The second book I am recommending prepares you for what may happen AFTER a violent encounter – when you are claiming you acted in self defence.
There are two ends of the “Plea of Self Defence” spectrum. You go from something very clear – you are the good guy and the other person is a known criminal TO having to convince a lot of people you acted in self defence so you do not go to prison or face bankruptcy.
The book I recommend to get the best handle on that is Marc MacYoung’s “In the Name of Self-Defense:: What it costs. When it’s worth”
This book is written by a man who is an expert witness when it comes to having acted in self defence. Having seen good people in a lot of trouble there is the approach that if you do not know all you can then you may just be off to prison.
While we may never face that problem, I found the information invaluable and a need to know.
I taught martial arts for many years and through some of them I wish I had this information, all instructors should so they can evaluate what they teach and how they are preparing their students. This knowledge should influence everything you teach in self defence.
There is nothing wrong with training a traditional or cultural martial art that may have come from the battlefield, but you do have to put it through the filter of our legal system today. What may be a great threat ending move in battle may not be legally acceptable here and now.
Knowing all you can about how what you do and say may be seen by those in the legal system (criminal and civil) is just smart and can help you articulate why you had to resort to violence.
I recommend this book because it will give you what you need to save yourself after things went very wrong.