http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/news/56269437-78/percent-injuries-utah-brain.html.csp
Could all head strikes be considered deadly force? What would happen if a person responded with deadly force because the attacker was targeting the head in the conflict, assuming that the defender had done his due diligence in avoiding and retreating according to the law?
The fatal punching of a Utah soccer referee has stunned and saddened the community but was no freak occurrence, say medical experts who warn a single jolt to the head can kill.
"Assaults happen every day in our country, and an assault to the head or neck can cause serious injury, including death," said University of Utah neuropsychologist Angela Eastvold. "The number of deaths is small. But its always a possibility, especially if the victim has any vulnerability in the brain, and theres no way of knowing that up front."
Eastvold works with survivors of traumatic brain injury (TBI), tracking their cognitive deficits and behavioral changes. She sees lives ended and disrupted by the neurological consequences of accidental falls, car crashes, suicide attempts and violence.
Any injury to the head, mild to severe, can disable someone; injuries to the neck can cause paralysis, she said. "The whole spectrum of injury involves the whole spectrum of possibilities."
Could all head strikes be considered deadly force? What would happen if a person responded with deadly force because the attacker was targeting the head in the conflict, assuming that the defender had done his due diligence in avoiding and retreating according to the law?