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Reality of the Blade - ‘No Bull' Answers to 13 Questions Black Belt Readers have Asked About Knife Attacks

Iggy had just turned down a dimly lit alley behind a waterfront bar, where he had parked his Harley earlier in the day. Before he reached his bike, he heard a commotion to his rear. As he turned, he saw three large men silhouetted in the glow of a streetlight, dragging a smaller man in to the alley.

The large men were to Iggy's right, half-facing him as they held the smaller man with their left hands and beat him with their right fists. All three attackers used the same tactic. They appeared to be under the influence of cocaine or amphetamines. One man held the victim's right shoulder, one his collar and the other his left shoulder while they punched him in the head, face and body.

Iggy knew the small man - and knew him to be very drunk - but he did not get involved for one very good reason: As the defender was being pummeled and driven farther into the alley, he reached into a pocket and pulled out a balisong (butterfly knife). Iggy could see the blade shine under the streetlight. "But they didn't see the blade," he reported. "They must've thought they were getting punched."

The defender drove the blade into the left side of the right-most man at least five times. After every two thrusts into the knife-side man, he stabbed the center man once in the gut. The stabs seemed to sink in beneath the ribs with a smacking thud - the sound of the knifer's fist hitting flesh. Iggy was adamant that the knifer achieved full - about four inches - penetration with most of his thrusts.

The attackers seemed oblivious to the blade and successfully completed their assault, driving the defender to the wall and stuffing him headfirst into an empty trash can.

When they backed up so that the smaller man was no longer in their shadow, they could see what Iggy had seen. "When he crawled out of the trash can and stood up, you could see [the knife] under the streetlight," Iggy said. "They did a body check and bolted. He kind of wobbled down the alley."

This encounter certainly was not a typical knife fight. Usually it's one knife-armed aggressor vs. one unarmed defender. But Iggy's story does illuminate two common aspects of blade use:

Understanding Violence

Since June 1996, I have interviewed hundreds of survivors of violent attacks. They are a diverse lot: from Iggy, who tends to wind up in the wrong place at the wrong time, to Betty, a secretary who witnessed a fight between two huge young women on the sidewalk beneath her office window.

Interview notes were transferred to a graph-paper index and used to answer eight to 42 questions, depending on the complexity and intensity of the encounter.

As of January 2000, I had recorded 1,600 incidents and done a statistical breakdown of the first 1,000. The edged-weapon stats presented in this article are derived from 256 such encounters involving 512 parties and constituting 275 uses.

For the purpose of this study, I have ranked edged weapons from most to least common:

The complete study encompasses 50 photos, 100 stories and 737 statistics. Compressing this information into an article would either distort the picture or put the reader to sleep. So instead of abridging the study here, I will answer the blade-fighting questions posed by eight Black Belt readers in hopes that they might address the concerns of thousands more.

Question 1: What type of knife is most often used by an attacker?

Forty-eight percent of knifers use a version of the common folder - a pocket or case knife with a 3- to 5-inch blade that is stabilized by a locking mechanism. The folder is the blade most likely to be used by a member of a group. The second-most common attack knife is the butcher knife; it is used 20 percent of the time.

Question 2: How can you tell is a knife-armed attacker knows how to use a blade effectively?

The knife is not a distance weapon, like a gun. It is also not a goos confrontational mid-range weapon, like a club. The knife is most effective when employed in a stealthy manner from within punching range. Shanks are typically used while grappling, often on the floor. Straight razors are most often used in a standing clinch.

The competent knifer does not show his weapon unless he is defending himself. Attempts to conceal the dominant hand indicate possession of a weapon. Attempts to close with a concealed hand indicate deployment of an edged weapon. Attempts to corner the victim indicate aggression and awareness. Lack of hesitation is the hallmark of the effective knifer. The more stealthy and aggressive the behavior he demonstrates, the more effective he is likely to be.

Question 3: Is a blade held to the throat - like you see in movies - really a common tactic?

It is a more common use of the blade than you might think. Nine percent of folding knives, 11 percent of utility knives and 9 percent of straight razors that are deployed are used to threaten with a touch. This tactic is known as "warning".

Question 4: What financial class is the average knife attacker in?

The socioeconomic background of those who attack with edged weapons is tied to the weapons they use. The most common knifer is the working-class man wielding a folder or razor tool. The second-most common assailant is the poor man or woman using a butcher knife, razor or table knife. The toughest demographic is the experienced felon using a prison-made shank or screwdriver. Sword-type weapons are mostly used for home defense. Pencils, switchblades and butterfly knives are favored by adolescent males. "Rambo knives" and other combat blades are generally used by middle-class and working-class men a short distance from their house or automobile.

