ATLANTA — Some people are looking for ways to protect themselves after a woman was stabbed and killed on the Atlanta Beltline and a postal worker was attacked on her break.
Channel 2’s Tom Jones participated in a new reality-based self-defense training center aimed to give people the tools they need to keep calm, assess the threat and properly defend yourself.
In one simulated scenario, a gunman tried to carjack him.
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“I said give me your keys,” the man in the simulation ordered.
The simulation allowed Jones to react to the threat.
“Hey, get away. Get away or I’ll shoot,” Jones said.
The gunman pulls out his weapon and steps towards Jones.
“Get away or I’ll shoot,” he said.
It’s all a part of reality-based self-defense training at United Defense Tactical Atlanta on Plasters Avenue in Northeast Atlanta.
“We know there is fear in the community right now. And by training... people are able to gain the skills,” owner Keith Hansen said.
Gain the skills to think, assess, and make decisions under pressure. Former officers teach how to de-escalate threats And how to stay out of harm’s way.
“This is for that single mom that’s out there. For that young college student,” Hansen said.
They teach a multitude of self-defense scenarios, including how to use pepper spray and hand-to-hand combat.
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The owner of the company says you don’t want to be unprepared during a real-world violent encounter.
“It’s fast, it’s chaotic, it’s violent. There’s no rules and there’s no re-do’s,” he said.
It’s why he says this type of training is so vital to your safety and survival. Hansen says people usually react instinctively when confronted with a threat.
“How are you going to react instinctively to a threat situation unless you’ve actually trained for that threat?” he said.
The company ironically is located next to the post office where the postal worker was attacked.
The owner says women who are concerned about their safety have already signed up.
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