Krav Maga Self-Defence 

Krav Maga is regarded as an efficient aggressive forward fighting self-defence combat system, with the aim of surviving extreme violent situations efficiently and maintaining personal safety. The key principle we work by is SURVIVAL. When running our Krav Maga self-defence classes I am asked frequently, what if I use these techniques will I face prison? how much trouble will I get into? etc etc. No one can give you a definitive answer to this question however, you should understand the law and how it applies to you with regards to self-defence. I have noted some key principles that I personally follow to allow me to have a proportionate response to a potential or actual threat you are welcome to take some notes from this.

I decided to write this blog to go through the principles that I personally follow from my experience research and from speaking to members of the police regarding this subject. I would like to note that I have no formal qualifications regarding the law, so you are welcome to use this as a guide. We cannot definitively say what will and will not get you in trouble with the law if you use physical force against an assailant, as there are so many different situations and scenarios with many grey areas, and many varying factors, no one situation will be exactly the same as another. My guide is what I would use to make a decision including when to use my combat skills and to what level. It is important as a Krav Maga self-defence instructor to have at least a basic understanding regarding the use of force and the legal implications.

Self-Defence training in Oxford

So, lets firstly look at the definitions 

What is an assault

Generally an “assault” is any act which causes another person to believe that immediate and unlawful personal violence will be used against them. This can include words or body language.

What is battery? 

Battery is the physical contact between the assailant and the victim. This includes a physical attack such as a punch, slap or using a weapon to hurt a person. It does not necessarily mean that one person has “battered” another because the contact might only be a push.

What is A.B.H

ABH stands for Actual Bodily Harm. ABH reflects bodily damage that can range from minor injuries such as a black eye and bruising through to swelling and other.

What is G.B.H

Grievous bodily harm describes the severest forms of assault. GBH means to cause really serious injuries to another person, some examples include broken bones or permanent disfigurement

The moment you put your hands on someone you need to be able to justify why you took that action

Self Defence

The law says you are legally entitled to use “reasonable force” to physically defend:

• Yourself
• Another person
• Property
• To prevent crime.

If you find yourself taking physical action to do any of the above, you will need to be able to show why you acted and that the physical force you used was reasonable.

Reasonable force

Reasonable force is physical force that the average person would consider reasonable in the circumstances e.g. The average person might think it reasonable to punch someone who is punching you. However, the average person may be unlikely to think that it is reasonable to stab someone who is punching you. Force used must be proportionate to the risk faced in a violent situation.

What is a FENCE and how to use this to help protect yourself legally? 

The Fence

A basic description of the fence is creating space between you and a potential assailant whilst giving the command to stay back or back away. Your body posture and hands should give the impression that you do not want any trouble whilst allowing you to protect yourself, hand open and infront of your body. You should always give the assailant every opportunity to walk away whilst protecting yourself at all times. The fence offers you a platform to pre-emptivly strike should you feel sufficiently threatened The fence can also help with witnesses as they will be able to report that your dimina was defensive and none threatening before any physical conflict occurs which can assist you when claiming self-defence

Key principles I would use to determine my response to a violent situation 

Avoidance: 

Could you have prevented the situation or avoided it? Has the assailant left you without other options or backed you into a corner? One example I use with my students is a road rage incident, someone flips you off whilst driving. Exchanges occur then they pull the car over! You stop and get out to deal with the person, did you have to get out of the car, or could you have driven away? An example of a situation that would be difficult to avoid is home invasion or burglary where the perpetrator enters your dwelling and you have dependents to protect and nowhere to go.

Negotiation

Negotiation or de-escalation is not always possible especially if the attack is an ambush and you are straight into self-defence combat, grabs, releases, holds, etc. When dealing with social violence we teach our students to use the FENCE principles and try to de-escalate the threat whilst maintaining a safe distance from the assailant offering them every opportunity to walk away

Threat recognition 

Pre-emptive striking or combat comes when you have tried to de-escalate the potential assailant and you at some point feel that they intend you physical harm. You essentially have no other choice. It’s no good to just say “well I thought they were going to hit me” you will need to explain why you thought they were going to physically harm you. This leads us into understanding pre threat cues. An example of this would be “the person said they were going to smash my teeth out” they then raised their fists and stepped back or they had their arms out posturing and were coming towards me shouting encroaching on my space aggressively. So, you need to think! Why do I feel threatened as you will need to defend your actions at a later date?

There is no rule in law to say that a person must wait to be struck first before they may defend themselves, but remember that any force used must still be reasonable in the circumstances.

Krav Maga Oxford Self Defence

Proportionate force 

So for the purpose of self-defence we should look at the amount of force applied to the assailant in order to stop an attack which must be inline or proportionate to the level of threatened aggressive force by the assailant

“In self-defence cases, the amount of force employed by the defender must be proportionate to the threatened aggressive force”

Dis-engage

We teach our students to disengage as soon as the assailant is no longer a threat, this helps us regarding proportionate force. If the assailant is no longer a threat you have no requirement to continue your combative skills etc.

Justification 

You will need to justify why you took action against the assailant, demonstrate that you had no other choice and that the actions you took were proportionate to the level of physical threat

As soon as the assailant is no longer a threat you should immediately disengage, and scan for further threats

Making a decision 

Have you balanced the threat level against consequence of using physical harm to protect your body?

Using the four principles of Krav Maga will assist you to not only make the right decision but to also use appropriate force under adrenal stress. We work on the principles in our classes as noted below

• Stop the Threat (this can be verbally or physically)
• Apply combatives (if you have to use force)
• Dis-engage (immediately)
• Scan for further threats (always be prepared for other assailants)

If you have been involved in a situation and police attend……..

If you are involved in an incident, you may be treated as a victim or a witness, you may be asked to make a statement, in which case there is not usually any need to seek legal advice.  Statements are only made by victims and witnesses.

People accused of criminal offences (who may or may not be arrested) are interviewed by the police under caution in accordance with PACE 1984.

Being interviewed by the police under caution for a criminal offence is not the same as giving a statement.

If you are at any point treated as an assailant i.e. arrested or asked to attend for an interview, you are entitled to free and independent legal advice during the interview regardless of your financial circumstances.

Summary 

• Do everything you can to avoid the situation – what steps did you take (situational awareness)
• Did you try to de-escalate the situation or negotiate?
• FENCE procedure and impartial witnesses (bring attention to the situation “stay back”)
• Pre-emptive combat – (why did you feel threatened, were you in fear of your life)
• Did you use proportionate (or reasonable) force in line with the level of threat
• Disengage as soon as they are no longer a threat (if possible)
• You can read more on the law about this here https://www.cps.gov.uk/legal-guidance/self-defence-and-prevention-crime

“If you are trying you are already winning”

I would like to thank the professionals working within the legal and law enforcement sector for assisting and fact-checking our content for this blog

Written by Wayne Bailey Head Instructor British Krav Maga Oxford

Wayne Bailey British Krav Maga Instructor