H.I.T. Self Defense

Interesting story from L.A. : “Police Wednesday were looking for a man who allegedly tried to kidnap an 8-year-old boy as he was walking to school with his mother.

The attempted abduction took place at 8:10 a.m. in the 14400 block of Palm Avenue as the mother and son were walking to Palm Elementary School, sheriff’s Lt. Arthur Scott said.

A man reportedly pulled up, got out of his car and grabbed the boy by his collar, Scott said.

The woman screamed and the man let go of her son and drove off, Scott said. The child was not injured.”

I guess I want to give this some attention because a lot of us believe our children are safe from attack when they are in our ‘reach’. This is not necessarily the case. Sometimes you are forced to go into fight mode when the assault or abduction is not directed at you… in this case, when the abduction is directed at your child. This mother did the right thing: yell! Get some immediate attention. However, what if the perp continued to take the boy to his vehicle - mom understands she may never see her child again. Can you imagine the fear (the terror) that she might feel?

Now, put yourself in her situation. What is your next step if a perp tries to abduct your child in your presence? Let’s look at a few options:

A. Yell! Try to get someone’s attention - but be prepared to do more.

If the perp continues to his vehicle do whatever is in your ability to stop him from getting to that vehicle with your child:

B. If he is walking away from you with your child in hand (he is not paying attention to you) - go after the marbles (eyes and groin). These are the most vulnerable areas. If possible, a hard kick up into the groin (from behind) and you will definitely get his attention. You can also come up from behind and dig your fingers into the eyes - rake and pull back the head. You must strike and grab. As soon as you strike (and I mean strike HARD and fast) grab your child and run - and YELL… anything to get someone’s attention

C. If the perp grabs your child and begins to walk away from you - as he faces you. Again, he cannot do (2) things at once… remember: ‘Closest Weapon, Closest Target’. If he has your child, he cannot protect himself. You strike at the eyes, the throat, anything that is soft and vulnerable. If you go after the eyes, be prepared to dig your fingers far enough in to come out with a gooey mess. Gross, I know. But trust me, anything but the most forceful attack may not give you enough time or space to get your child away from him. You have to be prepared to do whatever it takes.

D. Be aware of your surroundings. Just the same as if you are by yourself in a parking lot or a park, etc. Be aware of what is going on around you. Let me say this again, if you are on the phone, texting, or listening to your iPod, you cannot pay attention to your surroundings.

E. Talk to your children about their safety (before I go further – let me say this first; as a father of 3, this is easier said than done). Start simple (and young): Don’t wander off (in the above news story from L.A., the child was 20-30 feet away from his mother). Try to get your child to be more vigilant. Might be best to start big: Stranger Danger! Don’t talk to strangers; if someone approaches you when mommy or daddy are not around and tries to get you to go with them – YELL. I have more than a few stories of how young girls thwarted off a potential abductor simply because they made themselves appear less vulnerable. In one case, one of my students (young girl) got into a defensive stance and the potential abductor walked away.

Tips for your child: One tactic in particular I teach to children for attempted abduction is to drop to the ground in a ground defense and begin to kick and scream. Scream something like; ‘Get away, you’re not my dad’ or similar. Even the dead weight of a child dropping is hard to stop. The kicking makes them very hard to pick up and the yelling brings unwanted attention (consequences).

Training technique for you: Play the ‘When this, then that’ (when this happens, then I’ll do that) game next time you are out. When you find yourself outside with your child, imagine if someone pulled up in a car, got out, and tried to abduct your child. What would you do? Play that through as a car approaches you. Another example: you are at a park or in a store with your child. Pick out someone who really scares or intimidates you. Then put them in the shoes of an abductor… sometimes, the bigger, the scarier - the better. Look for their vulnerable areas - if they are big - the shins, the knees, the groin. Try to put yourself in that situation. Feel the fear, the terror - then imagine what your first move would be. Why practice this? If the situation does occur, with enough ‘with this, then that’ you will make your move without even thinking - this just becomes second nature.

Remember: put yourself in a perp’s shoes… who would you attack? The answer: someone who looks vulnerable.

I plan to post up my views in the next few days about the increase in rapes in the San Diego area (a 27% increase in 2008). I will also put up another clip from the DVD. Again, you will gain a lot more by watching the DVD; however, I want to get some more training and techniques up (first and foremost) for women to use and protect themselves.

Stay safe.
Visit the Site/Get the DVD: www.hitselfdefense.com