Woman Beaten Into Coma In Apparent Case Of ‘Parking Space Rage’

Man's Attorney Insists 100-pound Little Lady Started Altercation

March 4, 2011 11:58 PM

Parking space rage victim Lana Rosas’ car. (Photo: CBS 2)

Reporting Pablo Guzmán

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NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) — You’ve probably seen it before: people standing in the street saving parking spaces.

But in the East Village, one man’s violent reaction nearly cost a woman her life.

Police said the parking rage escalated to the point where the man punched the small woman in the head, causing brain damage, reports Pablo Guzman.

Lana Rosas’ car was being driven away on Friday, her neighbors said, by her boyfriend and another man. It had been in front of her Bronx building since the fight that sent her into a coma on Feb. 25. The incident happened on East 14th Street, between the 25-year-old, 4-foot-11, 100-pound Rosas and the 35-year-old, 5-7, 165-pound Oscar Fuller.

Fuller’s lawyer, Tom Kenniff, said Fuller was trying to back into a parking spot that Rosas said she was standing in, to hold that spot for a friend. Fuller then told her to move.

“She refused. At which point Mr. Fuller stepped out of his vehicle to speak with her. She immediately began striking him about the face. He has the injuries to substantiate that. We have photographs of those injuries,” Kenniff said.

The NYPD said surveillance cameras across the street at Stuyvesant Town may have captured what happened.

When asked if there’s any video that supports his version of the events, Kenniff told Guzman, “From conversations with the district attorney”s office, there is video. I believe that that video will substantiate the fact that the young lady, who is in the coma, was the initial aggressor.”

“The coma.” Rosas has been in Bellevue Hospital since the night of the altercation. Residents were alarmed by the savage beating.

“That’s crazy, that’s crazy. It shouldn’t happen, shouldn’t happen. It’s a woman, you know? It shouldn’t happen,” neighbor Yolanda Drayton told CBS 2′s Derricke Dennis.

“That’s terrible news, terrible news. I don’t know much about her, but that’s terrible news.”

As the police complaint against fuller says, “The woman…is…in a coma, her skull had to be opened to relieve pressure on her brain, and the woman might die, stay in a coma, or…have permanent brain damage.”

“If there is anything he could do to make this right, make this better, he would do it,” Kenniff said.

The suspect is being held on $100,000 bail.

Stunned by this? Please offer your thoughts in the comments section below.

Woman Beaten Into Coma In Apparent Case Of Parking Space Rage

dominicanjim

Her license plate says evil kitty — not something a quiet little woman would put on their car — sounds like there is some truth to her being the aggressor — and a real bxxxx
SOrry truth hurts

You assault a man you better be prepared to take a hit like a man. I believe that and I’m a woman.

ax

Did anyone notice that her car plate says EVL KITY — which I read as EVIL KITTY…. sounds like maybe she could have been an antagonizer

A

yea, you are so right.( sarcastic tone)..heck, lets just arrest anyone who has a licensce plate that says the word evil. Or any title that refers to someting similiar such as thr band callled the Killer and Foo Fighters…based on your logic …they probably committed some type of crime….Arrest them too..
My god people ,,,
TeeOff

personalized license plates do convey a personal message – she was displaying an “attitude” – we used to call it “cruisin for a bruisin” ! she was looking for trouble and “trouble is easy to find”. that said, it is unreasonable to punch an unarmed 100lb female – there are many choices – grapple, trip, body blow, push, defensive actions – RAGE was the factor here. Women in general have become more aggressive but should realise they are generally physically incapable of withstanding punches as most men can.
Justice4kidz

Your screen name is AX, does that end with Murderer?

Charles U. Farley

You are my new hero.

