Instinctive Counters to Knife Attacks - Part 6 — Legal Considerations

Any incident involving the use of force whether it is in a civilian environment, as a security officer, a police officer, or as military personnel on operations all will have legal considerations that we need to be compliant to.

The nature of operations being conducted by security, law enforcement or military personnel including the associated rules of engagement of these operations or the situation that led to an attack or assault will all have a bearing on the legal outcome of the altercation.

The person countering an attack with any form of physical force must take into consideration the use of force continuum and the rule of law. Their actions and issues such as reasonable and proportionate use of force, was the use of force authorized, justified or excused by law, all of which need to be taken into consideration.

Was the use of force instantaneous or premeditated, involve personal self defence or comply with the legal definition of the defence of another. Was the response of the defender countering the attack provoked did that response involve an unreasonable unjustified or unlawful escalation of the use of force continuum? Other legal considerations will also include the level of experience and training of the person’s involved, previous incidents and or criminal and social history and behavior of those involved in an altercation or if a weapon was used such as in a knife attack.

No matter which argument is applied to explain actions undertaken in countering a knife attack all such actions must be compliant to the law. In interpreting the Use of Force Continuum Model which not only relates to the actions of law enforcement personnel or defence personnel it should be remembered that the model also applies to any individual involved in an altercation employing force.

In considering the use of any force we need to take into consideration the safety of those involved, the defenders, the assailant and bystanders and other members of the public. As discussed previously the application of force must be reasonable and proportionate. It must be authorized, justified and excused by law. Therefore as difficult as it seems when dealing with a life threatening traumatic situation such as an attacker with a knife we also need to maintain our awareness concerning what force is employed in controlling the situation from a legal perspective.

From this legal perspective we need to consider if the assailant has the ability and capability to kill or cause bodily harm. It is also important to consider if you or a third party is in imminent jeopardy and are in fear of their life. Furthermore, in relation to the use of force employed by the defender did the defender employ that force after having reasonably exhausted all avenues available to them at that time and place. If these guidelines have not been complied with it may be that the defender themselves has breached the law and used excessive use of force in controlling an assailant.

Summary and Conclusion.

In conclusion when countering knife attacks it is just as essential to understand and be prepared for how our body and mind will respond. Once you know how you will respond train to improve and or manage those responses as appropriate. Develop your psychological commitment just as much as you develop your physical skills and ability to execute defensive techniques. When applying counters to these types of attacks or in reality any type of attack considerations remain the same and include the following:

Maintain your balance while unbalancing your opponent
Use your opponents momentum against them
Attack your opponent with full force against their weakest point
Psychologically unbalance your opponent while remaining focused and committed
Never underestimate your opponent

Under such circumstances this requires preparation, but how can we reasonably be able to prepare for such an event occurring. Hopefully it never will but through constant training of techniques so that they become instinctive we can prepare. Through learning what our body will go through psychologically as well as physiologically in such a stressful environment we can prepare. Understanding the consequence of our actions and their legal implications we can prepare. From a legal perspective we must be clear in our objectives in such an altercation and to what lengths we are prepared to go to when achieving those objectives.

Examples Counters to Knife Attacks