About Self Defense Classes & Workshops - Crime, Reports and Bad Decisions
01/02/12 15:20 Filed in: Other | Self Defense
I'm sure you've heard or read about the 20 year old CU student who got ticketed for falsely reporting an attack on University Hill. You can read more about it here.
Her initial story was that she was walking alone when she was grabbed by a 200lbs. knife wielding man. After a struggle, she got away with some minor scratches.
Doesn't add up does it? It may be possible if she was very lucky and the attacker only had the intention to scare her with the knife but did not plan on actually using it. It is definitely possible if she acted and overwhelmed her attacker (you want to take away the attacker's confidence, therefore the Golden Rule of self defense: ACT CRAZY). However, if a 200 lbs. man was wielding with a knife, it would be extremely hard to walk away the way she did. Not just for her but for anyone, including me!
False reports are unfortunate and prevent law enforcement from investigating real crimes. For example:
The armed robbery which turned fatal for Todd Walker (March 2011)
The gunmen who robbed multiple people and sexually assaulted a woman (August, 2011)
A gunman outside the Boulder Community Hospital (April, 2011)
Bank robbery in North Boulder (September, 2011)
CU campus robbery (January, 2012)
Sexual assault attempts (October, 2011)
Does this mean Boulder is an unsafe or bad place to live? Absolutely not! However, as in every big town (and college town), you need to be aware and more importantly, not be naive. Not everyone is trustworthy, you need to be cautious and use common sense.
After all, things happen and you don't control everything or everyone. None of the above victims ever thought this would happen to them but unfortunately it did. We should all try to keep ourselves and others safe. There are many ways to do this but the first step is to realize bad things do happen. Being prepared doesn't hurt. The last thing you want to do is putting yourself in a situation in which bad things can happen.
As a self defense instructor, I spend a lot of attention to all aspects of self defense. It is not simply about the techniques and how to get back to safety but it's also about preventing, scanning, communication (verbal and non verbal), knowing vital points and very important: your mental state.
My wife pointed out an article about self defense a few weeks ago and Linda Fairstein (a former sex crimes prosecutor) addresses a few very bad choices that turned for the worst.
- Kenia Monge from Denver was planning on going to college to become a crime scene investigator so she was an intelligent woman. When she left her friends to go to the restroom when partying, she never came back. Travis Forbes was found guilty for the murder of Kenia. She made one mistake but it cost her and her family dearly. It is very important to use a buddy system when leaving the group, no matter how close or easy your destination is.
- Holly Bobo, a 20 year old student was kidnapped outside her Tennessee home. It seems like Holly did not resist enough, at least not in the initial part of her kidnapping. Traces of resistance were found but it was probably too late. If you feel unsafe, draw attention to yourself. It will lower your attacker's confidence and other people may be able to assist or call 911. Do whatever you can to draw attention and target vital points to maximize damage and pain. Please note that every situation is different and everyone's response is different. When there are weapons involved, it is also a very different scenario so this response may not fit all situations!
- Paula Sladewski had a fight with her boyfriend in a club, it came to a point that her boyfriend was thrown out and she stayed. When she left later, cameras show a man was following her. She didn't make it and up to this day, there is no suspect. Paula made the mistake of making a decision based on her emotions at that time. This affected her safety and it turned for the worst. Always be careful and don't take risks, even if you are upset.
The article focussed on these three situations that were caused by a certain decision. Other people doing the same actions may be fine and many other decisions will also turn out to be the wrong one. Should you lock yourself up and don’t take any risks? No but take calculated risks and please use common sense. It’s better to be safe than sorry. In my mind, every person should take a proper self defense course and know the basics (not because we teach these but I believe things can happen and you should be able to help yourself if needed).
We teach self defense classes 4 times a week and offer punch cards to give our clients the freedom to choose their own times. We focus on every aspect of self defense and make sure you leave with a strong basic knowledge and skill set. All levels and ages are welcome. More info about our self defense classes and workshops here.
By Sander Vanacker, Define Defense’s certified personal trainer and head martial arts instructor, based in Boulder, Colorado. Take a look at www.DefineDefense.com, www.TrainerVanacker.com or check out our videos on YouTube.com/DefineDefense ! Define Defense in Boulder, CO
- Modern Martial Arts
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- Self Defense Classes & Workshops
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1805 11th Street Suite B
Boulder, CO 80302
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Crime Statistics in Boulder & Colorado
20/08/11 11:42 Filed in: Other | Martial Arts
In this article, I would like to discuss some numbers and statistics. I personally like to be aware of these and compare them to other locations and simply reflect upon them. Helping people stay safe is truly important to us and that is why we chose to put together the most effective curriculum, so our clients learn things that they can actually use in a crisis situation. In the end, a martial art that is not effective in real self defense will simply not help you when you need it. All our programs are based on effectiveness (among other goals), such as the Modern Martial Arts and the Women’s Self Defense program.