FJ

ok my 2 cents. First, I have held parking spaces and have had them held for me before and NOONE has ever told me I could not do so or that i had to move. Then again, I am over 6′ feet tall and 215lbs. Maybe thats why. I didnt think there was anything wrong. If I saw someone holding a space I would keep moving. But thats just me. Maybe I just live in a different enviroment. Secondly, I don’t think it’s ever ok to hit a woman. With that said, I don’t think a woman should hit a man either. I will say this, as far as the law goes, he did not brake any laws by hitting her if in fact she attacked first. If you are attacked physically by ANYONE regardless of sex or size in the state of NY, or most states in general, you have a right to fight back. If this man has no history of violence, it is a shame that his and the life of this woman will be completely ruined by this. If in fact she hit him first. From what i have been reading she went off. Maybe the guy got scared? He should have been more careful. Did he hit her more than once, or was he so much stronger that the one punch did that much damage? It is unfortunate all the way around. Please , dont attack me here, just giving an opinion. He should not have run away. That is the thing that is bothersome. Anger is a terrible thing in the moment and can get the best of even the most subdued people. Would I have hit her? NO. But did he have a right to protect himself? Absolutely.

Gerald

It is illegal (it’s a law on the books) to hold a parking space for anyone at anytime.

Molleja

You keep saying it is illegal to hold a parking space, so is Mr. Fulller an police authority? If he wanted to park and was somebody on the spot, why he didn’t call the police? It is clear that he wanted to fight. And let me tell you something else, you comment about wanting to put people holding a parking space in the hospital is showing you are like Mr. Fuller, an abuser that thinks you can do what ever you want…. and how knows maybe with a record like him.

BklynChick37

You’re absolutely correct on a few things you mentioned in your response: (1.) People are certainly within their right to defend themselves. (2.) It might not be against the law to stand in the street or a parking space to hold that spot for someone else. And like yourself, I’ve done it for someone and others have done it for me. (3.) IF the video shows Ms. Rosas as assaulting Mr. Fuller first then, yes, he is within his right to defend himself. BUT, here is also where things went very wrong. And, of course, this is based on the new report. First, Mr. Fuller got out of his car and approached Ms. Rosas. NOT a good move because this will certainly portray him as being the aggressor. Secondly, if he struck Ms. Rosas after she hit him then Mr. Fuller and his attorney will have to show proof that such force (from defending himself) is warranted. Lastly, Mr. Fuller will likely have to show cause for him leaving the scene which FURTHER weakens his case! There are so many ways in which this situation escalated to a needless conclusion.

badman

charge for all street parking in Manhattan. no more free parking. if you don’t like it, leave.
mj

I’M GENUINLY DISTUREBED. not by the article , i’m just this way in general

badman

MJ FOR PRESIDENT!

Glenn

Sounds like she got what she deserved, but he still has to be a punk for running away.

BklynChick37

Nah…Ms. Rosas didn’t deserve to be put into a coma.

Don’t Hold A Spot

She got what she deserved. You CANNOT hold a spot. They should really make a law to do that.

Nick

Wow…luckily until then, there are still laws in place against violence such as this. He’ll get what he deserves, and you’ll still be a moron.

Idiot Nic

Nick you’re the moron — Learn to read an article. Half the story is presented. For all we know she is the instigator and threw the first punch. I don’t care how small you are, but self defense is self defense. In a tough neighborhood, I wouldn’t chance anything from anyone. Child or woman.

Nick

I did read the article moron, it does in fact state that SHE was the instigator. I’m saying that it doesn’t matter, he was still at fault. Don’t get carried away with the ‘self-defense’ laws of this country…putting a 100 pound woman in a coma over a parking spot will hardly hold up as ‘self-defense’ in any court of law.

And as far as throwing ‘children’ into your argument, even more idiotic than the other comments on here. Children aren’t safe from your anger either? Seek help. Idiot.

The Great Nick Strikes Again

A 14 year old can be as dangerous as a 20 year old. We don’t care what you say. You have a lot of anger vent up. Did you get beat up by bigger bully too?
Nick

Make jokes, you’re a classy guy. No ‘vent’ up anger here, just no patience for idiots with disgusting and violent views in our society, such as yourself.

