Fake heart attack saves woman

[Kacey]

One of my TKD students mentioned this story in class tonight - he said he heard it on the radio, and it intrigued me enough to check it out.

HAMPDEN, Maine - An 80-year-old Hampden woman who was watching the Super Bowl alone faked a heart attack to scare off a man who had broken into her home and was pushing her toward the bedroom, police said.

<snip>

Stewart said the woman pretended she was having a heart attack and told the intruder her heart medication was in her car in the garage. After they retrieved the medication, the man fled.

So... how do you teach that type of calm of mind to your students? There are many ways to fight, and this is one I doubt I would have thought of - especially in such circumstances. I applaud this woman's quick thinking and choice of actions. How does one person think of such a thing, and pull it off, while another does nothing and is assaulted, or does the wrong thing and is seriously injured or killed for it? And how do you teach your students to make the right choice for the situation?

 

[terryl965]

Good for her, my hat goes off for the great imagination of that woman

 

[Ceicei]

I suppose she went with her guts and decided to try this tactic. She may have seen from the demeanor of the attacker that he might not intend to do any serious harm (it could be he is there only to seek for money or jewelry--often found in bedrooms of the elderly, although he has a history of being a sex offender). The fact that he paused long enough for them to get the medicine before he fled speaks volumes to how he may be. Perhaps he had experience in his life of a close one who died by heart attack and he didn't want to have somebody die on him.

Any other type of attacker may not be as "caring" as this one and the elderly lady may respond differently. All in all, she was lucky! Great job! Apparently a good "reader of body language" of others.

Kacey, you asked how our students may be taught? I suggest they make awareness a priority, and that also includes gaining an understanding of human behavior. This will go a long way in helping decide what action to take.

- Ceicei

 

[Tames D]

Luckily he wasn't one of those freaks that rape elderly women (at least it appears that way to me). That type wouldn't care about her medication or her life. I'm glad she's ok.

 

[Kacey]

Luckily he wasn't one of those freaks that rape elderly women (at least it appears that way to me). That type wouldn't care about her medication or her life. I'm glad she's ok.

I dunno... the subtitle of the article was "80-year-old in Maine tricked convicted sex offender, who was later arrested". I think he just didn't want to be convicted as a murderer in addition to being convicted as a rapist.

 

[still learning]

Hello, What a great story here. You will never know what will work. and the attacker had some compassion.

Thank-you for sharing this article here........Aloha

 

[rutherford]

By faking a heart attack the ederly woman took control of the situation from her attacker. I assume it was this loss of control that caused him to flee, and may have been why he did as she asked and fetched her medication.

Not because he was a nice guy or felt compassion, but because he felt powerless.

 

[Shaderon]

Not because he was a nice guy or felt compassion, but because he felt powerless.

Good point, a transfer of power often puts an attacker at a disadvantage and that one he couldn't get back unless her "let her die". It was possibly a combination of the powerlessness and not wanting to be a murderer.