Totally Tae Kwon Do Magazine - Issue 20 - Usadojo

are non-hostile to those who are extremely
violent. Use of Force training is required
annually and entails both a written and
practical exercises.
Each color of the Use of Force model
represents the following:
Blue – The officer is engaged in duties
with an occupationally produced perception
of responsibilities and risks. The broad
foundation of the UFM is represented by
the baseline of the color-keyed
assessment spectrum.
Green – The officer perceives a level of
noncompliance within the confrontational
environment, evolving into the deployment
of tactics.
Yellow – The officer perceives the
situation escalating and the level of
noncompliance has increased. This color
indicates an activated level of alertness
and caution.
Orange – The perception of danger has
accelerated for the officer and there is a
more directed focus on officer safety and
defense.
Red – The potentially lethal degree of risk
is the most infrequent, and yet the most
critical for officer safety and survival. The
highest level on the UFM correlates to the
most intense color in the threat
assessment spectrum, red.
Now, you might wonder how this applies to
the non-law enforcement/military member.
Well, if you feel your life or the life of
another is in danger ask yourself if the
individual who is threatening to do bodily
harm has the following:
Ability-Capability: Addresses subject’s
ability to carry out a threatened action.
Opportunity: Indicates the action or
threat the officer or sentry is imminent but
not necessarily instantaneous.
Intent: The mental state initiating an overt
at (words or deeds) in the furtherance of a
threat, action, or crime.
If all three of these are “Yes” then you have
the right to defend yourself or that of
another person. However, if one of these
does not exist then I would not recommend
utilizing deadly force. Always use the
minimum force necessary to get away or
help another individual in danger. By
definition Deadly force is that force a
reasonable person could expect to cause
serious bodily harm or even death.
We are trained that there are 8 reasons
when law enforcement/military personnel
can utilize deadly force. I am going to talk
about only three of them because they
definitely pertain to when someone could
use their martial arts to save their own life
or the life of another.
Inherent Right of Self-Defense: Applies
when an individual reasonably believes he/
she is in imminent danger of death or
serious bodily harm. Deadly force is
authorized when individuals reasonably
believe that a person poses an imminent
threat of death or serious bodily harm.
Defense of Others: When an individual
reasonably believes others are in imminent
danger of death or serious bodily harm.
Serious Offenses Against Persons: To
prevent the commission of a serious
offense that involves imminent threat of
death or serious bodily harm (for example,
setting fire to an inhabited dwelling or
encountering a sniper), including the
defense of other persons, where deadly
force is directed against the person
threatening to commit the offense.
When it comes so to using force every
individual either civilian, military or law
enforcement is ultimately responsible for
their actions and must be able to legally
justify their actions. If you utilize excessive
force YOU can be prosecuted.
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