The goal of this article is not to scare anyone, it is simply to share information and hopefully that information will help you make better decisions.
First, we will take a closer look at statistics from Rainn (Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network):
These numbers are staggering and show you how much it actually occurs. This does not mean you have to lock yourself indoors and give up your social life… But it is definitely something you have to think about. As we learn in our self defense program: you have to be aware, make the right decisions, stand up for yourself and minimize your chance of being a victim. And if a person becomes a victim, they will know basic techniques to defend themselves and get to safety.
Nobody should be living in fear and even with these disturbing numbers, you shouldn’t either. However you do have to keep yourself safe because despite what many people are thinking (or hoping) these things happen elsewhere, they don’t! That is why we will review some statistics of our region:
Hopefully this indirectly helped you to be safe and maybe make certain decisions that will keep you safe in the future. If we can assist you in any way, if you have any questions or you would like to try out a free class with us, you can always contact us at info@definedefense.com
The goal of this article is not to scare anyone, it is simply to share information and hopefully that information will help you make better decisions.
First, we will take a closer look at statistics from Rainn (Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network):
- 44% of rape victims are under age 18
- 80% are under age 30
- 1 in 5 women has been sexually assaulted in their lifetime
- 60% of sexual assaults are not reported to police (so all statistics only show 40% of the cases!)
- 7 out of 10 assaults are committed by someone known to the victim
- Every 2 minutes, some is sexually assaulted
These numbers are staggering and show you how much it actually occurs. This does not mean you have to lock yourself indoors and give up your social life… But it is definitely something you have to think about. As we learn in our self defense program: you have to be aware, make the right decisions, stand up for yourself and minimize your chance of being a victim. And if a person becomes a victim, they will know basic techniques to defend themselves and get to safety.
Nobody should be living in fear and even with these disturbing numbers, you shouldn’t either. However you do have to keep yourself safe because despite what many people are thinking (or hoping) these things happen elsewhere, they don’t! That is why we will review some statistics of our region:
- The average rate per 100,000 inhabitants for forcible rape in the US was 28.7 in 2009 (that does not include all sexual assault, this means that the real number of problems is MUCH higher). The rate per 100,000 inhabitants for forcible rape in Colorado was 44.6 and went up 5.2% since 2008. This is a major increase over the national average. Source: FBI Crime in the US
- The offenses known to law enforcement: Boulder law enforcement listed 32 forcible rape cases in 2009 (keep in mind only 40% gets reported and then still some may not be counted; think about school campus, lack of evidence etc.) If you compare Boulder with other cities such as Arvada and Centennial which have a similar amount of inhabitants, Boulder mostly had higher numbers in many different offenses such as violent crime, murder, robbery, assault etc. Source: FBI Offenses Known to Law Enforcement
- 4 forcible rape cases were listed in 2009 in the University of Colorado with a student enrollment of 32,469. Denver, with a student enrollment of 21,903 had 0. Fort Collins however, had 5 with a student enrollment of 28,882. CU Boulder did have the #1 spot in violent crimes, aggravated assault, property crime, burglary and larceny-theft. Source: FBI Offenses Known to Law Enforcement by State and University
- Crime statistics in Boulder, CO up to 2010. In this case, please keep in mind the population in Boulder has increased much since 2006. There is a lot of info for you to see but I will mention a few items I noticed. For example, the amount of officers has remained the same even though the population increases and the ration even (slightly) dropped per 1000 inhabitants: from 1.67 in 2006 to 1.65 in 2010. In 2010, 25 rape cases were reported (only 7 arrests total with juvenile arrests booming to a total of 4 in 2010), 72 sexual assault cases and 4 murders (3 arrests). In many other crimes however, numbers have dropped over the past 5 years which is a positive sign. Some have increased and other remain very volatile year over year. I am positive that our law enforcement does an excellent job and am very supportive of their actions. Numbers are not an exact science and don’t explain everything. However, it does give an individual an idea of the amount of crimes and we can only create a safer community if we all work together. The police and Sheriff’s department exist to keep us safe but we all have duties as individuals as well. Source: www.bouldercolorado.gov
- Finally, campus statistics at CU Boulder. Please take a look at their website at they give you much information to explain more about them and what to do if something were to happen (including phone numbers). If we take a look at the crime statistics, you will see there is a 5 year average of 4.2 forcible rape cases each year with a total of 4 in 2010 (does not include other sex offenses such as sexual assault, unlawful sexual contact and does not reflect a total count since not all are reported and/or listed!!) No arrests were made from 2006-2008 for forcible rape cases. Source: website of CU Boulder Police Department
Hopefully this indirectly helped you to be safe and maybe make certain decisions that will keep you safe in the future. If we can assist you in any way, if you have any questions or you would like to try out a free class with us, you can always contact us at info@definedefense.com