Fights Are Not Self-Defense

Fights are not self-defense. Let me repeat that, fights are not self-defense. I say this because I often hear people saying, “it was self-defense,” when it was nothing of the sort. When I was working in the City Attorney’s Office, I prosecuted a guy for assault who plead self-defense, when it wasn’t. He lost and was found guilty. The fact is, many incidents, such as bar fights and “let’s take it outside” fights are just that, fights. They do not have elements of self-defense at all, and in a court room, that is how it will play out.

In this short article, I’m not going to explain everything about the legal definition of self-defense, so I’ll just mention that self-defense is an affirmative defense to a charge against you. Simply stated, this means you admit to hurting someone else, but claim you had justification in doing so. Your defense to hurting a person is that you did so in self-defense, so it was justifiable use of force against another person. Then it is up to you to prove and illustrate why you were acting in self-defense and justified in doing what you did. You need to be able to articulate why it was justifiable and why it falls under the legal definition of self-defense. And yes, there are legal definitions of self-defense, and you will have to meet the elements and definition for the jurisdiction you are in.

Again: Fights are Not Self-Defense

John Perkins makes a good point in his book, How To Fight For Your Life: Enhanced Reality-Based Close Combat Training For Self-Defense And Street Survival. He has a side box titled “Criminal Assault vs. Sparring.” In the box, he also points out there is a big difference between fighting (or sparring) and an actual assault where you have to defend yourself. (The latter being justified as self-defense) In one of the points in this box, Perkins writes, “If he steps back, you step back. This has become a cock-fight and not an actual criminal assault. Again, leave the area but be vigilant for accomplices. Later, you will need to think hard about how you got mixed up in such an idiotic situation in the first place.”

First, I like that he is teaching to leave, if it is not an actual assault. Don’t engage in a fight. I also like that he tells you to think about how you got into the situation in the first place. People often neglect this, and find themselves habitually getting into mischief and trouble over and over again. We sometimes fail to realize that we are the cause, or at least part of the cause, to the trouble we find ourselves in.

The take-a-way here is to remember that fights are not self-defense. Train for defending yourself if you ever have to face an actual assault, but refrain from engaging in the all too common “fights” that occur way too often for very unnecessary reasons. Stay safe, and stay smart.