Gerald

There is a law (on the books) that says in NYC no one may hold a parking space for someone.

Daystar

Fools gives full vent to their anger…and a person with no control of their spirit is like a city with no walls…may God have mercy on them both.
A Brittle Heel

“Classic Ghetto”
Milette

I used to know this individual, and she has a very bad tempre, she mouthed off, and has done very nasty things to close friends of mine. This is not the first time she has hita man bigger than her, this is just the first time he hit back. I hope she is okay, and recovers. The truth is she more than likely started this, and wound up literally taking a hit for it.

Nick

Stupid thing to say. No one deserves this, doesn’t matter what their past may look like.

The Great Nick Strikes Again

Nick I suggest a mirror and if you still don’t understand what you see, it’s ok. Bliss is ignorance.
Milette

You say it is a stupid thing to say but it is a fact, if this girl has a history of being violent, and someone finally got upset enough to hit her back, why is he wrong. I do agree he took it too far, being how small she is. Still, she is the kind of person to instigate a fight, or start one herself. She may die, that isn’t okay, but the truth is that she was not a sweet nice person, like many are saying, she was nasty and rude, which is something that most likely played into it. HE will get what he deserves.
Charles U. Farley

Get lost.

Anna

This man has a history of violence. He has committed felonies in the past and been convicted, so by your logic his history of violence demonstrates beyond reasonable doubt he is guilty.

Your own logic used against you. Ha ha!!!

molly

he could have turned and walked away lol …this is not his wife ,or someone he knew ….its a women who attacked him …. he could have turned and walked away and got shot in the back or stabbed or maybe sliced , he could have been dead …. i dont care what anybody says , if a stranger started hitting me , man or women , im gonna protect my self , i have a family too ! maybe this guy was just as shocked that this women was attacking him over a parking spot ….everyone seems to think just because your small you have no strenght , and maybe thats why theres thousands of men who are be abused everyday , by women ,and dont say anything ….. no wonder the laws are f up …we all want to be treated equal right ! …well if the camaras show she hit him first ….when and if she comes out of her coma ,she should be cuffed like the rest of the abusers …. people think women arent dangerous , most of them people are probably dead now .

Michael

Hush, you dont even know what went down. He was in his vehicle he started it by getting out his car with an ego trip screaming. He could have left and got another space or double parked and called a cop. He knew he was going out to scare and intimidate her. Self defense and plain old assault are two different things. Maybe you should pick up a law dictionary and stop using your own moronic definition.

Marcus

please enlighten us michael. by the way you describe him getting out with an ego trip, you must have been there to witness this.
Dont believe everything you read

No Law was broke until she hit him. Sorry, what he couldve did is not the case here. Its not illegal to be a jerk. She assaulted him first. It started with words and she took it to the next level by hitting him first. I know Oscar, he would never hit anyone first! He has too much to lose.
Nick

To you, who actually wrote “what he couldve did” …. don’t comment unless you know how to speak proper English.
Shawn28

Marcus, what would you call it? A man who actually gets out of his vehicle to approach a woman over a parking spot has what intentions in mind? To calmly reach a solution? And really, no ego involved? What are you talking about?
Gerald

Michael apparently thinks in a civilized society everybody gets to do anything they want unless somebody stops them. Remember people she broke the law. It’s not a felony but it’s still the law. People do have to let other people abuse them just because they can get away with it.

Patrick Long

If she hit hit him first he should have gotten into his car and left the scene thats what a real man would have done. He should be ashamed of him self that poor women will never be the same even if she lives , he should go jail for along time

Trance

This woman was the sole cause of the problem, she has no right to stand in a parking bay “reserving a space”. She was the trouble maker and deserved everything she got. The guy retaliated to a physical attack, he had every right to get out of his car and ask her to move her ass, she had no vehicle and was causing an obstruction. Tough $hit, women want equality, she got it.

John379

Equality is putting people in comas over a parking spot? Wow, well then I hope you’re treated as an equal as well.

