2011-03-08 13:44:18
Mon Mar 7, 3:57 pm ET
NEW YORK (Reuters) A man accused of punching a woman so hard in a dispute over a Manhattan parking spot that she fell into a coma said on Monday he was acting in self defense.
"She hit first," said Oscar Fuller, 35, outside of the Manhattan Criminal Courthouse.
A grand jury on Monday indicted Fuller on one count of felony assault stemming from a parking dispute he had with Lana Rosas, 24, last month.
According to court documents, Fuller was looking for a parking spot in Manhattan on February 25 when he saw Rosas holding a spot for her boyfriend.
Police said an argument then ensued and Fuller punched Rosas so hard she fell into a coma and the man fled the scene.
Rosas remains listed in critical condition at Bellevue Hospital. Prosecutors said she might not survive because of excessive brain swelling.
Fuller, who at 5 feet 7 inches tall towers eight inches over Rosas, said the woman hit him first and he punched back as a "reflex." He added he couldn't anticipate the extent of the woman's injuries.
"To the family, I am very, very sorry with the situation that she's going through right now and I'm hoping for a speedy recovery," he said.
"It crushed my whole family. It crushes my life as well, that nobody would think anything would happen, that it would go this far."
Fuller was released on $100,000 bail and is due back in court on April 7, when he is expected to plead not guilty to the felony assault charge, said his attorney Tom Kenniff.
(Reporting by Aman Ali; Editing by Barbara Goldberg and Jerry Norton)