@meghannmcuniff: Royce Clayton is a retired Major League Baseball player who was at a restaurant with Rebecca Grossman and Scott Erickson before Grossman killed two young brothers with her SUV in a crosswalk near Westlake Village, California. Clayton is testifying today in the civil trial over a wrongful death lawsuit filed against Grossman, Erickson, and Grossman's husband by Nancy and Karim Iskander, whose sons Mark Iskander, 11, and Jacob Iskander, 8, died on Sept. 29, 2020. He recounted seeking his cousin's advice after learning of the crash and realizing Erickson was the other driver. Erickson was an MLB pitcher from 2004 to 2019, and he and Clayton were friends who sometimes met at restaurants and bars in Westlake Village, California, where Clayton coached baseball at Oaks Christian School. Grossman is serving 15 years to life in prison after a jury in 2024 convicted her of five crimes, including second-degree murder and hit and run. Erickson was charged with misdemeanor reckless driving, but the charge was dismissed after he filmed a public service announcement. Clayton testified this morning (Friday, May 1) that he contacted his cousin Scott Butler because, "There was another vehicle involved in the incident, and at that time, there was no knowledge of what that vehicle was, who was involved, the other driver of the car. And I knew this information," Clayton testified. "And I knew that information. So I told Scott exactly how this transpired, how I knew this information," he said. Clayton said his cousin told him, "You have to tell your story to a detective, because the most important part, Royce, is you don't know what's going to happen." "And in some instances, people that are involved in certain situations, as he's explained to me, are culpable, or actually blamed for something that happened, and you don't want this, and I guarantee you that they know who the other person is, and you will be withholding information," Clayton testified. "That's the legal part. The conscience part of me, as far as a parent, like I said, and understanding just the devastation these people must be going through in not knowing who was involved and what happened," Clayton said. He said he knows that "in certain situations, you're considered telling information about something that you know legally, that can get somebody in trouble, or whatever, it's called snitching" and his cousin told him, "You're not snitching on anybody. When it comes to kids, this is something that's going to come out." "And you don't want to have your situation where you can lose time with your children, your family, if they try to blame you and be culpable for what happened. So you have to tell what you know," Clayton said his cousin told him. "Did you listen to Mr. Butler? Follow his advice?" Panish asked. "Absolutely. After that explanation, not that I wouldn't have, I was seeking his advice to figure out how to get this information to somebody that could use it. So, yes," Clayton answered. "Do you know whether Mr. Butler contacted the authorities for you?" Panish asked. "Yes," Clayton answered. "Did you get contacted, or did you contact the police?" Panish asked. "I was contacted," Clayton answered. "Did you understand that that was result of the efforts that Mr. Butler undertook?" Panish asked. "It was the only way it would have happened," Clayton answered. #law #crime #driving

Meghann Cuniff

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Friday 01 May 2026 19:51:50 GMT