Former MLB pitcher Scott Erickson testifies in civil trial over crash that killed two young boys

LOS ANGELES (CN) — Former Major League Baseball pitcher Scott Erickson took the stand Monday during the fourth week of a civil trial over a 2020 car crash that killed two young brothers.

Rebecca Grossman, a well-to-do housewife, is currently serving a sentence of 15 years to life in prison after being convicted of two counts of second-degree murder for hitting and killing Mark and Jacob Iskander, ages 8 and 11, with her car. Grossman and Erickson, a World Series winner who was dating Grossman at the time of crash, had been drinking margaritas at a Mexican restaurant and were driving their cars at dangerously high speeds. Witnesses and prosecutors have said the two were racing," though both Grossman and Erickson have denied that.

The Iskanders sued Grossman and her husband Peter, a renowned plastic surgeon, as well as Erickson, for their roles in the crash and its aftermath.

Erickson’s testimony marked the first time he has ever spoken publicly about his relationship with Grossman and his actions on the night of the crash. He cut a dejected figure on the witness stand, as the Iskanders’ attorney Brian Panish forced him into a series of uncomfortable admissions: that he drinks every day and has done so for 10 years; that he lied to police; that he deleted years of text messages between him and Grossman before they could be handed over to lawyers; that even as the civil trial was going on, he spent a week with his new girlfriend in Cabo san Lucas. He said that even though he and Grossman were in love at the time of the crash, he was dating another woman as well.

His testimony touched only briefly on the night of Sept. 29, 2020.

“You deny any responsibility or accountability for the deaths of Mark and Jacob Iskander, correct?” Panish asked.

Erickson paused for at least five seconds, then answered softly, “Yes.”

It was a long and grueling day of cross-examination for Erickson. He insisted he and Grossman had not been racing, and that he never drove above 50 miles per hours. Grossman, who was driving behind Erickson, was going as fast as 80 miles per hour, according to data retrieved from her vehicle by police.

Though he acknowledged watching the police give Grossman field sobriety tests and watching her for hours, Erickson denied “hiding in the bushes,” as Grossman’s daughter Alexis had testified during the criminal trial. Erickson also acknowledged he never came forward to talk to the police, and only spoke to them eight days after the crash when police contacted him.

Erickson’s old friend Royce Clayton, who was also drinking margaritas before the crash, previously testified Erickson had said he “swerved” to avoid the two boys, then looked back in his rearview mirror and saw Grossman’s white Mercedes SUV hit them. On the witness stand, he appeared to deny that, telling the jury, “I’m not sure what could have happened.”

Minutes after the crash, Erickson testified, Rebecca called him on the phone, telling him something to the effect of “something terrible has happened.”

Erickson said he asked her, “Did you see the boys?”

Grossman responded, “The boys…” and then hung up the phone.

Erickson admitted to lying to police, but insisted he had done so only once. Erickson had been in the habit of “cold-plating” — he owned two black Mercedes SUVs but had only one license plate, and used to switch the plates between the vehicles ostensibly to avoid paying vehicle registration fees. Erickson told investigators he was driving his 2007 Mercedes, when in fact he was driving his 2016 vehicle.

“I knew it was the wrong thing to do,” Erickson said. The ruse continued well into discovery in the civil trial, and when his previous attorney discovered the lie he dropped Erickson as a client.

“You intentionally deceived the parties on the evidence in this case,” Panish said.

“Yes,” Erickson said.

Panish also got Erickson to admit that he had withheld information from the police — he never told them he had been at a bar and had already had a drink before he met up with Grossman and Clayton for margaritas.

“You have no problem lying under oath and committing perjury,” Panish posited, turning the screw.

“Yes I do,” Erickson insisted, trying to stand his ground. “I made a mistake.”

The Iskander boys were crossing the street in a marked crosswalk with their mother and their younger brother Zachary. Nancy testified in Grossman’s criminal trial that she saw Erickson’s SUV hurtling toward the intersection, grabbed Zachary and pushed him out of the way. Erickson denied seeing them dive out of the way. He claimed when he saw the two boys approaching the intersection — Mark riding a skateboard, Jacob on rollerblades — he sped up to avoid hitting them.

“I was very concerned for their safety,” Erickson said.

“Did you go and check on them at the scene?” Panish asked.

“No i did not,” Erickson said.

Superior Court Judge Huey Cotton has ruled the jury will not be allowed to hear a number of details about the case, including the fact that Grossman was charged with multiple felonies and that she is now in prison. During his testimony, Erickson referred to the criminal trial in passing. Afterwards, outside the presence of the jury, Grossman’s attorney Esther Holm suggested it was the “basis for a mistrial.” Cotton disagreed.

Erickson is expected to retake the stand Tuesday.

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