Legal question fighting/self defence?

Question

In the state of virginia how many times do you have to get hit to declare self defence and fight back legally? A friend of mine told me you have to get hit 5 times and then you can fight back? Im getting in a fight with some guy and i cant afford to get locked up right now i need to kno how many times i have to let him hit me before i can call it self defence and not worry about legal precautions

I was just worried because im alot bigger than this fella and it wouldnt look good in court. But i do not want to fight ive been avoiding it for about a week now i even told him over the phone i dont want any trouble with him and he starts bragging saying im soft and how he could pick me apart and all that i think he just wants respect.. but thank you for your answers im just going to move on if he does deside to come at me ill just try to choke him out or something

Answer 1

You can not claim self defense if the fight is pre-arranged by both parties. Even if he hits you 30 straight times. One of the main pillars of a self defense case (in a very simplified explanation) is whether or not you had a chance to leave, or did you stay and prolong the fight. Since you know there is going to be a fight, you plan on fighting and you show up anyway, the argument is already moot.

Answer 2

There is no such rule anywhere that you have to let somebody hit you a certain number of times before being able to defend yourself. That's just absurd. However, it's pretty obvious that you're just looking for trouble and that you don't understand the fundamental difference between "fighting" and "self-defense". They are absolutely not the same thing, and if you try to start anything with that guy you're probably going to get locked up. Self-defense is when you're out minding your own damn business, and somebody comes up to you and attacks you and physically won't let you get away. At that point, you can use the minimum level of force necessary to stop his attack so you can escape to safety. If you do any more damage to him than necessary, or keep going after him once he's stopped attacking you, then YOU become the aggressor and can go to jail.

But if you engage in a confrontation with another guy and neither of you have the brains to walk away, and you two keep wagging your ***** in each other's faces until somebody throws a punch, then that's fighting. That's not considered self-defense because you're both engaging in mutually agreed-upon combat. That's illegal and you both would be guilty of assault and battery. I strongly suggest you check out the link below. It's a website written by an experienced bouncer/streetfighter and he explains everything you could want to know about self-protection, fighting, and the law in excellent layman's terms.

Don't let him taunt you into a fight. If he was the big awesome badass that he thinks he is, he wouldn't be running his mouth like that. He would've jumped you already and wouldn't have let you walk away. Let him come after you if he really wants to prove something, you don't need to help him out. But if he keeps threatening you and won't leave you alone, then call the cops on him. Making threats and intimidating remarks to somebody are also illegal, especially if he's doing it over the phone.

Answer 3

I really cannot see why it would matter to you on how many times your opponent can hit you before you invoke "Self Defence" as an excuse to fight back??? Why are you even having this fight in the first place? What do you think it is going to resolve? Also I do believe that if he strikes you first,and you should choose to fight back...you are not necessarily absolved of any wrongdoing-especially since you are anticipating this fight in advance! He would be charged and found guilty of Assault or Assault and Batterie,but you'll be charged as well with Aggrevated Assault! The only possible argument that you'll have for Self Defence is if the fight was started for no apparent reason...unprovoked or pre-planned. And or your attacker is using a weapon against you. And that is generally the rule in most Jurisdictions in North America,I cannot imagine that the State of Virginia would take any different a stance!

Answer 4

The courts aren't stupid. If you meet someone for a fight, and someone gets charged with something, and you end up in court, and the judge or the prosecuting attorney asks why you both were there, and he knows you both were willing to get into a fistfight, it won't matter how many times he hit you. In the court's eyes, you KNEW that if you met him there may be a physical altercation, but you went there anyway. The only way you wouldn't get into trouble is if you knew he wanted to fight you, and you did whatever you could to prevent it, like avoid him. And despite this, he came up to you and hit you when you didn't expect it, you may not get into trouble if you beat him up. If you go beyond beating him up and beat him up bad, more than what was needed to stop his attack, you may be in trouble.
Also consider, even if he does start it, depending on the circumstances, if he ends up with medical bills you may be liable for that.

Sounds to me like your friend doesn't know much about the law. If a 95 lb guy hits a 250 lb bodybuilder type guy 5 times, do you think the courts are going to let the bodybuilder off if he knocked out several of the 95lb guy's teeth and broke his jaw in one punch? The bodybuilder would obviously mangle the 95 lb weakling, and the bodybuilder needs to take this into consideration when deciding how to defend himself against the little guy because the courts will look at the circumstances such as this. The bodybuilder would get into trouble for using excessive force in dealing with the small guy, when he could have just as easily pushed the small guy down and held him there and the fight would have ended.

Answer 5

It doesn't really matter how many times you have been hit, it is the intent of your physical response. If you hit back solely to defend yourself, that is self defense. If you hit back with the intention of harming the other party, that is assault. Usually if you do not throw the first punch and only use reasonable force to remove yourself from the situation, you have a good argument for self defense. If you beat the other party when they are defenseless, it doesn't matter how many times you were hit prior to engaging in the physical confrontation.

Basically, there is no hard, clear line from a legal standpoint. As long as you do everything to avoid the fight and only use reasonable force to get yourself out of it, you should be fine.

Answer 6

Tons. Some of these may be difficult to understand – I've trained a lot with improvised weapons. I have a metal Surefire flashlight that I keep in my car (super bright flashlight with a rear button). Quick flash, even in daylight, will contract the pupils. It's been enough to send people stumbling away from the car. Added benefit, by holding it against my leg (I normally wear jeans in off hours) and pushing the button, the light is invisible, but the lens heats up. Then, pushing it against skin makes a nice force-amplifier. Also works nicely as eda-koppo. If you know how to use a short stick, a rolled up magazine (like the Weekly papers in major cities) makes a great improvised weapon. Plus, if they disarm you, it's unlikely to again be a threat to you. A belt makes a great improvised kusari-fundo/manriki-gusari. I don't usually advise OC spray. Dirt, grass, sand... These are easily available and can buy you time to escape. Something that you can think of and use is better than something anyone can use. A jacket can make a great improvised weapon for binding, or can be used similar to a stick. Pens make great eda-koppo (a short stick for applying force to weak and pressure points). Now... Something to keep in mind: Depending on the wording of the law in your state, anything that you use to defend yourself against an unarmed assailant may result in your arrest for felony assault/battery. Self-defense is an affirmative defense ("Yes, I did it, but it was warranted because..."). Edit: Reading some of these answers, I want to make a point that I feel is merited: Do not use your keys in self-defense unless it's to start your car or get through a door! If you get disarmed or your keys get lodged in your attacker, you're giving away a method of escape. If you want a yawara/eda-koppo, do not attach it to your key chain! One other point, you already possess the most powerful weapon you can ever own: your brain. Train it (logic and non-linear problem solving are a must, as is awareness and understanding fear) and it'll serve you far better than any hand-held device.

Answer 7

this has to be one of the funniest questions i ever read. if someone even attempted to hit me once i would drop them and make sure they could'nt get up to try it again no matter what the law in any state says.

Answer 8

go get some boxing gloves.
and beat the shiit out of each other.
u wont get in trouble.
u can just say u were practicing ur boxing or somehting