Man Viciously Attacked in His own Back Yard
This is an old article. But we can still learn from it.
“A man has been arrested in Colorado in connection to a random attack on a man who was shoveling in Marinette.” That’s how an article on wbay.com starts out.
The victim was behind his house, shoveling the parking area, when he was approached by a stranger. The stranger asked him what he was doing. The victim said he was shoveling.
The stranger asked the victim for a lighter. The victim said he didn’t have one. The stranger asked the victim if he was a child molester. The victim said he was going inside and began walking to his house (the victim is not a child molester).
It was then that the stranger punched him in the head while calling him a child molester. The victim threatened to call the police.
The stranger started punching the victim over and over in the face and head. Approximately 20 punches.
The attacker wrestled the shovel out of the victim’s hands and attacked the victim with it. The victim said he was afraid his attacker was going to cut off his head with the shovel. He said he thought he was going to die.
Eventually, for whatever reason, the stranger stopped attacking the victim and simply walked away. Lucky for the victim who, it seems, never tried to fight off his attacker. He just screamed for help.
What we can learn from this
Defensive Mindset
You can’t consider your backyard a safe-zone anymore. The victim was minding his own business. He probably felt completely safe. I expect the last thing on his mind was that he would be attacked. Most of us feel that way. Unfortunately, we just can’t be sure of that anymore.
Threat Awareness
Always be aware of your surroundings. Even in your own back yard. Maybe especially in your own back yard. Since people usually feel safe there, they don’t feel the need to be so diligent in their awareness.
Situational Awareness
Be wary if a stranger starts to approach you. The closer they are to you, the easier it is for them to attack you. Keep your distance. Be ready to run or defend yourself. You don’t know this guy and you don’t know what he’s capable of. And in this case, he was capable of serious violence.
Self Defense
Don’t turn your back on someone who is clearly demonstrating that he is weird. Asking you what you’re doing when it’s obvious that you’re shoveling snow is a strange enough question as it is. Asking for a light is a typical way for predators to pull you into a conversation.
And the last question? Yeah… that was so out-of-the-blue. And so very odd. And definitely one that should put you completely in defense mode (if you weren’t already there).
Defensive Tactics
After he was hit in the head, the victim threatened to call the police. That is not going to stop a crazy person from viciously attacking his victim. That was proven in the article.
When someone strikes you, it’s time to defend yourself. Time to strike back. To use whatever you need to do to defend yourself from this crazy person.
The victim was holding a shovel. A shovel is a great weapon. That was proven in the article. Unfortunately, the weapon was used against the victim. If the victim had used the shovel as a weapon to defend himself, the situation would have probably ended much differently.
And back to Defensive Mindset
If you are being violently attacked, attack back with violence of your own. Give yourself permission to use violence to stop your attacker. Give yourself permission to injure your attacker.
Use that shovel. Use whatever weapon you can find. If there aren’t any weapons available, use your hands, elbows, feet, whatever it takes to injure your attacker. Don’t just scream for help while the attacker continues to pummel you.
You have a right to defend yourself. But in order to do so, you need to develop a Defensive Mindset. You need to learn Self Defense Techniques to defend yourself. And you need to learn and practice Threat/Situational Awareness Skills. They can help keep you from being attacked in the first place.
~Shereen
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