A Punch to the Head is Potential Deadly Force

Gun Watch ^ | 1 December, 2014 | Dean Weingarten

[marktwain]

If you watch television and the movies, you might get the impression that a punch to the head is no big deal.  That is not true.  A punch to the head is a very serious attack.  It can disable.   It can maim.  It can kill.  The head is a vulnerable target, which is why an attacker aims for it.  I first became aware of  the deadly potential of one punch to the head in the 1970's, from a long forgotten news story.   Later, the son of a close friend killed a man with one punch.  He was eventually found not guilty of manslaughter, but only after a long and expensive legal fight.

We owe a debt of gratitude to Steve Kokette of Madison, Wisconsin, for producing One Punch Homicide, which documents the surprising numbers of one punch homicides that occur in the United States and around the world.  From simple Internet searches, he has compiled a list of 114 one punch homicides in the United States.  I am sure that the list is far from complete.

Everyone understands that a punch is more likely to knock you out rather than kill you.   But there is little practical difference for someone who is intent on defending themselves.   Once you are knocked out, you are at the mercy of your attacker.   They then have the choice of killing or maiming you at their leisure.  From onepunchhomicide.com:

Prosecuting Attorney Dan Satterberg of King County, which includes Seattle, Washington, says King County has four to six one punch homicides every year. If King County's one punch homicide rate is average for the U.S., which is impossible to tell because no one in the U.S., including the FBI, keeps statistics on the subject, then the U.S. has between 500 and 1,000 one punch homicides every year. Although this isn't a huge number, it has other implications. Most single punches don't result in a death, but for every death by one punch, how many other people experience serious injuries, including brain damage, because of one punch - 10, 20, 50, 100, or more?

 Here is a well known case of one fatal punch from July of this year (2014):

LIVONIA, Mich. (AP) — A well-respected veteran soccer referee’s life was cut short by a punch delivered during a Detroit-area men’s league game.

John Bieniewicz, 44, died on July 1, two days after a player struck him at a community park in Livonia.

The standard for the use of deadly force is that you reasonably believe that you are defending yourself from force that can kill or severely injure you.   Once you know that a punch can kill or severely injure you, you can explain to a jury why, as a reasonable person, you were forced to threaten or use deadly force to defend yourself or others.

You do not have to allow yourself to be beaten before you defend yourself with deadly force; but you have to be able to reasonably explain why you understood that you were under the threat of potentially deadly force.


 ©2014 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice is included.
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[marktwain]

What you know is an important part of the justification of the use of deadly force.

[Travis McGee]

One of the benefits of being over 50 is that I can now claim self defense in many cases where the perps are “unarmed youths.”

I have no obligation to go MMA against “unarmed” thugs, going to the ground to have my brains kicked in.

After a warning about keeping distance, the blaster will come out.

[Jagdgewehr]

Blows to the head only matter if it fits some lefty sociopolitical agenda...like in football.

[Blood of Tyrants]

I carry a gun because I have no obligation to take a beating.

[I want the USA back]

Plus the perp can then take the cop’s gun and then the cop’s life is in danger.

The cop acted properly by eliminating the danger to his life.

[fieldmarshaldj]

Thugs need slugs.

[WayneS]

Yup.

I’m too old to go to the fists with three 20 year old thugs.

[MrB]

Sorry about the mess.

[w1n1]

Don’t know if you know this, but in WA state. They view a punch to the head as a lesser assault than strangling the person. Obviously, all depends on the situation.

[MrB]

That seems to be the mindset of these racist thugs -

YT deserves to take a beating, and any efforts to resist it are wrong.

[DaveA37]

“Thugs need slugs.”..........

This will look great on “T” shirts. Where can I get one?

[Blood of Tyrants]

Click here. Family Of Adric White, Robbery Suspect, Outraged At Good Samaritan Who Shot Him (Year old story)

[TexasFreeper2009]

I think the government should come down like a ton of bricks on the recent trend to kick people when they are down.

I think this should be prosecuted 100% of the time as attempted murder!

[fieldmarshaldj]

http://clothswordtees.com/product/every-thug-t-shirt/

Not my website, just happened to find it now.

[Buckeye McFrog]

Someone needs to tell Mrs. Ray Rice

[Grampa Dave]

A man half the size of the black cop attacker with a single blow to the head can cause a serious concussion.

One the size of the new black hero, the Thug Brown, could easily cause a concussion with a single blow to the head.

Look at how serious the NFL and MLB consider any possible concussion and how long a player has to be out of action after a concussion is diagnosed.

Of course reality is not possible with those who worship the Ferguson thug.

[Blue Jays]

"Yup. I’m too old to go to the fists with three 20 year old thugs."

---

Concur with you both 100%.

Even more disconcerting is a bunch of 14-16 y.o. teens because they are technically still "kids" yet make remarkably horrible decisions. This is especially the case when egging each other on in big groups. Happens even more in summertime.

My ongoing explanation for anyone who feels a blow to the head is insufficient for a police officer to utilize deadly force is this:

"Stand upon a chair set on a tiled kitchen or concrete basement floor. Bend at hips so upper-body is parallel to the ground. Without extending hands, fall headfirst onto the floor. Tell us how it feels."

Nobody is ever willing to give it a try!

[pa_dweller]

Massad Ayoob addresses this on Armed American Radio.

http://media.blubrry.com/armed_american_radio/armedamericanradio.s3.amazonaws.com/11-30-2014_Hour_2.mp3

[logi_cal869]

I, too, do not concede to reacting to caveman/ape attacks like a caveman or ape. I have a brain highly evolved from the simple ape. Ape-like ego is not a factor. If retreat is no option, my first weapon is my brain.

This is why knowing your State’s laws is key.

Brandishing in defense should never be illegal. Brandishing is simply showing the weapon. If the opportunity presents, show the weapon. Just don’t point it, know for sure that it’s ready to fire and be prepared to follow through.

An attacker still keen on advancing, unarmed or otherwise, upon one armed with a gun is a deadly threat. Means, opportunity & intent. Most perps will turn & run. Those that don’t:

Justified.

(and zip your lips)

[FreedomPoster]

“Too old to take a beating, too young to die.”