When News Channel 8 spoke with Jones, he told us the doctor said the knife’s five-inch blade landed just millimeters from his heart. He said he hadn’t realized Watson stabbed him until deputies told him he was bleeding.

Source: Purse snatcher stabs woman, good Samaritans, outside Seminole Publix | WFLA.com

From other stories told me by people who have been stabbed, this is the norm rather than the exception. One former LEO and now instructor, told his story about being stabbed several times in the chest and other than a difficulty breathing, he did not realize he was dying till he noticed the blood minutes after the attack and after the suspect was under control.

Two things I take out of this. One:  After an encounter with a blade-wielding person, check yourself and have somebody check you. You do the same for whomever might have been attacked. You may be having a mayor blood loss and not knowing it till the eyes roll all whites and go into  hipovolemic shock. And I do not need to remind to always carry the necessary items to stop the blood loss, do I? Y’all smart cookies.

Two: How effective is a knife to stop an attacking individual? Again, we are mostly misguided by Hollywood where one simple stabbing to the guts has the damaging effect of a 20mm cannon round.  I figure that the concept of One-Stab-Kill is same as with handgun loads, a wishful thinking. My only reference on what to do with a knife in self-defense is what I have seen with Michael Janich who focuses a lot on disabling the person (thus stopping the attack) rather than going for the kill. The point is always to stop the attack and avoid injury as much as possible.

Do please use the comment section if you have experiences or advice to share. I am sorely ignorant when it comes to knife fighting even though I carry knives every day and I am going stupidly assume most of my readers fit in that category.

PS: I almost forgot. Do read the article quoted on top. It was a good resolution done by a citizen armed with a gun.