Disarming an intoxicated person with a knife; (True story).
It was circa 1989 and I would have been a young fit 24 year old with 2 years of teenage Shotokan karate training behind me.
I was the manager of a very busy Northside bookie shop in Dillons cross and it was my morning off.
I got a call on my house phone from my shop settler Mark about noon telling me that 'Jimmy from the North' had gone beserk in the shop. I knew Jimmy well, he was grand 99% of the time but if he had drink on him which was very seldom that he was a dangerous man to deal with.
I was Up, Dressed and across the city to the office within 20 minutes to find Mary the cashier weeping behind the counter, as Mark explained to me that there had been a discrepancy about a bet and Jimmy in his best nordie accent had told Mary that; "He would have her put against a wall and Shot !". Which had kinda upset Mary a tad, so I sent her off home fer rest of the day. All forgotten about, we worked on a tad under staffed but we managed.
It was a long counter layout facing out to the shop front with a side door (seldom locked), the staff inside the counter nearest to the side door is the settler, followed by the cashier in the middle (whom had been sent home) and lastly the shop manager (Me).
About 3pm Mark the settler runs past me screaming something or other, and I see a balaclaved man with a knife just behind him, inside of the side counter door, inside the counter, I know it's Jimmy behind the balaclava but he is drunk and he has a knife, not a very big knife, only about 3 or 4 inches long but he is coming at me very aggressively, there is no where to run, I am completely trapped within the counter and with my settler Mark quaking in his boots behind me.
I hold my ground (like I had a choice) as he comes toward me with the knife.
All my flash thinking within the 2 seconds I had was;
Firstly, no way was he getting a body shot at me to stab and maybe kill me. Then I thought; 'Give him a leg' but then thought; 'Naw, I'm kinda fond of that', Then I thought; 'Give him an arm', but again thought; "Naw, I'm fond of that too'.
Final thought being; 'STAND AND FIGHT CASH !'
With no other option available, I drew back in to Shotokan fight stance and Jimmy hesitates. I'm only seeing One prize and that is 'Jimmy's wrist' and as he hesitates, I lung fer it and grab his knife wielding hand bashing it off everything, counter, till's, drawers, anything in sight and we struggle fer a good long minute or more, an elderly customer from outside the counter leans in and grabs Jimmy's balaclava off him during the struggle. I had Jimmy's wrist held with both my hands and I was never letting go till the knife fell, I kinda felt like my life was depending on it.
With unexpectedly having his hood removed Jimmy relaxed his grip on the knife and eventually with all my bashing he dropped it. I picked up the knife and fired it away over the counter out of harm's reach, Jimmy turned tail and ran fer the side counter door, I rooted him One good kick in the arse as he fled.
Once outside the counter Jimmy spotted the elderly customer who had taken his balaclava off him during the struggle and 'Bopped' him One opening up a nasty gash on the old fella's forehead. I went out to the customers aid tackling and holding a drunk Jimmy in a 'Half-Nelson' fer about 5 minutes but eventually he struggled free and legged it out the door.
The Gardai and all that were called, and we went searching the Glen flats area and the dregs of Comeragh park fer him, with me in the back of a squad car on the lookout, but Jimmy took the 'Midnight Express' back to the North that night, never to be seen again.
