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Publication Date: Friday, April 02, 2004 Defense sense
Defense sense
(April 02, 2004) Protecting against rape: Learn to prevent, resist, escape and survive violence
by Teresa C. Brown
No one saw it happen. It was broad daylight and on a crowded beach. A young woman was enjoying the day, when a clean-cut young man with his arm in a sling asked her for help with his boat. She agreed - and became the second woman to disappear from that beach that day; both women were victims of serial murderer and rapist Ted Bundy.
It is a myth that rapes only occur at night, said Carolyn Staehle, a women's self-defense instructor at Tri-Valley Haven. Rapes can occur both during the day and at night, she said.
A petite woman with a confident voice, Staehle, along with her co-worker Melissa Sale, teaches a self-defense class for women every three to four months.
During a recent class, she opened by telling her female students she was not there to teach them to fight. This class is about raising awareness of self and your environment, she said, adding that she would teach them assertive skills and some basic self-defense. The women ranged from a teenager to a senior citizen, and Staehle explained that the defense moves were easy to remember, direct in focus and could be done by anyone.
Before beginning the physical moves, she separated fact from fiction. There are some common myths about sexual assault, Staehle said. One fact she made clear is that rape is not based on the attractiveness of the victim to the perpetrator.
"The rapist is looking for someone to take advantage of," she said. "That's why 6-month-old babies are assaulted and 90-year-old women. It's more about the opportunity to commit the crime."
And men can be raped, too. "Rape is a power crime," she said.
Another myth is that if a woman does not fight back, it is not rape. "If a woman doesn't fight back, it's still rape," Staehle said, adding that "no" means "no." Even if the woman and the man have had a sexual relationship before, it can still be rape.
Rape does not always result in pregnancy. Many rapists will use a condom or will not achieve sexual gratification, she said.
Less than half of all rapes are reported to the police. The actual number that occurs each year can only be estimated.
Using data collected during a nine-year period, the U.S. Department of Justice reported that nationwide from 1992-2000 the annual average was an estimated 402,900 rapes, attempted rapes and sexual assaults. The department estimated that up to 63 percent of rapes are not reported to police, and 74 percent of rapes and sexual assaults combined are not reported.
The assaults are not reported for a variety of reasons such as embarrassment or fear of retaliation, Staehle said.
Believing it is "a personal matter" was the most common reason victims said they did not report an attack, the Justice Department concluded, with just over 23 percent of rape victims using that reasoning. In addition to fear of retaliation, assaults were not reported because victims sought to protect the attacker.
The Justice Department noted that the closer the relationship between the victim and the attacker, the less likely police would be notified. They estimated that 77 percent of rapes are not reported when the attacker is a boyfriend, or a current or former husband.
The department reported that in 2002, moreover, 69.2 percent of female rape and sexual assault victims were brutalized by someone they knew, whether it was an intimate partner, relative, friend or acquaintance, compared to 28.2 percent stranger assaults.
Watch out
The basics of self-defense stress options, choices and risks when preventing or dealing with a violent situation, Staehle said. Its goals are "to prevent, avoid, resist, escape and survive violence."
As a form of self-defense, some women have started to carry pepper spray. Without encouraging or discouraging carrying the spray, Staehle said that if a woman carries it, she should be aware of its limitations. Some perpetrators may not react to it, and it can be taken away and used against the victim.
She recalled the story of a friend who left home for college. Before she left, her mother gave her a can of pepper spray for safety. The young woman diligently carried the can with her, finger poised on the button, whenever she went out.
One night, she found herself alone in a dark, deserted parking lot, carrying her backpack and purse. Armed with the spray, she crossed the parking lot to her car, but as she swung her backpack into the vehicle, the strap caught on the can's spray button, releasing a blast of the paralyzing spray into her car and back into her face.
Not only had the young woman disabled herself, she could not sit safely inside her car to wait for the pepper spray's effects to diminish. That was the last time she carried the can.
One of the best defenses is to be aware of the environment. It is common for an attacker to "test" the victim, Staehle said. Testing may be the selection of a dark or secluded place to attack or it may be more confrontational, such as stepping into someone's personal space.
In some cultures, personal space is smaller. Also some crowded places, such as buses during commuting hours, force people into each other's space, and those are legitimate reasons, Staehle explained.
