Brooklyn Shane sent me a ‘Check this out son!’ heads up about this somewhat dated story which features sequential security camera stills from the front of a Bronx bodego.
A picture of a sober Italian/Swiss tourist is juxtaposed with a picture of an unkempt afro topped black man in a wife beater, stamped in red with WANTED. However, at the time of the incident the tourist was ‘being obnoxious, bugging people for a drink.’
This fatal fight is of interest firstly because it was a fight, not an attack. Secondly, and most importantly, it is a demonstration of the effectiveness of the open hand.
As a news story this is top notch old time stuff the likes of which we never see in a literary news pit like Baltimore. I love New York street reporting. Caitlin and Barry scored a great interview with ‘Frankie’ a cagey eye-witness, and deserve credit for getting video stills.
The drunken tourist was walking around with a banana demanding that bodega patrons buy him booze. The afro guy stood up to him with hands behind back. The tourist then leaves, takes off his shirt, returns, and squares up to fight. The afro guy clocks him with what was said to be a slap. From the blurry film still it seems to be a left hook with a hard pivot behind it. It is hard to tell. The afro guy is definitely set for a killer cross as the tourist falls back to the pavement where his head will be dashed open and his ten day drunk wastefully ended.
I hope that the Death Slap dude shaved that hair and escapes detection. This is certainly reminiscent of the Korean karate master versus the black pimp from some hears back. Please note that there was a manhunt announced for the defender in this mutual combat. As much as this is an illustration of the effectiveness of slapping and cuffing, note that cut-off strikes and preemptive strikes make you—in the eyes of the law—the aggressor. If you let your ego get the best of you and stand to fight for such trivial matters, at least let the dude throw first, and then counter. It might help lessen the manslaughter charge.
Go to NYDailyNews.com and check out the video. What an excellent reporting job.
