AIBU to be proud of my DS for protecting a group of girls.

[H0210zero]

My DS is 12 however he's well built bigger then some grown men. But has long hair so sometimes from behind looks like a girl. Back in June as he was waiting for a bus from school with a small group of female friends. One of his friends began to get hassled by a drunk man looked as though he was also on some sort of drugs. Who was getting very provocative with her. Scaring her. She is 13 so you can imagine the fear. I don't think at this point he had realised my son was a male. This girl and a few others had asked the man to leave them alone. He tried at one point to snatch a phone and my DS just had enough he does boxing as a hobby and warned this man to leave the girls alone the man mocked him calling him a pansy due to his hair. Then tried to grab an 11 year old girls boobs making her cry. Sneering at them. My son took a swing and knocked the man out cold. Some adults did appear shortly after and kept an eye on the man who was passed out and called Police and ambulance. The idiot was fine just a bruised ego and a bust lip. Police arrested him for theft (he'd attacked someone else further along the street and took their phone) possession if class A drugs and also indecent assault on a minor. We were told he was already on the sex offenders list and not meant to be near a school. The two police officers shook my son's hand for stopping him going further then made a point of making it clear to the guy when he came round that the 12 year old who he called a pansy was the one who laid him out cold.

The AIBU is because just this week I bumped into one of the other kids parents. (A girl who wasn't touched and had managed to back away from the man). Other parents have sent him chocolates and thanked him for protecting the girls. This mother however berated me for allowing my son to learn to fight, because in her view he could have made the situation worse if the man and retaliated and hurt him or the other kids and he could have had a weapon. She seemed really put out when I said I was proud of him as if she expected me to tell him off. She seemed to think the kids should have tried to stay calm and ignore the man until the bus arrived and they could be safe. She had no consideration for the few girls that had already been grabbed and groped or nearly had their phone stolen or the fact the man was already a sex offender. She expects them to "hold on" and put up with it till an adult arrives. AIBU to be proud of my boy. He stood up for girls who couldn't despite the risks.

They didn't "stand around" as you put it shaking his hand. They brought him home after the incident as they did all the kids involved. After letting me know what had happened and taking his official statement. The officer got a radio call to say they'd charged him due to his admittance and based on the fact the guy was already I quote "A drain on their resources" and their efforts at keeping him away from kids and young girls have so far resulted in 3 different courts letting him out on sex offenders register with conditions each time despite his lack of remorse. Yes the officers did shake my son's hand as he left. This is when they told me that when the guy had come round he had assumed police had rougher him up and they'd took great pleasure in telling him the truth and yes they have confirmed as he only threw one punch he was perfectly justified to act in defence. I was worried my son may be subject to an investigation but the police confirmed they hadn't considered it as the man didn't make a complaint and the whole incident was caught on a doorbell camera anyway so it wouldn't have took long to rule out fault.

I would report the police who didn't attend appropriately to an unconscious man. A single punch leading to a person being "knocked out" can be fatal and if not always requires medical attention. Unconsciousness isn't a joke. Your son is lucky he isn't in a cell. One-punch deaths have resulted in prison sentences.

All it takes is for the punchee to hit their head too hard when punched into unconsciousness. If I believed for a second your 12 year old punched a man into unconsciousness, which I don't, and that the police rocked up and had a good old laugh about the sex offender over his unconscious body, which I also don't -there'd be an thorough investigation and your child would be spoken to, not hailed as a hero.

Your son is a thug or he's making up fairy tales to tell mummy.

…

I would be soooo proud. You have raised a good ‘un.

This.

Of course, ANY man or boy who steps in and calls out another man or boy for harrassing and attacking women and girls deserves credit for it. But it's a bit embarrassing that you are proud of your son for punching this man @H0210zero You seem to be celebrating your son's act of physical violence. And then posting on here expecting others to.

As pps have said, he could have turned very violent, or had a knife, or had 6 mates around the corner etc. Or even worse, it could have been one of those one punch kills.

From a quick Google search

Definition of One Punch Kill

A "one punch kill" or "one punch death" refers to a situation where a single punch causes a fatality, leading to charges of manslaughter or murder for the person who threw the punch. These incidents often occur during alcohol-fuelled arguments and highlight the devastating and potentially fatal consequences of even a seemingly minor physical altercation.

Key aspects of a one-punch killer case:

A single act, a single blow:
The defining characteristic is that a person's death results from one punch.

Fatal injury:
This single punch causes a brain injury, such as a hemorrhage, or another severe injury leading to death.

Charges of manslaughter or murder:
The perpetrator can face charges of manslaughter, as a single punch can be an "unlawful act" with a "significant risk" of serious harm. In some cases, if there was an intent to kill or cause serious harm, the charge could be murder, though the focus in "one punch" cases is often on the unintended, unexpected fatality.

Devastating consequences:
Beyond the legal ramifications, one-punch deaths leave families devastated and perpetrators with lifelong regret.

Campaigns for awareness:
The "One Punch Can Kill" campaign, run by various police forces and charities, aims to educate the public about the dangers of violence, particularly after drinking, and the risk of causing serious harm with a single blow.

I completely understand the women's concerns, she's right the situation could changed. The first rule of self defense is to put as much distance between you and the person attacking, I understand in some situations that's not possible. My children have been taught self defense for the last few years, my 11 year old daughter can get a 15 stone man on the ground, this isn't so she can carry in attacking him, it so she's got time to run.
Fair play to your son, he was protecting people who at the time were unable to protect themselves, but everyone is lucky it ended the way it did.

One of my dearest friends was in hospital for months after stopping a man attacking his girlfriend, the guy punched him and his head hit the pavement... I'll never forget the time I spent with his son while his dad was in hospital.

You’re entitled to your opinion.

Most of us happen to disagree.

The boy deserves a medal in my opinion.