"OK, we don't need you to do that." Self defence claim as Teenager shot dead in Florida

This article about a Florida man who shot a teenager, claiming self defence, highlights Florida's seven-year-old self-defence law, nicknamed the "shoot first" law.

It's worth reading this article and reflecting on how you feel about self defence and what you think might constitute it. Not only from a legal point of view but a moral one also. How would you have acted in this situation?

At one point when the neighbourhood watch volunteer who shot the teenager started following someone he said was suspicious, the police dispatcher talking to him over the phone said, "OK, we don't need you to do that."

Worthy of reflection, I think.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-17438627
The fatal shooting of an unarmed teenager in Florida has prompted protests demanding the arrest of the perpetrator, who says he was acting in self-defence. How much force does the law permit?

Ninja patrols streets of Yeovil

A warrior for just causes, or a vigilante? … or a nutjob?

I appreciate his sentiment that if he sees someone getting beaten up he won't just walk by but is it right for him to use his 'powers' to go and look for trouble?

What do you think?

Shorinji kempo as self defence

Last night I was battered by a woman and it reassured me.

Sensei set up a sequence of attacks or approaches which could easily be seen as self defence moves and my partner (a woman of much slighter build) and I started practising. We both took turns as the aggressor but it was quite obvious to me she was executing good technique and obvious to others that she was throwing me around the dojo. This made me feel pretty good. I knew I wasn't faking it (not being easy on her-in fact sometimes I was quite awkward) and my partner, SD, had to make the technique work within this self defence framework. It gave me a good feeling of reassurance that what sometimes seem as quite formal techniques can be effective as self defence moves; all this as she bounced me off the walls.

I'm not saying that this is 'Woman's Self Defence' (a term I find incredibly condescending) nor that I'm pleased a *woman* can make these techniques work, simply that I felt a smaller, slighter person can be effective on a heavier aggressor who acts with feeling and with intent.

What is not considered in this format, of course, is street environment or street clothing. Any dojo 'self defence moves' are really no more than an approximation of the physicality of what might happen in the street/bus/tube. We walk into a dojo with sports specific clothing, bare feet, clean flat floors and bright lighting. None of these elements are guaranteed on the street.

This does not mean practising the self defence technique is worthless. If it's never used then it can never be conceived of or tapped into at a subconscious level when needed.

The danger of a drunken punch

Two bones broken in the face and jaw and possibly concussion from (seemingly) one unprovoked punch from a drunk bloke.

Main self defence lesson learned: stay away from drunk blokes.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/panorama/hi/front_page/newsid_8190000/8190335.stm

How a key ring can be an offensive weapon

A British 'entertainer' is currently in court for possessing an offensive weapon. The weapon in question is what he uses as a key ring and is a kubotan: a five inch metal rod developed as a self defence system in your pocket.

The 'entertainer' in question maintains that he wasn't aware of this aspect to what he maintains is simply his way of not losing his keys. I am somewhat intrigued to see how this develops and to see if this is seen as a weapon. Is carrying some offcuts of dowel home from the DIY shop an illegal act? Or indeed a six foot curtain rail in the same form and weight as a bo staff going to cause legal problems?

Admittedly the kubotan is directly advertised as a self defence weapon and as well as being able to be used to strike, and to gain leverage in locks and pins, when keys are attached can be used as a flail. But the kubotan is a development of the traditional 'yawara' weapon used in many martial arts which is simply a short stick. Just as the kubotan was used by police forces in the US in the mid 1970s it seems that the yawara was introduced some 40 years previously to the Californian police force by Professor Frank Matsuyama. Matsuyama's yawara use was seen as 'humane' as it "enables a man to overcome his opponent before trouble can really begin" (ref).

This following video shows a modern take on defence with the kubotan by some krav mga practitioners:

And another showing how effective and somewhat viscous this little stick could be in a self defence situation:

So I can see how these small sticks can be brutally effective but surely the intent has to be to use it as a weapon. Or is this a cop out? After all, if it's classified as a weapon, then there's not much to say in its defence. It'll be interesting to see how this current kubotan court case pans out here.

Can anything be used as a weapon? What about a magazine? Surely not...

Go to 1 minute 30...

Information on knife defence

Post-training pub talk led to a conversation about knife attacks last night. This is still, in my mind, a hot topic in the martial arts world extending the age old conundrum of, "Is my style effective in a real situation?" into a whole new and different area. Knife crime is a possibility in this country where gun ownership is tightly controlled but there is much debate about what the stats actually mean. The government and the police force try and portray a safer society but who knows what the real statistics are? This article talks about how we can't say whether knife crime is coming down but CS dug out this interesting snippet from a book called 'This Will Kill You' which clearly states that in the UK "stabbing is the most common form of murder". So that's pretty clear. There is a debate, of course, about how likely you are to end up in a stabbing scenario (most murders are perpetrated by people known to the victim) but this highlights that an awareness of knife defence may be beneficial.

If you do want to practice knife defence then here are some facts, as stated in the aforementioned book:

- Repeated stabbings will kill likely lead to death (er..yeah). The point being that maybe one stab may not be enough to kill an attacker may be after a repeated onslaught.

- Slicing of veins and arteries will result in heavy blood loss

- Defensive wounds occur on the hands and arms due to weapon fixation

- Long blades are often used in a downward stabbing motion to chest and neck area (although are at their deadliest when thrust from the elbow.)

- Usual cause of death: organ failure, loss of blood, shock.

This Will Kill You: A Guide to the Way in Which We Go by Newquist and Maloof

pp189-192

Man wrestles gun from assailant outside Manchester pub

Interesting clip. Not my choice of music.

The accompanying news article says the big guy came out to see what was going on and check on his wife. I am somewhat amazed that he walked, seemingly coolly, towards the gun toter. Staying cool may have played in his favour and he certainly used a minimum of movement, possibly as he thought he didn't want to spook the gunman, possibly out of ignorance or that he felt that the other guy didn't *really* want to use the gun. In any case this is pretty ballsy.

What I'm interested in here is the use of weapons; how people use them and why. Surely brandishing a weapon is partly to have a psychological effect on others, showing that you literally hold power, much like fasces were used in ancient Rome. But what likelihood is there that a brandisher of weapons will turn into a shooter? Is the act of brandishing a weapon completely different from having a weapon with intent to use?

Geoff Thompson in 'Dead or Alive' (p.174 ) "a stabber rarely shows and a shower rarely stabs".

Having said that he doesn't recommend taking these people on in the first place! Don't be there is his first line of self defence.

'Big guy' in the video seemed to have intent as he strode out to meet the gunman, so was this a foolhardy act?

Pizzado

"A Florida pizza delivery man who was challenged by armed robbers in the city of Miramar got in first with his own weapon - a large pepperoni pizza."

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/7782122.stm