However, if there is not a good reason for it and if someone steps into another's personal space, it is not an accident, she said. Instead, it should be a red flag.
Backing up to regain invaded space without saying or doing anything is a passive response, she said, which may be the reaction an attacker is looking for in a victim. Instead, she advised to respond with confidence, such as telling that person to step back.
Staehle recalled a story of a woman who was traveling on a nearly empty train. She said a man sat very close to her and began staring at her. Recognizing the situation, the woman took out a pen and paper and very deliberately began writing down a physical description of the man. Once he realized what she was doing, he left.
Another passive behavior predators look for is found in a person's demeanor. If a woman walks timidly or fearfully or is preoccupied, she can be a target.
"Part of awareness is how you carry yourself," Staehle said. She advised the women to walk with confidence and not be afraid to make eye contact. "Meeting eyes says, 'I see you; I can describe you; I am aware,'" she said.
Trust your intuition, she added. She told her students if they are about to step in an elevator but someone is already inside that makes them uneasy, do not be afraid to take the next elevator. She stressed that the worst thing that could happen is they would hurt a stranger's feelings.
When 'no' isn't enough
If a woman finds herself in a violent situation, Staehle said she should try to remember that fighting is an option, not an obligation - but if the victim decides to fight, she must commit to it. "There are no rules and there are no guarantees."
"Remember to breathe," she said. "If you can breathe, you can yell and you can think."
The class practiced a round of assertive speaking. In turn, each woman firmly told the person next to her: "Take your hand off my knee - now." It is a forceful statement. "Name the behavior, what you want done and when," Staehle said.
For self-defense, the foundation to other moves is a balanced stance with feet apart, one foot set in front of the body, the other behind. Staehle demonstrated the stability of the position, which resembled someone in mid-stride.
Trying to simulate a variety of attacks, Staehle showed the class the proper defensive techniques, whether the aggressor attacked from the front or behind. If an attacker comes from behind and tries to use his arm to choke the victim, Staehle advised the women to protect their throat.
The victim should try bringing her chin down and wedging it into the bend at the elbow. Done properly, the technique will prevent the victim from losing consciousness because of lack of oxygen, she explained.
When striking back, target the vulnerable areas, Staehle said. Regardless of how strong or how physically fit the attacker is, these areas will always be vulnerable: They are the eyes, nose, throat, groin, knees and the top of the feet.
It only takes 40 pounds of pressure to dislocate a knee, Staehle said, adding that an 80-pound child can usually kick hard enough to apply that amount of pressure.
Whatever happens, she stressed, if a victim survives, she did the right thing, no matter what she did. The best way to escape a rapist is doing whatever can be done to get away, she said. "It could be talking, or fighting or doing nothing. It's all about options," she said, adding, "It's the ability to think and act quickly."
For information about Tri-Valley Haven self-defense classes, call 449-5845.
Preventing acquaintance rape
¥ Trust your instincts when you are fearful, and act upon them.
¥ Use assertive verbal confrontations if you need to, such as "I feel uncomfortable when you don't listen to me" or "when you touch me like that."
¥ Mean what you say and say what you mean.
¥ Do not allow others to violate your personal space.
¥ Passivity, coyness and submissiveness are dangerous and can create a climate in which sexual aggression may occur.
¥ Control your environment to the best of your ability.
-Courtesy of Tri-Valley Haven
SART helps victims
The Sexual Assault Response Team opened it doors at ValleyCare Medical Center in November 2000. SART is a specialized program for sexual assault victims, said Nancy Zahradnik, ValleyCare's nurse manager of emergency services. The team collects evidence and performs forensic examinations.
"Most (emergency rooms) don't have people who are formally trained to collect forensic evidence," said Zahradnik, adding that in the past the emergency room doctor or nurse collected evidence.
Using a room dedicated solely for these examinations, SART nurses attend to the victim. The on-call nurses are specially trained in evidence collection that will be valid in court, she said. The nurses safeguard it until it is handed over to the police department.
If the victim requires medical treatment for injuries, the emergency doctors and nurses are available for first aid, Zahradnik said.
In addition to the police bringing victims to the hospital, some patients have walked into the emergency room, she said.
SART was called into action for just under 40 cases in 2003, an average of three times a month, Zahradnik said. Because the program is the only service of its kind in the Tri-Valley, most of the victims come from this area, she noted.
-Teresa C. Brown
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