Charles U. Farley

Don’t be stupid. Women do NOT get a free ride anymore.

Mac

Its the man’s fault, whether a woman attacks physically with her hands, he should have not punched her so as to throw her in coma, thats what I say cowardly act. He is a man, he can just hold her two hands or push her away, but striking with punches until the woman goes into coma is very disgusting for a man. Being a man, he should have just tried to find a new spot and let her have the spot.

NYCPatriot

Have you ever seen Divorce Court? You would be surprised how many men are battered. These are small guys. They are pretty big guys. Like one episode had a woman straight up say, she stabbed him with her car keys, a punched him in the balls repeatedly, and ran him over with the car becuase he made her mad. the thing about it is she said “It’s okay becuase I’m a woman”. She is not the exception, but the very common.

In fact if you see the stats on domestic violence, men are as abused physically by their spouses a t the same rate as women. The difference is men don’t talk about it. They just show up at the hospital near death. I know becuase I’m an at a local hospital and have seen too much domestic violence by BOTH SIDES.

Gender has no bearing on the kind of damage people do to each other. I just think the pendulum has swung to far for both genders. At one time it was okay for men to beat their wives, today its okay for women to beat men..

I just wish people just learned its not okay for ANYONE TO HIT EACH OTHER.
Charles U. Farley

You’ve obviously never been attacked by a maniacal woman. They can KILL you.

Alex

I have been told since I was a child NEVER HIT A WOMAN. I do not know what is happening to our society now a days.
There are always other ways to deal with a problem. There are laws. Violence is not the one.
Alex

Auburn Dale

NEVER hit a woman? Even (or especially) in SELF-DEFENSE? I know a few women who would love to take advantage of that.
Charles U. Farley

Tell it to HER.

gozafa

No one should hit anyone! He is a whole lot bigger than she is and if he was defending himself, the force he used was not reasonable. He going to jail.

Dont believe everything you read

Gozofa how big is he? There are no descriptions of his build in any articles I’ve read of this.. Why? Because they want you to image a guy of average height andf build so that you can visualize a monster in your head .I know him personally. He is a small guy.

moki

There was a description of him in the 1010 wins news report. he sounds pretty big.
moki

35-year-old, 5-7, 165-pound Oscar Fuller.

Charles U. Farley

Again, tell it to HER.

QM

You are probably right. Evil Kitty stands for something.. Let’s see the camera.
Marcus

Seems to me to be a case of self defense. Play with a bull, you get the horns. Poor miss little fire cracker. If the story is correct, I would have done the same, except for sticking around to be judged by suits. Just goes to show you, you never know who you’re dealing with. Just my opinion. Sorry if I offended any skirts.

michael

Yeah you would be the punk to hit a 4 ft 11 100 pound female. My daughter is those stats and shes only 13. What the hell is wrong with people??? I bet if a 6 ft 2 220 pound man was there you would think twice before trying some dumb isshh like that.

equality

always equal rights but never equal punishment. Sure, the women struck first, then 2nd, hell, then a few other times after that, But, hey, its the mans fault, for not defending himself with any thing sturdier then a pillow. No sympathy from me.
QM

I don’t think he would want her to die. We all get angry and sometimes react too quickly. I think this would wake him up, and not let it happen again. He could have just let her have the parking space.

Charles U. Farley

Some people are trained in self defense. The trainging takes over. Reaction is instant.

molly

i dont think she had any right touching him …. did anyone ever hear .. the bigger you are the harder you fall ….. these days your size doesnt matter , there are plenty of women and men in prison today that are even smaller then her … she had no right putting her hands on the man , especially over a parking spot … if the camaras show her attacking him , well then i rest my case …. for all he knew she could have had a weapon , knife ,razor ,gun whatever ….and im a women , obviously she didnt care how big he was.’

