Read & React: Woman Uses Nunchucks to Fend Off Ex-Boyfriend

According to The Huffington Post, an unidentified Maine woman recently defended herself from her ex-boyfriend, 33-year-old Christopher Rolling Fox, using nunchucks.

At approximately 10 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 6, Fox allegedly forcibly entered his ex-girlfriend's apartment, apparently angry because he believed his ex-girlfriend was seeing another man.

When the woman answered the door to her apartment, she could tell Fox had been drinking and asked him to leave. This prompted Fox to push her backward, causing her to collide with the kitchen table. A physical confrontation ensued, during which Fox allegedly punched and kicked the woman several times, according to New York Daily News reports.

"The fight was so violent that the stove and refrigerator had been knocked out of place", Winslow (Maine) Police Lt. Josh Veilleux told the Portland (Maine) Press Herald.

In response to the woman dialing 911, Fox allegedly took the phone from her and struck her with a pull-up bar that he pulled off the wall. The woman grabbed a set of nunchucks which hung on the wall as a decoration and was able to hit Fox several times with them, allowing her to break free and again call 911.

Fox armed himself with a knife and threatened to kill himself, and tried to lock the woman in the apartment, but she managed to escape. Fox initially chased the woman, but he ran away when he realized she was again on the phone with 911 dispatchers.

Fox was located and taken into custody after providing a false name to authorities. He faces charges of aggravated criminal trespassing, criminal threatening with a dangerous weapon, domestic violence assault, criminal mischief, obstructing the report of a crime, marijuana possession, and failure to provide a correct name, address and date of birth.

The woman was treated at the hospital for injuries.

As a huge Bruce Lee fan, I can attest to the fact that deftly wielding nunchucks is easier said than done. In my youth, I would often make a pair of nunchucks only to accidentally whack an elbow--or worse yet, my head--while attempting to emulate Lee. After a while, I smartened up and purchased a set of foam nunchucks. Though I never approached Bruce Lee status, in time I became fairly skilled with nunchucks.

It has always cracked me up that in the state of California, possession of nunchucks is a felony unless they're being used in conjunction with a martial arts training session or competition. The fact is that most people who pick up a pair of nunchucks are more likely to hurt themselves than their opponent. Fortunately, Fox's ex-girlfriend had not only the presence of mind, but the skill to employ a pair of decorative nunchucks to diminish Fox's ability to injure her and to facilitate her escape.

What are your thoughts on the use of nunchucks and similar traditional martial arts weapons in personal defense?

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