Here is another example of a fine job of parenting...

Both ways the bonehead holds the gun certainly could cause a problem for a clean defense (holding it down and back at his side, and holding it up near his ear...that one perplexes me but what do you expect when all his education is from tv or other boneheads?)
Added to that, he is pushing the intended victim with his non-gun hand. At Colorado Krav Maga, we train on these types of scenarios all the time and as you can see by the video even the other kids instinctive response ended up working well. I think the lessons to take away from this video is timing. When is go time? He could have been shot numerous times before he acted, but perhaps he didn't feel like it was imminent. He may have known his attacker (likely), so there was bound to be some banter or even monologuing going on.
When reading the boneheads body language, I think its apparent that had the intended victim just took off running away (beyond his first move back to his skateboard) the bonehead would likely have just started shooting, like a dog that only chases a cat once it starts running. It's obvious in this video that the boneheads only source of manliness was the gun (and it wasn't very big). They guy was a complete wimpy looser and got beat down by a smaller skater dude, how embarrassing for him.

Watch this video it's very disturbing. http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=164657074696&ref=mf
Forget that some asshole is simply recording the whole thing, but those who try to help have no clue how. This is why we do what we do. Krav Maga Students, let me list the response options for you....
#1-shoot the guy in the head...from 2 inches away.
#2-Fire extinguisher or similar object to the face at full force, swing for the bleachers American frckin Baseball style.
#3-round kick to the face at full force.
#4-third party protection defense vs. knife attacks.
The guy is so focused on killing this lady that all attempts to interact with him are completely ignored. Bystanders appear to be afraid of the knife! His single-mindedness is insane, the only way to stop this safely is to shut him down. I don't know if this lady survived, I hope so. But let's look at the most difficult option listed here, third party protection defense going hands on.
In a knife attack, it's a bad idea to tackle someone. If I even have to explain that to you then you should stop reading this blog now.
IF, and I mean IF, you have to go hands on in this scenario, you will need to control the knife hand quickly since you are putting yourself in range to be stabbed as well. Use the Krav Maga approach to defending against knife 'brandishing' and, from this position, a variation of hand-grenade takedown. You'll need to be ready to deliver some serious counter attacks right away. Forget about trying to "control" the attacker, it's way past that. Do some damage to him right away. His single mindedness should tell you right away that it's not controllable situation.

Panhandlers stab couple

OK, so Tony just had a run in with a panhandler in Denver on Monday, and on Tuesday a couple is approached on Colfax by a pair of panhandlers. The asked for money, the couple said no, and one of the beggars jumped the male. They went to the ground, when the second looser started stabbing the male victim. The male victims female companion tried to help out, but also got stabbed in the frey. Here's the story: http://www.9news.com/news/local/article.aspx?storyid=124513&catid=346

I don't have any more facts that what's posted on the story. When I hear more about how it went down I'll update everyone, but at least we can learn a few valuable lessons from this.

1. Of course there's no way to know for sure, but I'm fairly certain that the fact there were TWO of them working in tandem was a major factor. Every asshole is braver with a 2nd asshole nearby. They feed off of each others violence and aggressiveness. It's safe to say that if you are approached by panhandlers working together, alarm bells need to be ringing like mad.
2. Going to the ground should be avoided if possible. It may not have been possible in this case, I don't have all the facts, but if you already know there are more than 1 aggressor, your first priority is to stay on your feet and stay mobile.
3. If you are going to get involved in an altercation from the outside of the original fracas, use an entry tool that's likely to create space or do serious damage. You need to control the situation quickly and violently.

I recently posted a video online created by Daniel Carlini, one of our instructors, that has a little bit of footage of us training to engage as a 3rd party in an altercation. We've been training for several weeks on entering an altercation with a kick to make space against an aggressor and removing either a known or unknown person from the area. Great training, and an invaluable lesson on dealing with multiple problems.
I think that as long as the economy remains bad and the system offers less and less deterrence's, we will see more and more of these kinds of street criminals pairing up or even forming roaming mini street gangs (evidenced on 16th street mall lately).

We hope the two victims recover and the suspects are caught before it gets worse.

Posted from a note from Tony Cummings, KM Instructor

Monday Night, 2 of our instructors had the opportunity to experience Downtown Denver at it’s best. While stopped at a gas station, out of necessity, they were “confronted” by one of Denver’s finer citizens. While putting air in a tire, this fine citizen began walking across the parking lot toward both the cars. About half way, he began to yell that he wanted some change to get on the bus. Normally we blow this stuff off, but this guy struck them as different. It brought to mind Mike’s post and his suggestion to read The Gift of Fear. Below are some indicators that I noticed which are included in deBecker book:

Forced Teaming – “Do you guys have change,”

Charming/Niceness – “I’m stuck hear and need some change to get on the bus,”

To Many Details – See above and “I’m trying to get on the bus stop across the street,”

Now while these are just a few of the indicators, subconsciously they knew this guy wanted something more. You can account this to many factors, one of which I’m sure was the fact that he saw a young female standing “alone” in a dark corner of a parking lot. As he got closer Tony (Instructor 1) lost sight of Jessica (Instructor 2) although she was standing right next to him (after moving around her car). It was one of a few psychological reactions to a stressor:

Auditory Exclusion – “Although we were about 5 feet from a busy highway with cars flying by, I could not hear anything but the sound of this guy and his loud voice,”

Tunnel Vision – ‘I totally lost sight of Jessica although she was right next to me and all my focus was on this guy; looking at his hands, his body language, his demeanor,’



Automatic Pilot – “My first reaction was to go immediately to the threat, after obviously “taking some precautions.” Now while I don’t advocate getting in a physical confrontation, sometimes you have no choice; it’s merely a by-product of the situation.”

Mike’s post drives home a valid point; you just never now. You can do everything right and still end up in a bad situations through no fault of your own. While this incident is minor compared to his, it still has to make you wonder; do you fight or do you run? While fighting should always be the last option, sometimes it’s the one that can be the difference between life and death. It must be a mindset and you must be pre-programmed to just react if a confrontation is unavoidable. Additionally, it is important to realize how your body will react until real time stress. It still amazes me that although I have been in many bad situations, my body still tells me something is just not right. Never chose to be assaulted while you stand still, the first time you are a victim, the second time you are a volunteer.