Michael

This lawyer is BS , he hasn’t even seen this so called video evidence and already is saying that she attacked him. This is all a ploy to distort who is the real victim which is the female in this assault. If he was so innocent why did he flee the scene. It was so called self-defense he would’ve waited for police to arrive or went to a police station. He ran like a coward after he punched a small woman , you have to have more brains. But I guess some people are morons and go with what a slime ball attorney will say.

peter

When one has does something questionable in the heat of a moment the instinct is to run. One is not thiinking to full capacity in the heat of a moment with a result of a small size woman layed out in the street. One should not get all full of religion and bible and instant all goodness in the heat of the moment as described in the article.
Justice4kidz

peter
“When one has does something questionable in the heat of a moment the instinct is to run. ”
Sure it is……… for criminals!

NYCPatriot

Very true, Gender has nothing to do with how much violence a person can inflict on one another. I have seem very large men get beaten down by abusive wives and girlfriends. and the guy never strikes back becuase “it’s wrong to hit a woman”. What happened to not hitting ANYONE? Some women act like they have a free pass to inflict violence on anyone with no fear of someone striking back. People need to keep their hands to themselves.

Michael

Heat of the moment , instinct to run??? Ok buddy so if a cop pulls you over your heat of the moment instict to flee is justifiable?? I dont think so that don’t fly with any sane member of society. Maybe a felon or criminal would. NYCPatriot, Its not even confirmed by anyone that she hit him first or anything, What we know is he was in a car got out to confront her. Thats all we know. Making assumptions is just plain foolish. If this is a clear cut self-defense why is he being charged? HUH food for thought
Michael

Yeah peter and OJ fled because he was getting cookie dough ice cream!!

Mr. Armenia

He should have hit this lady all and should have called 911. There has to be more to the story.

Look at the license plate of her car.

John Prewett

Mr Armenia, did you mean to type what you typed ? “hit this lady” …. or ….”should NOT have hit this lady AT all”

Leonard Wilson

5’7″, 165. I’m 6 feet tall, 200 pounds. I’d like to see that tough guy try that on me.

Charles U. Farley

I’ll be your huckleberry… Where are ya? Only faygetts and sailors are named Leonard.

Gerald

She deserves more than that. It’s illegal to hold a parking spot in NYC. With parking on the street at a premium holding a spot for someone, who’s not even on the block, is happening more and more. And even worse people get nasty when you call them on their self centered mean attitude.

Nick

Parking on the street is a premium…..but not someones life? Another moron.

A

Nick, why even argue with these fools who think that she got what she deserved?
You are wasting your breath. Im sure if it happened to one of their mothers, sisters, girlfriends etc, they would be screaming bloody murder. It is sad that people can be so hypocritical like that. One word of advice though, be careful with arguing with fools, cause people from a distance cant tell who is who…

Gerald

Are you kidding. I’m the guy who measures makes sure my car doesn’t go beyond the building line. I measure the distance between the fire hydrant and my car. Even when I was a teenager I waited for the red light to change green before pedaling again on my bike. The law is the law. The law is there so everyone may have peaceful live. Those of us who break any laws are saying that they don’t want to part of society. We should honor their wishes an lock them away or find some other way to get rid of them.
Charles U. Farley

Park on top of ‘em.

Mike

It doesn’t matter who started it or who was wrong or not. She could not have put him in a coma. The man should’ve been smart and walked away. Now he is a woman abuser and will pay the price because it was not self-defense.

Gerald

Guess you one of the guys who believes women copys are too weak to arrest a guy.

Michael

uhhh read the stats genious , she was no match with her height and weight compared to the perp. Be a realist not a moron Gerald.
Gerald

What’s a genious. This genius rests his case.

Charles U. Farley

Oh, yeah? She could if she knew how, how do you know she doesn’t?

jennifer

He should have held her down and called the police. He went too far and he should get jail time if she dies.

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Woman Beaten Into Coma In Apparent Case Of ‘Parking Space Rage’

Man's Attorney Insists 100-pound Little Lady Started Altercation

March 4, 2011 11:58 PM

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