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The 21-Foot Rule, also known as the Tueller Phenomenon, states that a determined knifer, with knife in hand and intent on cutting an officer whose sidearm is holstered, can successfully cut his victim if he starts within 21 feet of his intended victim. The 21-Foot Rule should more usefully be thought of as a guideline than a rule. However, at the very least, it demonstrates that being anywhere near someone holding a knife while possessed of ill intentions is potentially fatal.
This is why courts determine that so many shootings of suspects armed with a knife are justifiable. Nevertheless, police shootings of armed and unarmed suspects, justifiable and unjustifiable, have been the source of considerable controversy in the news.
There are rare cases where, at extraordinary personal risk, police go hand to hand with suspects armed with a bladed weapon. This has resulted in fatalities to law enforcement, such as when a mentally disturbed French MMA fighter went on a rampage in Bali.
Mercifully, an incident on June 10, 2016, in Dongguan, Guangdong Province, China, had a safe ending for all involved. The video begins with a man marching on the streets while wielding a knife; he reportedly had previously consumed drugs.
Suddenly a female SWAT police officer reacts. She is said to be nearly six feet tall, and nicknamed “The Crane”.
What Happened
In the opening of the footage, a man in a white, short-sleeved shirt can be seen, with a large knife in his right hand. One officer at right appears to be trying to communicate with him.
Then another officer circles behind the suspecte, who is unaware of the activity behind him. Without warning, the officer seizes control of the suspect’s arm, and circles it outwards, blocking with the leg, taking the suspect to the ground, and pinning him there with the knee. The knife has flown out of the man’s grasp, and ricocheted off the ground; it is safely out of reach.
Immediately, two more police officers rush forward, and subdue the man, as the first officer steps aside to let them complete the arrest. Finally the officer who got the initial takedown returns and further secures the suspect.
It is over, and no one has sustained serious injury (although the knife wielder likely has a sore shoulder from having it bent roughly in a hammerlock, ude garami, kimura, whatever you want to call it).
What Martial Art Was That?
The officer’s martial arts background is not known, and whatever martial art you practice, be it Hapkido, jiu-jitsu, Aikido, Combatives, etc, you may recognize something familiar.
The arm control was similar to Aikido’s Kotegaeshi. The officer then completes the takedown with an outer reap, similar to judo’s Osotogari. While maintaining control of the suspect’s arm, the officer then pins him with the knee, in what appears to be textbook BJJ Knee on Belly.
Given the country of origin, the officer was likely trained in a hybrid system for law enforcement, that draws from traditional Chinese Martial Arts, including Shuai Jiao and Chin Na. This parallels other government efforts to synthesize the best of Chinese martial arts for sport (Sanda) and for self-defense (the military variant of Sanda).
Emphatically, given the historical relationship between China and Japan, it is extraordinarily improbable that government police forces are being taught Aikido. Further, Aikido contains a number of techniques that work, including the front kick; it is the lack of active resistance in training that particularly renders the art so utterly ineffective. Aikido is so ineffective that in 100 years, there is one, single case of it verifiably working, on a drunk, by a large, highly-trained martial artist, who no longer practices Aikido. So, when pressed for verifiable examples of Aikido working, boosters are left to point to anecdotes about rolling after falling off a bicycle, and a heroic female police officer in China.
The bottom line of course is that it worked, and that the policewoman is, truly, a hero.
Was That Really A Female?
There has been some question as to whether the heroic officer in question is indeed female. However, the videos of the incident are presented by CGTN and People’s Daily, Chinese government-run, English-language media channels based in Beijing. Although each has an everpresent pro-government editorial perspective, they also have journalistic standards far beyond the average web page trying to create compelling content, so it seems likely that that is indeed a female.
And regardless of sex, the police officer is one epic hero.
