Insane Drive By Purse Snatching
So quick, aggressive, and dangerous is the best way to describe this purse snatching. It is scary enough when the person is on their feet running, but with a motorized vehicle, it is more violent.
Carrying valuables and carrying a purse always comes up during our women’s self-defence, high school, or family seminars. Should you hold it over one shoulder or crossways over the body?
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Both methods have advantages and disadvantages, but I have a preference; again, the environment, scenario, etc. will give you the best advice.
First, crossways. The advantage here is you are a more difficult target, with the purse being more challenging to get off with the body as a barrier. The person may hold on and possibly fight to retain it.
The disadvantage is that you may be thrown to the ground and dragged a distance, causing minimal to serious injury depending on the surface you crash against.
Second, one shoulder. The advantage here is the purse is more likely to slip off the shoulder, causing little to no injury UNLESS you do what this and most people would do instinctively. But, again, this terrible video is a fantastic example of how fast the human body reacts. She immediately grabs on and holds it causing her to be dragged violently.
You might be thinking, why the hell does she hold on? Because that instant she is grabbed and she reacts, she is not thinking, this is a purse snatching, I must hold on to protect my valuables. The body responds instantly based on where she is feeling a threat. She is not yet processing that her purse is being stolen, and I must protect it or let go. It generally happens and ends so quickly. There is no conscious processing of what the best action to take is, so best to carry in a way that does not require you to consciously process what to do, but maximizes your chance of safety, even if no guarantees.
I prefer the assailant gets it off quickly and gets the purse than see a person victimized, as you do in this video.
So, if you are in a public place with minimal chance of being chosen for a purse robbery, you might carry crossways to appear even less attractive to theft.
In less than a public place, I lean toward one shoulder. Although that might make you look more attractive as a victim, it provides a higher chance of safety if someone does attempt to grab the purse.
And if someone does grab the purse and drags you, attempt to let it go; you can replace valuables. Although the combination of being pulled and the purse tightening on your shoulder is a very challenging probability.