social distance

[sensei8]

Who swings first??

The first one who breaks the personal distance?? Maybe. If someone's able to breach one's personal distance, then perhaps that someone can strike out first. So, if my opponent breaches my personal distance, then should I strike out first or should I not?!?!?

Ed Parker spoke about this...

"He who hesitates, meditates horizontally."

[bushido_man96]

It's all in the articulation of what happened. If you can articulate what the person's actions were, and if you felt they were aggressive in nature, especially if he was uncomfortably close to you, then you should be able to articulate a good case for self-defense.

[sensei8]

It's all in the articulation of what happened. If you can articulate what the person's actions were, and if you felt they were aggressive in nature, especially if he was uncomfortably close to you, then you should be able to articulate a good case for self-defense.

Most solid point!!

As a LEO, how are your points governed??

[bushido_man96]

There's a lot involved with each situation, and each situation is different. Actions leading up to the encounter are important; is the person trying to de-escalate, or are they using words to aggravate the situation? What led them to the decision to "throw the first punch?" (as it may not be a punch; could be a takedown, bodylock, etc.) Was the aggressor invading their space after they asked them to back away? Did he ball up his fists or hunch his shoulders? Did he make some overt action that caused to believe you were in danger? Things such as these are important to take into consideration.