ಠ_ರೃ
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Minnesota
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Well, I'm not exactly sure if I was punched or simply clotheslined, it was so sudden and unexpected. Here's what happened.
I was leaving work around 2:30 PM today and just walking along when someone randomly put his arm out and hit me in the face. He didn't threaten me, he didn't make any demands, and he didn't even respond at first when I yelled at him. It was so sudden I was kind of wondering whether it actually hurt or not, but by the time I came to my senses I realized that no, it didn't really hurt. So at least he didn't do much damage. My nose was bleeding slightly but it was nothing big. I actually managed to get the guy arrested. A bystander started following him and trying to figure out what was going on, and I followed about 40 feet behind the two of them as I talked to the police. The guy just kept on walking as though nothing had happened. A few minutes later a couple of police cars showed up and they cuffed him and put him in the back of the car. The police officer told me it was a citizen's arrest (huh?) and that I had to tell him that I was placing him under arrest for assault. Okay, whatever. I did so and they left. It was an interesting experience, that's for sure. I might actually go so far as to say I enjoyed it. I was glad to see this asshole get handcuffed and thrown in the back of the car. It made me feel powerful that I alone could have such a profound impact on the sequence of events—when this first happened, I didn't want to start a fight and I was almost ready to just keep walking. And if nothing else, it was something to make my day more exciting, and it's provided me with a good story for the coming few days. My nose is already pretty much back to normal with only a little bit of crusty dried blood on the inside (no worse than it was before, with crusty dried snot from the cold, dry air). In fact, I probably helped this guy. There's a good chance he was homeless and a very good chance he was mentally ill, so getting him arrested will at least get him a few days to warm up and get fed. It was REALLY cold out today. |
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M AH - ch ain saw
Join Date: May 2004
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Yeah, sounds like a person who needed help. But I don't know if getting him wrapped up into the system actually will.
Either way, glad you're okay, weird ass thing to happen, and I agree 100% with what you did to take care of the situation. I'm glad to see someone stand up for themselves and do something, I see wayyyy to many people getting walked all over around town. User formally known as Sh0eWax |
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Member
Join Date: Oct 2005
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I would have run after him and beat the liv'in snot out of him. I would have given him an early christmas gift, my free boot in his ass!! Then I would have called the cops and had him thrown in jail.
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Member
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Fairfax, VA
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Somebody who would do that just can't be allowed to be out on the street. What if the next person he does that to is a hemophiliac and by chance he hits the person in a sensitive spot?
So I for one am very glad you handled it the way you did. You definitely should press the charges because it needs to go on record that he did that. He could be a danger to others and the only way something will eventually be done is if there is a record of his activities. And it just can't be "arrested." It has to be "convicted." Mere arrests do not hold much water in the criminal justice system. |
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Member
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Fairfax, VA
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Since in this scenario, he committed a misdemeanor in your presence, you could have run after him and said you were making a citizens arrest and tried to hold him or block him. Then if he resisted you could use reasonable force to hold him for the police or bring him to the police. |
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Apple Historian
Join Date: May 2004
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Sounds noble Kit, however (warning), knowing all of that I still would unleash holy hell on someone if they closelined me or punched me (on purpose) for no reason.
