Woman Claims Cousin Ran Her Over Twice

Jan. 26, 2011 — -- Giselle Penagos claims that her cousin Melanie Spanopoulos ran over her with a minivan after ferocious argument and then backed up and ran over her again. Police say the fight was triggered by textings and Facebook postings over a guy.

Spanopoulos' lawyer, however, denied today that she ran over her cousin. Instead, he claims an angry Penagos jumped out of the car after it had slowed down to 30 mph.

Penagos, 21, was left with a broken leg and fractured pelvis. Spanopoulos, 20, was arrested and charged with assault. She was arraigned Tuesday in Nassau County court in New York and released on $15,000 bail.

There are several versions of what happened.

The New York Post reported that the fight started when a man denied a Facebook friend request from Penagos, but accepted a request from Spanopoulos. When Penagos found out, the two women began to fight.

"We were told this stemmed from a Facebook conflict where a third party was the catalyst," Nassau County Detective Sgt. Robert Galgano told ABC News. "We can't release his name. Through the course of the investigation, this is the information that came to light as a possible catalyst for this altercation."

Penagos' uncle, William Penagos, denied that the fight was over a guy on Facebook.

"I don't know where the Facebook issue came from. It has nothing to do with why they were fighting. I just spoke to Giselle. She read the Post and she said, 'Where did this Facebook thing come from?'" the uncle said.

According to William Penagos, "They went to a playoff party on Sunday, and it was about 12:30 in the morning. Giselle wanted to be dropped off at a friend's house. On the way there, they were talking, everything was fine, but when they got there the guy wasn't home." According to the police report, the time of occurence was 1:30 am.

"Melanie, the driver, got very upset that she drove all the way there for no reason, and they started to argue in the car," the uncle said. "Giselle wanted to be dropped off at her father's house in Queens. Melanie got very upset, and they started screaming at each other while they were driving. Melanie punched Giselle in the face while she was driving."

Cousin Accused of Running Over Cousin

Giselle Penagos asked Spanopoulos to pull over so she could get out of the car and take a cab home, according to William Penagos.

"At first Melanie refused to pull over, but finally she did. Melanie started to pull Giselle's hair. Melanie was just freaking out... Giselle opened the door, got out of the car and started to walk away. That's when Melanie put the car in drive and hit her. Then she reversed the car and started screaming 'Get in the f***ing car!'" William Penagos said.

Giselle Penagos reportedly replied, "I can't, I can't feel my legs, I can't get up." Spanopoulos then allegedly put the car in reverse and ran over her a second time.

An unidentified man drove by and asked if the two women needed help, William Penagos said.

"Giselle was crying and Melanie said, 'Do me a f***ing favor. I'll give you $20 to take this girl to Queens. The guy panicked and drove away. At the same time, Melanie panicked and she drove away," the uncle said.

"So Giselle was lying in middle of the street. She couldn't move and was afraid she was going to get hit by another car, so she started praying that someone would see her. It was single digits outside, she was bleeding, it was dark. Luckily for her, the gentleman who saw her turned around and drove by again," he said.

At Penagos' request, the Good Samaritan drove Penagos to her father's house. After the drive, his car was drenched in blood, William Penagos reported.

Giselle Penagos' father rushed her to Elmhurst Hospital's emergency room.

Spanopoulos' lawyer, Dennis Lemke, agreed with the police that the fighting stemmed from texting and Facebook messages with an unidentified male.

"There clearly were some texting and Facebook requests that evening. After the Jets game, both Giselle and Melanie went out to a local bar," Lemke told ABC News.

"Giselle, who is of age, was drinking, but my client was not, she is under age. In fact when the police spoke to her at 4 a.m. they checked to see if she was intoxicated or on drugs. She was found completely clean of any alcohol or drugs," Lemke said.

Cousin Claims She Was Run Over, Other Cousin Claims She Jumped Out of Moving Car

The lawyer said that Penagos was never run over by Spanopoulous. "They got off at Exit 13 on the Southern State Parkway and Giselle, who had been drinking, went to get out of the car while the car is still rolling. She was never run over," Lemke said.

Citing her broken leg and fractured pelvis, Lemke said, "When you're intoxicated and you jump out of a car when it's going 30 mph, that's what happens."

A group called "Melanie Spanopoulos Innocent" has already been created on Facebook, but it has seven members.