Facing a knife wielding attacker can be dangerous and pretty scary, regardless of age, gender, athletic ability, strength, or martial arts / self-defense skill. However, if using proper awareness and avoidance strategies you can reduce your chances of ever having to face such a situation. However, that doesn't mean you shouldn't have  a basic understanding of how knife attacks occur or how to possibly protect yourself should such an event happen. As the old saying goes "better to be prepared and not need it..."

There are two primary ways a knife can be used against us.

1) The static "hold-up"- this is when the knife is used to elicit a fear response, to intimidate the intended victim into following commands. This is usually used to threaten, rob, rape, or assault the intended victim without actually having to use the knife. In such cases, the assailant does not necessarily want to kill, they generally want something else. However, this doesn't mean they will not lash out with the knife if they feel it's necessary to prevent resistance or capture.

2) The dynamic assault, aka the "Ambush" or the "Blitz"- This is when the knife is used to severely injure or kill an intended victim, usually without warning. In many cases the assailant will attempt to go unnoticed as he approaches the target, and then will violently attack when he is in range. However, this can also occur from a standard "testing ritual" or "interview" where the assailant approaches the intended victim under the guise of asking for the time, for directions, or maybe a light for his cigarette.

Which type of attack are you likely to face? This depends on various factors. For example if you work in a high risk environment such as a prison or rowdy night club, there is a higher chance you will face the second type of attack, the "Ambush".  However, if you do not work , live or hang out in high risk environments and if you do not make a habit out of making people angry at you, statistically-speaking you will most likely face the first type of attack. That is, IF you are ever forced to face a knife-wielding attacker.

While there are self-defense and martial arts instructors across the net that want us to believe that every knife attack involves the "Ambush", where an assailant comes out of nowhere and attacks viciously without warning, we know this just isn't the case. While these types of attacks do occur, they generally involve high risk occupations, symmetrical match fights that go wrong (like bar fights), situations where a person has made enemies, etc.

Over the years I have read hundreds of cases where knives were involved but few of them resulted in death from the infamous "Ambush" attack. The majority involved the knife being used as a tool to get a desired result, nothing more. Unfortunately, I have yet to find extensive data showing the actual statistics of the percentage of "Hold-Ups" versus the "Ambushes". However, it becomes fairly obvious when reviewing crime stories from around the country. That being said, the UK has done a better job of tracking the various types of crimes involving knives. This is simply because knife crimes are so much higher there due to the lack of firearms. What their research shows is that knives are used more often to threaten, rob, and rape then to cause bodily harm or to kill. You can read the following report for an overview of these statistics- www.parliament.uk/briefing-papers/sn04304.pdf

The point is, while knife attacks are both dangerous and scary, we can reduce our chances of being victimized through the use of awareness and avoidance. If we find ourselves facing a knife-wielding assailant, we must be be prepared both physically and mentally to deal with such a threat. While the chances are good this person only intends to scare us with the knife, we must also be prepared for the worst-case scenario. However, with that being said, we must understand the worst-case scenario is low on the probability scale unless we work or live in high risk areas, or do something stupid to agitate a knife-wielding robber.

Steve Zorn, ICPS
www.personalsafetyunlimited.net