Mike, I fall into the category of being physically unable to escape at speed, and I'm only 37. Welcome to my world.
At first glance all others see is a 6'5", shaven-headed, Hawaiian shirted, lanky guy leaning on what looks like a decorative walking stick. They don't see the orthotics, the spiral fractured bones, the pins, the dislocation injuries, or the network of fine scars on my paper-thin skin that looks like crumpled cigarette paper.
My Size and grumpy demeanor (dislocating jaw does not lend well to conversation) automatically make people file me mentally under either "invincible" (what the heck were you afraid of?) or "the bad guy" (How could you be such an evil person to consider XXXXX") on the instant-reaction scale.
I could go into extreme detail at how little my size means, but would require retelling of events that still trouble me almost 20 years later.
People rarely seek further information until the heat of the moment is past, if they are even willing to accept said information after the fact.
Now, onto Disparity of Force, My preferred example being the Larry Hickey shooting.
http://www.armedcitizensnetwork.org/images/stories/Hickey Booklet.pdf
(TL;DR- Man attacked in his driveway by 3 unarmed neighbors, defends himself with a firearm and is subjected to the legal reaming of a lifetime)
Imagine if instead of three older assailants, they were age 11 with Stun guns. Imagine the Outrage in the press. The talking heads ceaselessly droning on about the horror of the situation.
Larry would have been just as justified at the time, but in this hypothetical, would be a Villain of incredible notoriety afterward.
It's not a situation I'd wish on anyone, but I wouldn't give up my breathing rights simply because my attackers would play more sympathetically in the press, however I'd better be sure enough in my convictions, and belief in the imminent threat that such a situation actually exists, because the scrutiny will be life-destroying in today's world.