How absurd is it that someone would just do that? I mean, that's the kind of thing you might think about as a joke sometime. "How funny would it be to see Lawrence Taylor take out that old lady with the groceries?" If I were on the receiving end of that (unless it were Lawrence Taylor) then there's no doubt that I'd be pissed and then go about as wild as I could. It's hard to believe that that could actually happen to someone... I think, in life, there are times when it is perfectly acceptable to lose all control and retaliate with as much force as humanly possible. In my book, this would be one of those situations. I would confront the person and if they tried to fight me or were in any way mean to me, I would level them. If they could explain to me what had just happened and why, there's a chance I would just move on after a verbally assaulting barrage of "f you, what were you thinking?" etc... Damn that would piss me off! Luca, that's a lot of restraint that you showed! I'm impressed. Like I said, if someone did that to me, well, I might be the one in jail. You're probably better off having handled it the way you did, but I guess that came down to your personality and use of logic in a situation where I would throw logic 'out the window' and proceed to be as bad as the guy who did the initial random and completely insane act. lol So my fellow AppleNovians, the moral of the story is: don't punch Messiahtosh if you ever see him in real life. The other moral is: when you're homeless and it's cold outside, get arrested for punching someone. |
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M AH - ch ain saw
Join Date: May 2004
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Don't get me wrong though, personal safety is #1 on the list, so I don't disagree there, just with how much force you proposed to use. Also I imagine its just an exaggeration. I've got a soft spot for homeless people usually, as long as they don't feed me obvious fabrications. Two weeks ago one started crying to me and a group of friends, I figured even if he was faking he deserved the buck I gave him for his acting. User formally known as Sh0eWax |
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Apple Historian
Join Date: May 2004
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Veteran Member
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: State of Flux
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What do I get if I punch you 'by accident'?
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Member
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Fairfax, VA
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"I think, in life, there are times when it is perfectly acceptable to lose all control and retaliate with as much force as humanly possible."
I agree. Just not when the person is walking away and has his back to you! |
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Apple Historian
Join Date: May 2004
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Hates the Infotainment
Join Date: May 2004
Location: NSA Archives
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You forgot to kick him in the nuts when he turned and started to walk away. That'll stop 'em every time.
Truthfully it sounds like he wanted to get arrested and did the minimum thing required to get cuffed, short of peeing on the sidewalk / people's shoes. You never know, he might've been contemplating something much worse (not against you, just in general) and this was a last ditch way of stopping himself from doing it. People are strange.... ...into the light of a dark black night. Last edited by Moogs : 2005-12-20 at 09:20. |
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Mr. Vieira
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Tennessee
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Yeah. Whether mentally unstable or simply an antisocial troublemaker and "Cops" featured player, it's best he's off the street.
If that happened to me, I think I'd be so shocked (before the unshackled rage and vengeful nastiness set in and took over, of course ). Very strange. Glad you're okay...imagine if he'd had a knife or something? There was another story here at 'Nova - someone waiting on a bus, seems like it was DMB or Wrao - and they were messed with by someone, out of the blue, for no reason. Scary, unsettling stuff. All kinds of people walking around out there: not quite "there" mentally, or hopped-up on God knows what substances or just a plain and simple trouble-seeking S.O.B. with nothing better to do with his time. He might've just wanted out of the cold, as sad as that is. |
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Hoonigan
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Canada
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What, no axe kicks or hurricane elbows?
You're too nice. |
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There's also a good chance that he wanted you to mess with him, so that he could sue when he got "hurt." That's why you should never mess with people unless you have a good reason. Is it worth $100,000?
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Hoonigan
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Canada
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Uh, excuse me? I think someone hitting you in the face justifies a return shot to the face.
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Join Date: Jun 2004
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Hoonigan
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Canada
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I guess it's the timing. If someone hits you, and it takes you a couple of minutes to think about it because you're so surprised or shocked, and the guy walks away from you, it would be a bit much to chase him and pound him senseless.
I'm sure if he hits you, and you hit him back immediately, you'd be fine. I mean it's justified, and I guess he still could sue you... but what are you going to do, go around not standing up for yourself because you might be sued? Screw that. I'd punch this guy back without even thinking. BTW, I'm not saying that you should have "stood up for yourself" Luca, I can easily see something like that taking you so by surprise that it took you a little bit to process what the hell was happening. I pretty much walk around checking everyone out and thinking they're a potential attacker. I can't help it after my little mugging episode. *shrug* |
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Join Date: Nov 2005
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My older brother was visiting Tijuana in Mexico last summer, and he was cornered by two thugs. He lost 10 bucks, and they wanted more, but when he resisted they said "fuck it" and left.
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can't read sarcasm.
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Toronto, Canada
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What's this world coming to when you can't even walk down the street peacefully minding your own business!
