Yes I have.
I'm a computer programmer. One night I was working late after hours at the office. Suddenly I had a bunch of guys yelling at me from behind. Screaming at me! I turned around (swiveled my office chair).
There were a bunch of cops with guns drawn and highly amped up. They were so amped up they were almost shaking. Their guns were drawn. I couldn't help shaking myself (literally and uncontrollably like a shiver).
They scared the hell out of me.
It turned out the lawyer who had the adjoining office next door had left his door unlocked, ajar, and left for the day about 2 hours before.
That stupid crackhead lawyer was disbarred a couple years later for cocaine use, but that's another story. The cops also arrested him years later and he was convicted for cocain charges. I'll bet the cops and prosecutor enjoyed that (the crack head had been an extra sleazy defense attorney)
It was now 7 PM, dark, and the coppers thought someone had broken in. Since I was the only person in the building, guess what? I was the prime suspect.
They never actually pointed their guns at me. They just had them drawn, at the ready, and were screaming at me to "turn around", "don't move", etc. Scared me as bad as I've ever been scared in my life. The kind of fear when you think you're either going to die or get the !@@##$% kicked out of you.
I concentrated on not moving AT ALL and trying to listen to their instructions. It is VERY difficult not to move when you are that stressed. It is VERY difficult to follow instructions or even hear coherantly or understand when that stressed. It was like a life and death Simon Says. Every urge wanted me to MOVE away, but I tried to NOT MOVE. Honestly, I wonder if they wouldn't get better compliance if they didn't yell so much. My only instinctive urge was to move back and I had to fight that urge to avoid getting shot or beat up!
After they and I calmed down a bit (i.e. - after I managed to stay stock still for what seems like an hour, but was probably a minute), they asked to see my driver's license. Since my last name was N.Y.B. and the name of my office was N.Y.B., everything was then cool with them. It took me a lot longer to calm down. I wasn't angry. I was just really rattled. My shaking stopped within 2 minutes. The pounding heartbeat within 5. I was queesy for at least 20 minutes.
Did it change my outlook? Heck ya. After that, I always close and lock my office door behind me now so NO ONE can sneak up on me. I always sit in the corner in restaurants so I can see everyone and NO ONE can sneak up on me. At the movies, I like to sit at the back in the corner so NO ONE can sneak up on me.
Some of this healthy paranoia also results from having been assaulted from behind in the past from someone who did sneak up on me. The cops incident heightened my efforts to make sure NO ONE can sneak up behind me. I always check and recheck my 6 when alone (if I'm not with my back to a corner). I NEVER assume a door is locked (I personally check it). Also, I keep my house door locked when I'm home. This very good practice would have prevented a violent home intruder years ago, if I had been so careful then.
If anyone really intends to do you harm or arrest you, they'll likely come at you from behind, if they're smart and can come from behind. You won't let them sneak up on you, if you're smart and careful. Just turning to face an attacker can sometimes have stopping power. Watch your six. Check your six. If you feel uneasy, TURN AROUND FAST. Better yet, jump forward away from your 6 while turning around fast.
Bill Gates said, "Only the paranoid survive". He meant in the computer business and he's right. However, this applies to the rest of life too. Always be aware of what's going on behind you. The best way is keep your back to a corner when possible.
Threats that come at you from the front might just want to argue verbally, or challenge your courage to humiliate you, but not physically attack you. If they really do want a physical fight, their frontal approach MIGHT indicate they have a sense of honor about a fair fight, which MIGHT indicate they're less dangerous.
On the other hand, a serious threat might come from the front if you've made it impossible for them to come from behind. Also, serious threats can be from stupid people who might come from the front because they're stupid. Prisons are full of violent, stupid people. So you really can't assume anything.
I repeat, you can't assume anything. You must stay alert and try to secure your six when you can (by sitting in a corner or keeping back to wall). When you can't secure your six, check it often. Threats will notice you check it and this might even discourage a threat who's not overly determined (like some muggers).
That said, the most dangerous threats come from behind, if you give them the opportunity. The unscrupulous and the smart threats come from behind whenever they can.
Those are my opinions based on my experiences. History supports this too (i.e. - sneak attacks are common in history). However, my opinion is only one person's opinion.
