Hyoho
2nd Black Belt
That would depend on what country you live in. I got my job because they know my background. It's why I got the job and other people didnt.
Don't tell them you know martial arts
- Thread starter PhotonGuy
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crazydiamond
Purple Belt
My instructor told a bunch of us beginners, recently we would be considered lethal weapons by local law enforcement.
I did not know weather to laugh - puff my chest out - or delete my Facebook account.
P.S. I don't tell anyone I know outside of my family or best friends - that I practice martial arts. It would not be accepted very well I think.
I did not know weather to laugh - puff my chest out - or delete my Facebook account.
P.S. I don't tell anyone I know outside of my family or best friends - that I practice martial arts. It would not be accepted very well I think.
I hope your instructor isn't this big an idiot when it comes to other areas of your training...
Not necessarily. I know a case of a guy who was involved in a physical altercation and really got the book thrown at him when the court became aware of his martial arts background. He was a white belt who had started a little more than a month ago.
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Poppycock. More likely the white belt decided that he was Chucks cousin and went looking for it. Now should that be "little more than a month before"?
BMhadoken
Yellow Belt
Citation please because I'm gonna go ahead and say "No he didn't." I'm far more willing to bet an entire paycheck that his hypothetical incident was not remotely self defense.
Do you understand how prosecution works? What they do? How they collect evidence to build a case against you?Photonguy said:
Hyoho
2nd Black Belt
Sounds like something off the Karate Kid
I don't know the details but supposedly the judge was very anti martial arts.
Yes and its an invasion of privacy that shouldn't be allowed whether somebody is in the defendant's seat or not.
BMhadoken
Yellow Belt
That's.... you're not exactly showing any hard evidence here. Like, this is weak even for an anecdote. Also, the judge isn't the guy who determines guilt. You... you know that, right?
Sooooooooo we'll let all those murders, rapes, etc. go unsolved because pinning a suspect to the act tends to involve getting up in their business, then? You know, fingerprints, alibis, phone records, personal history...
Mad_Dog
Yellow Belt
No.
What you do is tell those murderers and rapists that the Mad Dog is waiting for them.
Steve
Mostly Harmless
There is actually no problem here in the USA with agreeing in advance to engage in mutual combat. We had a situation a few years back where our local superhero, Pheonix Jones, confronted a bad guy who was intimidating and harrassing people. Bad guy talked some trash and the Seattle PD actually stood by and watched while the two engaged in mutual combat. As long as both people agree to it, no bystanders are hurt, and no property is damaged, it's perfectly legal.
Steve
Mostly Harmless
There would be jello involved if this were gitmo.
Is that U.S. wide or just Washington State? Here they would be charged with affray.
Assuming the other guy didnt go back on his word and try and sue you, itd be up to the discretion of the officers.
The state has the right to press charges, but they dont always
Steve
Mostly Harmless
I don't know. I'm not a lawyer. I just know that we had a situation where the cops actually stood by and allowed Phoenix Jones to beat the snot out of a bad guy in what was described as "mutual combat."
Steve
Mostly Harmless
Not okay, Transk53. Don't let a stranger goad you into doing what you know isn't right.
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Yeah point taken
Nothing wrong with calling someone out. Especially when I believe so many people are being wronged by testosterone filled posting activity. People need to be more honest Steve, not create a forum name that belies any real substance. Sorry I just have a problem with this kind of stuff!No but the judge obviously has an influence on the outcome of whether somebody is guilty. And the judge does have lots of power.
I see your point about murders and rapes but a person should not have their privacy invaded just because they used self defense in a confrontation. Unlike murder and rape self defense is a legal right.
1. The trier of fact may be a jury -- or a judge. If it's a judge, it's called a bench trial. There are all sorts of reasons why a defendant may choose one or the other... You might choose a bench trial if the defense is going to be based around a complex legal issue, or a jury if it's a play on sympathy, for example.
2. The judge, even in a jury trial, may have some influence on a finding of guilt or innocence -- but is supposed to be impartial. Any significant influence is grounds for a mistrial, and most judges really don't like to find themselves questioned in an appeal.
3. The anecdote may be true, but I think it's been largely exaggerated for effect. Or the guy was an idiot, and represented himself, and left the door open to be hammered. A halfway competent defense attorney could tear down that "month or a little more" of training to be meaningless. Something like this:
So... if the guy really got hammered "just because he was a martial artist" -- there's almost certainly a lot more to the story.
2. The judge, even in a jury trial, may have some influence on a finding of guilt or innocence -- but is supposed to be impartial. Any significant influence is grounds for a mistrial, and most judges really don't like to find themselves questioned in an appeal.
3. The anecdote may be true, but I think it's been largely exaggerated for effect. Or the guy was an idiot, and represented himself, and left the door open to be hammered. A halfway competent defense attorney could tear down that "month or a little more" of training to be meaningless. Something like this:
"You've trained in the martial arts?"
Yes.
"For how long had you trained at the time of this incident?"
Around 5 weeks.
"How often did you attend classes, and how long were they?"
Twice a week, for an hour and a half.
"So, that's a total of around 15 hours of training?"
Yes.
"And what has that training consisted of?"
Stances, a few kicks...
.... and so on...
Then call the instructor to the stand... and again play up how little has been learned in that time frame.Yes.
"For how long had you trained at the time of this incident?"
Around 5 weeks.
"How often did you attend classes, and how long were they?"
Twice a week, for an hour and a half.
"So, that's a total of around 15 hours of training?"
Yes.
"And what has that training consisted of?"
Stances, a few kicks...
.... and so on...
So... if the guy really got hammered "just because he was a martial artist" -- there's almost certainly a lot more to the story.
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