I wonder if most here would have reacted the way you did, Luca. I probably would have went after him (if he was smaller than me ) No. Actually I probably would have been pissed off enough to fight him even if he was bigger. In the end, your calm and clear thinking was the right thing to do. You never know what these psych jobs may be packing. |
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ಠ_ರೃ
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Minnesota
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I don't carry cash on me at all, nor do I carry anything of value. All I have at any time is:
- A cell phone (the cheap-shit model that they GIVE to you for free when you sign up) - Bank card (easily canceled should it be stolen) - Various forms of ID (student ID, driver's license, AAA membership, health insurance card) - Keys to my car, which is usually parked about a mile from where I work. And it's a crappy car. So yeah, I am not too concerned about losing much if someone mugs me. I'm more concerned that they'd try to rough me up to get more out of me. |
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Veteran Member
Join Date: May 2005
Location: Paris, France
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Sorry to hear that Luca, but at least you're okay.
In August I was also a victim of random violence. Was waiting at a bus station with two friends when four chavs, probably late-twenties, came over and asked, in a fake foreign accent, where they could get a taxi. I wasn't in the mood for fooling around so I simply told them where the nearest taxi stand was and left it at that. But the biggest guy insisted on coming right up to me and repeatedly asking, "what's your problem man?" (in his stupid fake accent). I couldn't resist politely suggesting that if anyone had a problem it was him, then turned around to my friends again. Ten minutes later I woke up in an ambulance with my face and clothes covered in blood. Apparently the guy had attacked me in a frenzy and I was knocked out when I hit the ground. Needed eight stitches in my lip and forehead, including the inside of the lip (ouch!), though thankfully the surgeon did such a good job that the scars have almost disappeared. The chavs scattered in four different directions the moment I went out, and I didn't remember their faces (they're all the same, aren't they?) well enough to give a meaningful description to the police. So nobody was ever prosecuted. Annoying, but that's life. I would like to think that if I had had the opportunity to attack in return, I would have restrained myself. Reacting in kind is extremely immature and only shows that you are no more than their moral equal. |
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is the next Chiquita
Join Date: Feb 2005
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Luca, that is a weird situation. I'd think he wanted something if he punched me in face, but just to do it and walk away... I don't get it.
As to the quibbling about how to hit him back; states have different views on self-defense. In one state (New York, if my memory is correct), you are authorized to use lethal force should someone be trespassing on your property and is trying to gain entry into your house. Doesn't matter whether the offender is armed or not, or what state of mind he may be in. An eye for an eye is most common yardstick, but not hard and fast as there are indeed some states that frown greatly on returning violence. Bottom line, if you feel like using excessive force, look up the limitations in your state or be prepared to see your ass fly off into nothingness before a court. |
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Mr. Vieira
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Tennessee
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I can't even begin to express how strongly I disagree with this. But I'll leave it to others to carry it further (and probably be less restrained and kind in their comments). I'm glad you're okay, but damn... Nobody here is for violence, or goes looking for fights and trouble. But I'm not sure I'm prepared to walk through life in such a "do whatever you want to me because I'm too above-it-all to fight back" manner as you. That's dangerous, foolish and unrealistic...and you'll probably be lucky if a busted lip is the worst thing that happens to you. But hey, if it works for you... Last edited by psmith2.0 : 2005-12-20 at 13:56. |
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Hoonigan
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Canada
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Yes Dorian, insulting and then turning your back on the guy was absolutely brilliant.
I was trying to figure out how you keep yourself upright without a spine, but maybe not having testicles to weigh yourself down in front helps somewhat. Congratulations on having the fortitude to not defend yourself like a man. Funny how you couldn't just insult the guy's intelligence behind a storm of long words and general snobbery, eh? Life behind a keyboard is so much simpler. Damn chavs. |
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Mr. Vieira
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Tennessee
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Pardon my ignorance, but what is a chav?
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M AH - ch ain saw
Join Date: May 2004
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M AH - ch ain saw
Join Date: May 2004
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Veteran Member
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Minnesota
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<comic relief>Now do you have good things to say about cell phones?</comic relief> |
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