[user104658]

Originally Posted by Liberty4eva

I think it is just as much a question about dignity as it is about whether or not force was reasonable. What the woman was doing was unreasonable. I'm a big guy myself and if someone smaller than me started hitting me, I can tell you that I would respond. I doubt I would pound her to the ground but it would be something.

Yeah like I said it's not about the fact that he responds, so much as the potential outcome, which maybe he wasn't aware of. A blow to the back of the head like that could cause serious damage instantly, and then it's over for everyone, including him, as he'd probably be up for manslaughter.

If he'd grabbed her arms and pinned her etc. that would have been quite a reasonable response but doing something that could so easily kill, not so much. I guess look at it this way: would you consider his response to the situation reasonable or justifiable if he'd grabbed her and pushed her in front of a moving bus?