By Rob Andress
Violence Prevention Specialist
Street Safe Self Defence Training Company
For years, I have taught one simple principle:
Violence is patterned. Violence is predictable. Violence is often preventable.
When most Canadians hear the words self defence, they picture someone throwing a punch, using pepper spray, or fighting off an attacker. But after watching several recent Canadian court decisions, including the Lindsay, Ontario case where charges were ultimately dropped, I think something much bigger is happening.
Not because the law has changed, because our understanding of violence is.
Section 34 Hasn’t Really Changed Canada’s self-defence law is found under Section 34 of the Criminal Code.
It asks one central question: Was the person’s actions reasonable in the circumstances as they believed them to be?
The courts consider numerous factors, including: The nature of the threat, whether weapons were involved. The size and strength differences, previous history between the people, whether there were alternatives, whether the force used was proportional.
Those principles have existed for years, but what seems different today is how courts are applying those principles using a more realistic understanding of how violence actually occurs.
Courts Are Beginning to Understand Violence Better
Violence rarely happens the way movies portrays it.
Most real assaults happen:
Extremely fast
Under stress
With incomplete information
In confined spaces
During fear and survival
Victims don’t have the luxury of slowing everything down and making perfect decisions.
Instead, they react with the information available at that exact moment.
That matters. The Lindsay, Ontario Case. One case that caught my attention involved charges that were eventually dropped after a man acted during what he believed was an imminent threat. Without commenting on the legal merits beyond the public record, the outcome reflects something important:
Courts appear increasingly willing to examine what the person honestly perceived, not simply what later became known after the fact. That distinction matters! Because violence unfolds in seconds, not after weeks of investigation.
Three Recent Canadian Cases Point in the Same Direction.
Several recent Canadian cases suggest courts are increasingly examining violence through the lens of human behaviour rather than perfect hindsight. While every case turns on its own facts, a common theme has emerged:
What did the person reasonably perceive?
What options realistically existed?
How quickly did events unfold?
What was the individual actually experiencing?
Those are questions violence prevention professionals have been asking for decades.
This Isn’t About Encouraging Violence. Nothing about these decisions says people should fight.
In fact, I teach exactly the opposite.
At Street Safe Self Defence Training Company, we teach that the safest fight is the one that never happens.
Our entire philosophy is built around:
Stop the Before, So the After Never Happens.
Recognition.
Distance.
Behaviour.
Decision-making.
Because once violence becomes physical, nobody truly wins. Understanding Human Behaviour Changes Everything!
One of the biggest misconceptions in self-defence is believing violence begins with the assault.
It doesn’t. Violence begins much earlier. It begins with behaviour, with entitlement, with fixation, with emotional escalation., with predatory decision-making.
That’s where prevention lives.
And I believe Canadian courts are beginning to recognize that reality.
My Opinion as a Violence Prevention Specialist
This article reflects my professional observations as someone who has spent decades studying violence prevention and human behaviour. It is not legal advice, nor should it be interpreted as a legal opinion on any individual case. Every incident is unique, and Canadian courts decide each case based on its own evidence and circumstances.
Final Thoughts
Has Canada’s self-defence law changed? Not really.
Has Canada’s understanding of violence changed? I believe it has.
And if that’s true, it’s a positive step for victims, investigators, prosecutors, defence lawyers, and the justice system alike.
Because understanding how violence actually unfolds allows us to judge human behaviour more fairly. That doesn’t lower the legal standard, it simply brings reality into the courtroom.
And that’s something worth paying attention to.
Rob Andress
Violence Prevention Specialist
Founder, Street Safe Self Defence Training Company
🌐 https://www.streetsafeselfdefence.com�
Related Reading
CARE – Clinical Awareness & Response to Escalation
https://streetsafeselfdefence.com/care/�
TRAACS – Tactical Risk Awareness & Applied Combatives System
https://streetsafeselfdefence.com/traacs-training/�
High School Violence Prevention Programs
https://streetsafeselfdefence.com/high-school-self-defence/�
References
Criminal Code of Canada, Section 34 (Self-Defence): https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/�
Canadian Judicial Council: https://cjc-ccm.ca/�
Department of Justice Canada: https://www.justice.gc.ca/