictured leaving court together in Van Nuys in May 2024
She admitted that Erickson had a beer and two margaritas about two-and-a-half hours before the accident. ‘But he was not drunk.’
The judge granted the Iskander attorneys’ request for an injunction to stop Grossman and her husband, renowned plastic surgeon Dr Peter Grossman – who is also named in the lawsuit as the owner of the Mercedes his wife was driving – from plotting to hide millions in assets to ‘cheat’ the couple out of cash damages if they win their lawsuit.
Judge Huey Cotton said Rebecca Grossman had sent him a letter, which was ‘completely unacceptable’
The lawyers cited unexplained cash transactions and ‘suspicious’ property dealings of the Grossmans, particularly the recent transfer of the title to the couple’s spectacular, $13.5 million hilltop mansion in Hidden Hills to a mysterious entity called the JB Road Trust.
In his ruling, Judge Cotton said that the Iskanders had submitted ‘evidence of a recorded jailhouse phone call between Peter and Rebecca Grossman in which they openly discussed protecting’ their luxury home from the couple’s attorney.
‘During that same call, Peter Grossman admonished Rebecca Grossman to refrain from discussing the parties’ bitcoin so that the [Iskanders] would not know the true extent of their holdings.
‘Such evidence is direct evidence of the (Grossmans’) intent to hinder, delay or defraud the Iskanders’ ability to collect…..’
In the upcoming trial – where prospective jurors will first be given questionnaires to fill in Monday before jury selection actually starts a week later on April 20 – the Iskanders have submitted a giant list of 107 witnesses they can call, including Scott Erickson.
And among the items of evidence their attorneys may present is the raw, unedited footage they have subpoenaed of Peter Grossman’s January podcast interview with TV icon Dr Phil.
On Dr Phil’s podcast, Fatal Accident: Inside the Rebecca Grossman Case, Grossman claimed his wife was innocent of killing the Iskander brothers, instead blaming Erickson, whose affair with Rebecca happened when the Grossmans were separated.
The Iskanders’ legal team argued that the Dr Phil interview ‘should be produced, especially because there could be footage that was edited out for time purposes.’
Peter Grossman’s attorney fought turning over the footage – and private communications his client had with Dr Phil – contending that ‘these personal thoughts, feelings and opinions do not lead to any discoverable evidence.’
Neither Erickson, nor Peter Grossman, showed for Monday ’s court session. Rebecca Grossman also did not appear via video from prison, as she had at a previous hearing.
