Young Teen Girl Fights Off Attacker Using Her Jiu-Jitsu Skills—Police
By Peter Aitken
A13-year-old girl in Carmel-by-the Sea, California, fended off an attempted assault thanks to her jiu-jitsu skills, with police still looking for the would-be assailant.
The girl's family asked for her identity to remain undisclosed, with the teenager hoping that her story will inspire women and other girls to learn self-defense skills that can save their lives.
The Context
Jiu-jitsu is a ground-based martial art that focuses on using leverage, technique, and position to control and submit an opponent by using techniques like joint locks, chokeholds, or compression locks.
Carmel-by-the-Sea is home to just 2,300 residents but is a popular tourist destination due to its proximity to Monterey.
California resident Katie Ring, also known by her TikTok account @the.self.defense.girl, told Newsweek last year that she created the "Ted Bundy Rule" for self-defense, meaning to use caution if a woman is alone and a man approaches her looking for help.
"This is important because dangerous people use this tactic to lure victims into compromising situations—one of the most famous being Ted Bundy," Ring told Newsweek. "He [Bundy] would pretend to be injured and ask women for help out to his car where he would attack, kidnap, and kill them. Do I believe all men who ask for help have bad intentions? No. But unfortunately, there have been enough cases that it's better to be safe than sorry."
Suspect Carmel California Attempted Assault
A police sketch released by the Carmel-by-the-Sea Police Department of the man who attempted to assault a 13-year-old in the town. Carmel-by-the-Sea Police Department
What To Know
The unnamed girl was walking home in Carmel-by-the Sea when a man tried to attack her, not knowing she had three years of jiu-jitsu lessons at the Carmel Youth Center under her belt, according to local news station WWNY.
Her sensei, Michael Blackburn, told reporters that his pupil saw the man standing between two cars, and as she walked by, he stepped out and punched her in the face.
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In true martial arts fashion, the girl responded by punching him right back, then put him in a headlock and kneed him "a couple of times," spun him around, and threw him to the ground.
"She had stepped on his foot doing all this, and when she threw him on the ground, he broke his ankle," Blackburn told local station KSBW 8.
After she disabled her assailant, the girl sprinted home, where she arrived safely.
Carmel By The Sea California
View of Ocean Avenue in Carmel-By-The-Sea, California, is seen on October 18, 2022. Getty Images, Stock Photo
What People Are Saying
Sensei Michael Blackburn said: "I told her we were proud of her, and she did exactly as she was supposed to do. You have to fight in class like you're going to protect yourself on the street."
Carmel Police Commander Todd Trayer told reporters that the department is "doing everything we can to figure out who this person is that's responsible for what happened."
He added: "The person was acting unusual, like potentially under the influence of something or dealing with some other personal issues...To have that type of self-confidence, that awareness, to be a quick decision maker and make a decision that's going to keep themselves safe."
What Happens Next?
The police have provided a sketch to the public in hopes of getting leads as to the man's identity, track him down, and bring him to justice as he still remains on the loose.
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