Question 5: Where and when do these attacks occur?

Two-thirds of shank attacks happen indoors - mostly in prisons, jails, and schools - during the day. The rest happen in urban settings at night.

Two-thirds of knife attacks happen at night. Forty percent of those happen indoors, mostly in homes and bars. Fifty-six percent occur on urban sidewalks, lots, streets and alleys - in that order.

Razors are used predominately outside and at night, with about 40 percent being used indoors (often in the workplace) during the day.

Question 6: What are a person's survival expectations if he is grabbed by a knifer?

Against a razor, 90 percent. (But you will be cut.)

Against a knife, 50 percent. (You will be cut and/or stabbed.)

Against a shank, 30 percent. (You will be stabbed repeatedly.)

Question 7: What does the most damage to the body: stabbing or cutting?

I must preface the answer by establishing the fact that there are two methods of cutting with a handheld blade: slicing (pressure-cutting) and slashing (impact-cutting).

The various methods of injuring with a blade or shank are listed below from least to most harmful:

Question 8: How often do people really attack with a knife, and how often do they succeed?

This is the heart of the study. I will limit the scope of the answer to the specific type of blade the reader was referring to: the folding knife.

Sixty-eight percent of those who deployed a folder before or during a violent act adopted an aggressive posture - with the knife hand retracted (in a ready position) or held like an ice pick (in an overhand position).

Eighty-eight percent of those aggressive pocket-knifers attempted to injure the other person.

Question 9: Can anyone carry a knife and feel secure that he can protect himself?

First, before carrying a blade for self-protection, you must check state and municipal laws and consult with a police officer about enforcement.

The blade is an offensive weapon. Those defending themselves with it are less than half as likely to succeed than blade-armed aggressors. Furthermore, aggressive defenders fared far better than those who held back. The technical aspects of blade use are less complicated - and less important - than your emotional capacity to cut or stab another human being.

To prevail against a serious antagonist, you must be capable of slashing for effect while maintaining a cool demeanor and staying out of grappling range. To prevail against an armed, crazed, intoxicated and/or group antagonist, you must be capable of applying lethal pressure cuts while grappling and stabbing repeatedly while face-to-face. Showing the blade is a viable defense, but against certain aggressors it can be disastrous unless you make good on the visual threat.

Question 10: What kind of knife is best to carry for self-protection?

For pure effect and utility, you want the longest, heaviest, sharpest folding blade that can be practically carried on a day-to-day basis and is simple and quick to deploy. Obviously, the most desirable blades will put you at odds with the law.

Two desirable features are a thumb post and a serrated blade (not saw teeth on the back of the blade). The former facilitates opening, and the latter increases the chance that your antagonist will know he has been cut.

Keep in mind that carrying a blade in a visible sheath or belt case will give the aggressor the option of approaching you from the knife side and preventing you from drawing, or the option of coming from behind and drawing the blade himself. A visible-carry arrangement also allows him to identify you as right-handed or left-handed and adopt appropriate tactics such as grabbing you from the weak side and jamming your knife-hand shoulder into a wall to prevent you from drawing.

Question 11: How often is a blade drawn during the course of a grappling attack?

Thirty-six percent of blade encounters involve grappling, compared with 38 percent of all violence. The blade is the weapon most likely to be used. Twenty-five percent of blade-grappling situations are defensive draws from the clinch or by a mounted floor-fighter. Most such draws from a belt case or sheath are unsuccessful. Most draws from a pocket result in a successful - though not necessarily decisive - use of the blade.

Question 12: What are the most effective unarmed defenses against a blade?

The 23 successful unarmed defenses in the study rank as follows from least to most successful:

(Note: The most successful defenses against a blade attack involved an implement, with a handheld coat or jacket ranking first.)

Question 13: If you attack and injure a person who has drawn a blade, is it safe to walk away, or will he stab you in the back as soon as he gets a chance?

If he is showing the blade from the outset, you can almost certainly walk away. You should do so obliquely, keeping him in sight as long as possible.

If he has cocked or concealed his knife hand, or has attempted a stab, he will most likely persist.

If he is advancing with a ice-pick grip, he will almost certainly pursue you and may strike successfully even while you are running away.

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