Instructors teach women importance of self defense in case of an attack

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WANE) - It's all about being aware, loud, and confident.

"The important thing about being vocal especially if you’re attacked, not only does it open your airways and give you that extra power with adrenaline, but it also creates a witness rich environment which is vital," said Sarah Reinhold, a self-defense instructor.

According to the U.S. Department of Justice, rape is the fastest growing violent crime in the nation and every 90 seconds someone is sexually assaulted.

It was statistics like those that motivated Officer Jeff Plank to start Rape Aggression Defense (R.A.D.) classes after he returned from Iraq.

"We’ve seen an increase in domestic violence attacks on women, and [we] thought it was our responsibility to teach women how to protect themselves," said Plank.

The 12 hour class is offered to women ages 13 and up. It begins Wednesday, October 3, at the Jo rgensen YMCA from 6-9 P.M. The class includes a lecture, safety tips, and physical lessons.

"Be aware of your surroundings, making sure that you are doing things to protect yourself," said Plank. "You can use weapons, just make sure if you have a weapon, mace,key chains, things like that, you've practiced with it, you know what you're doing with it, and then, seek some type of training to increase your odds of survival."

Instructors say taking classes such as R.A.D. are especially important following Saturday's attack on the Rivergreenway trail in Fort Wayne where a woman was jogging and a man attacked her from behind.

"I probably won’t jog at night anymore," said Jerod Krudop, who runs the trail everyday. "I usually jog sometimes at 9 or 10, but now since that happened I won’t do that anymore."

Other frequent runners to the trail say it's not the first time unsettling situations have happened on the trail which caused some of them to take more drastic safety measures.

"Precautions I take: you know I carry when I run, I have a conceal carries permit," said Cameron Heckley, a runner. "You can never be too safe."

Even though instructors and police encourage self-defense classes, they say none of the defense mechanisms are 100 percent guaranteed because every situation is different.