A letter from the PBSO... Geared for women, but applicable to everyone! 

I learned from my children's karate classes that the elbow is the strongest point on  your body. If you are close enough to use it, do!

If you are ever thrown into the trunk of a car, kick out the back tail lights and stick  your arm out the hole and start waving like crazy. The driver won't see you but  everybody else will. This has saved lives.

Last night I attended a personal safety workshop, and it jolted me. It was given by an amazing man, Pat Malone, who has been a body guard for famous figures like Farrah Fawcett and Sylvester Stallone. He works for the FBI and teaches police officers and Navy SEALS hand-to-hand combat.

This man has seen it all, and knows a lot. He focused his teachings to us on HOW TO AVOID BEING THE VICTIM OF A VIOLENT CRIME. He gave us some statistics about how much the occurrences of random violence have escalated over the recent years, and it's terrible. Something like 99% of us will be exposed to, or become a victim of a violent crime.

Here are some of the most important points that I got out of his presentation:

1. The three reasons women are easy targets for random acts of violence are:
   1. Lack of Awareness You MUST know where you are & what's going on around you.
   2. Body Language Keep your head up, swing your arms, stand straight up.
   3. (c.) Wrong Place, Wrong Time DON'T walk alone in an alley, or drive in bad neighborhood at night.
2. Women have a tendency to get into their cars after shopping, eating, working, etc., and just sit (doing their checkbook, or making a list,etc). DON'T DO THIS! The predator will be watching you, and this is the perfect opportunity for him to get in the passenger side, put a gun to your head, and tell you where to go. AS SOON AS YOU GET INTO YOUR CAR, LOCK THE DOORS AND LEAVE.
   1. A few notes about getting into your car in a parking lot, or parking garage: Be aware: look around you, look into your car, at the passenger side floor, and in the back seat.
   2. If you are parked next to a big van, enter your car from the passenger door. Most serial killers attack their victims by pulling them into their vans while the women are attempting to get into their cars.
   3. Look at the car parked on the driver's side of your vehicle, and the passenger side. If a male is sitting alone in the seat nearest your car, you may want to walk back into the mall, or work, and get a guard/policeman to walk you back out.

   IT IS ALWAYS BETTER TO BE SAFE THAN SORRY. (And better paranoid than dead.)

3. ALWAYS take the elevator instead of the stairs. (Stairwells are horrible places to be alone and the perfect crime spot).
4. If the predator has a gun and you are not under his control, ALWAYS RUN!
   1. The predator will only hit you (a running target) 4 in 100 times. And even then, it most likely WILL NOT be a vital organ. RUN!
   2. Running in a zig-zag pattern will make it even harder for him to hit you
5. As women, we are always trying to be sympathetic: STOP IT! It may get you raped, or killed.
   1. Ted Bundy, the serial killer, was a good looking, well educated man, who ALWAYS played on the sympathies of unsuspecting women. He walked with a cane, or a limp, and often asked "for help" into his vehicle or with his vehicle, which is when he abducted his next victim.
   2. Pat Malone told us the story of his daughter, who came out of the mall and was walking to her car when she noticed 2 older ladies in front of her. Then she saw a police car come towards her with cops who said hello. She also noticed that all 8 handicap spots in the area were empty. As she neared her car she saw a man a few rows over calling to her for help. He wanted her to close his passenger side door. He was sitting in the back on the driver's side, and said he was handicapped. He continued calling, until she turned and headed back to the mall, and then he began cursing at her. In the meantime, she wondered why he didn't ask the 2 older ladies, or the policeman for help, and why he was not parked in any of the empty handicap spots. As she got back to the mall, two male friends of hers were exiting, and as she told them the story, and turned to point at the car, the man was getting out of the back seat into the front and the car sped away.
      
      DON'T GET CAUGHT IN THIS TRAP.

I'd like you to forward this to all the women you know. It may save a life. A candle is not dimmed by lighting another candle.

I was going to send this to the ladies only; but guys, if you love your mothers, wives, sisters, daughters, etc., you may want to pass it on to them, as well. Send this to any woman you know that may need to be reminded that the world we live in has a lot of crazies in it. . . .better safe than sorry.

PLEASE BE SAFE AND NOT SORRY! JUST WARNING TO ALWAYS BE ALERT AND USE YOUR HEAD! ! !

Pass this along to every woman you have access to. Never let your guard down.