Former victim teaches women to fight off attackers

Jackie Bruce was 18 when she was attacked by her then-boyfriend inside her home.

As the two lay in bed, a disagreement suddenly turned violent when he held her down and assaulted her.

Previously, he would make her feel insecure or guilty, but he had never shown signs of physical abuse.

During the attack by her taller, stronger boyfriend, she was defenseless. She tried to scream, but no sounds came out. She had Mace, but it was on a keychain across the room. She had a knife, but it was in her purse.

“I didn’t think that I was ever going to be attacked,” Bruce said. “I didn’t ever think my Mace or my knife wouldn’t work. I felt like I was prepared. I always had something on me. I had my protection. But I didn’t have my protection in my own home.”

Years later, the assault has left emotional scars. But Bruce, now 23, uses that experience to help others know how to defend themselves.

“When I was attacked, I had to manipulate my body to get somebody off the top of me and I didn’t know how to at the time,” Bruce said. “I feel as if women should know how to do so.”

She runs a free class every Wednesday at the 302 Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu gym in Wilmington where she teaches women self-defense using Jiu-Jitsu.

The recent serial attacks in New Castle County have brought more women to the class. Bruce said the training can show women how to break free from an attacker and either fight back or get away and call 911.

In March, the attacker, who remains at large, tried to abduct a woman at gunpoint in a Pike Creek apartment complex, according to New Castle County Police, who believe the same man kidnapped, robbed and sexually assaulted two women in separate incidents in February.

New Castle County Police described the attacker as a man about 5-feet-8-inches tall with a “distinct” accent.

Almost a month has passed since the last incident was reported, however, women in Delaware remain on edge. Police continue to investigate the kidnappings, according to Officer First Class JP Piser, a New Castle County Police Department spokesman. However, no new updates were made available this week.

County police did not speculate on any patterns, movements or trends of the serial kidnapper. Piser said an increased police presence in the Newark and Pike Creek areas remain. Also on the rise are calls to county dispatch from residents reporting suspicious persons and suspicious vehicles throughout New Castle County, Piser added.

“The police department is happy that people are calling in and continuing to be vigilant,” he said.

Standing 5-feet-4-inches, Bruce can take down men double her size. She no longer walks around in fear of not being able to defend herself.

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is a martial art that focuses on grappling and ground fighting. The weekly two-hour course teaches women’s self-defense from a standing aspect.

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Bill Walters, owner of the Jiu-Jitsu gym, said he’s seen interest spike in self-defense classes since the serial attacks began in New Castle County. Wednesday night, more than a dozen women attended the seminar.

"We're reactionary human beings," Walters said. “I think people need to understand right from the second they walk out the door of their home that they should be prepped and ready for violence,” Walters said. “It’s not being paranoid, it’s the reality of the world we live in.”

County police have seen a spike in attendance in their personal safety seminars after the abductions began. More classes, Piser said, are planned for the future.

Joshua Wallace, a behavioral health specialist at Christiana Hospital, also trains at 302 Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and believes self-defense is paramount with a serial kidnapper wanted by police.

"I don’t feel anyone in our community should walk around in fear,” Wallace said.

Wallace believes women’s self-defense classes ensure women feel comfortable learning defense techniques with other women.

He said one of the biggest hindrances to women beginning the sport is becoming comfortable sparring with men. The Wednesday seminar, he hopes, will eliminate that stigma.

While the number of women who showed up Wednesday was encouraging, Wallace wished there were more. Had an attack happened more recently, he believes the gym would have been filled with women.

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“Unfortunately, people fall back into a routine,” he said. “We want to feel safe but it’s a trick on our psyche.”

As a group of women watched Bruce nearly choke out the much bigger Walters, the hope was that it showed the sport does not have to be male-dominated.

“When you’re studying for an exam the night before, are you learning something or are you memorizing it?” he asked.

Maria Pellicone, 37, of Hockessin, attended with her friend Ashley Painter. She admitted that at first, she didn’t think she needed a self-defense course.

“Now, I see I don’t know anything and I want to learn more and I want to get good at it,” she said.

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After completing the two-hour seminar, Painter, 30, of Wilmington felt more confident.

“I feel like I wouldn’t be as nervous now,” Painter said. “I got a little bit of background so I feel a little more prepared.”

Christina Rice, 29, of New Castle, said she plans to return to the gym for more training because she has no interest in becoming a victim. She wants to be a fighter.

“I feel like guys don’t expect women to be able to fight,” she said. “They think we’re just submissive and will give up. A lot of women can relate to Jackie’s story and I think if people hear her story and realize she is no longer a victim, they’ll see they can fight and not be a victim as well. I think that’s empowering.”

Contact Alonzo Small at (302) 324-2856 or asmall@delawareonline.com. Follow him on Twitter @P_AlonzoSmall.