What's consider4ed self defense?

[Kamidake]

Although in the U.S. I suppose it would vary from state to state, does anyone know the general legal status of martial artists? Does the law come down harder on them if they bust up an attacker, than it would on someone who fought but didn't know what they were doing and therefore did the miscreant little damage? (The U. S. legal system tends to assume you should take no responsibility for your own safety, but rather wait for the police to arrive and process your corpse.)

[wcnavstar]

It's all up to the state or country that you live in to determine if what you did is self defense.

 

Yet in the end I would rather be tried by twelve than carried by six!

[karatekid1975]

You took the words outta my mouth, wcnavstar. I agree.

[54Oldsman]

At our dojo we are taught to avoid, talk down, run, etc. and if that fails and the attacker steps inside the "saftey" area(arms length), strike first, continue to strike and once the threat is over step back and get out of there.

[karatefox]

My sensei always says the best self defense is to not be in a situation where you need to defend yourself. And #2 is to be wearing running shoes. So if you get attacked in a dark alley wearing spike heels, no matter what happens next you've already screwed up miserably.

OBVIOUSLY YOU'VE NEVER HAD A GIRL STEP ON YOUR FOOT WITH SPIKE HEELS. I can run dang fast in heels.

[Kyle-san]

OBVIOUSLY YOU'VE NEVER HAD A GIRL STEP ON YOUR FOOT WITH SPIKE HEELS. I can run dang fast in heels.

 

Hah. I knew those heels had self-defence value in them.

[Shorin Ryuu]

Although in the U.S. I suppose it would vary from state to state, does anyone know the general legal status of martial artists? Does the law come down harder on them if they bust up an attacker, than it would on someone who fought but didn't know what they were doing and therefore did the miscreant little damage? (The U. S. legal system tends to assume you should take no responsibility for your own safety, but rather wait for the police to arrive and process your corpse.)

 

Actually, according to U.S. law, you are allowed to use as much force as reasonable to protect yourself and in proportionality. In other words, if someone is doing a simple assault/battery on you, then you can respond in kind to defend yourself. By the same token, if they intend to inflict grevious and bodily harm to you (which ranges from serious damage to death), then you can use any force, even lethal, to defend yourself. If you do this, make sure it is believeable. Don't go off half-cocked and kill someone just because they kicked you in the shin and walked away. If you do kill someone who was trying to kill you, then that is a defense against murder. Just keep in mind, it must be proportional and I am in no way advocating you kill someone just because they are trying to kill you. But then again...if its me or him...then its gonna be him...

[Immolation]

In a common streetfight, I would say that a pre-emptive strike is not the smartest. With out judicial system, you will be charged with first degree assault, unless the guy either had a weapon or said he was going to kill you.

 

Its much easier to just launch an easy counterattack, preferably a grappling one against a common person. If they throw a punch, simply block it, sidestep, or jump back, and then begin to fight.

[Scandinavian]

Running has one nasty element and it is, that you will turn your back to the assaulter. If you are not very fast (fast, not fit, youre not running 50 miles here) runner, then dont turn your back to him while he is in 10m range. Jog backwards to that range and then sprint. You have loads of very juicy targets on your back, kidneys, spine, ribs without muscle protection etc.

 

Try to run away a friend, that can run equally fast and you start off from 2-5 meters range. You can hear him being close, no matter that you run full speed, what you do? Turn? No, you cant turn 180 from full speed, because you end up on the dirt. As funny as it may sound, you dont necessary realize this if you're in full adrenaline rush and possibly scared. So, you need to slow down before you turn around to face the assaulter. The faster you want to slow down, the more you need to have Angle Of Attack agains the current movement direction. Simply the faster you need to stop, the more you end up being near the ground. Stopping is hard enough in controlled surfaces, but how about surfaces that have very different charasteristics, asphalt against your shoes, parking hall smooth concrete. Add sand or dirt and you might as well be braking on marble balls!

 

The least position you want to be in a fighting situation is on your knees and its very likely you end up there if you dont have enough time to stop, turn around and stabilize (possibly even reverse, if you strike). Without these elements accomplished you are in worse position, than initially before you started running. So, 10m is enough for safe reversing and now the running assaulter has to face some Newtonian laws, which many MA utilize to redirect movement or deal absolutely fatal blows. Remember, Newtons laws dont go easy on objects, that want to stop their motion without any help from outside.

[Treebranch]

Karate Women that's a very aggressive way of thinking. So what do you do if you get hit first? Say the hit didn't knock you out or even rattle you, I hope you know how to regain yourself in this type of situation. There are ways to bait your attacker, to open him up. Yes not attacking first is always riskier, but there are times when you will be attacked first. I can't stress good grappling skills enough, or using things near you, your keys, a pen, a pocket knife if you need it. Fight dirty when it's a street fight, quick and dirty. I'll worry about the law when I survive the fight.

 

Getting back to the post, self defense is protecting yourself against a threat, whether you hit first or not. Distancing yourself is very important.