Phoenix Theatres Shows Premiere of Personal Safety Film

Personal safety specialist Pat Malone encourages people to avoid crime by taking control and having a plan, as he explains in Hearts Without Fear, a 20-minute film that debuted Thursday at Phoenix Theatres in Mayfield Heights.

Hearts Without Fear features a local woman who preferred not to be identified, but told how she was abducted in a parking lot, tied up and beaten, and eventually escaped when she noticed no one else was in the car and the keys were in the ignition.

Another woman tells about how she avoided danger because of lessons she learned when her employer had Malone speak at work. She noticed a man looking at her when she was shopping. He then got in line behind her. She went to her car, unlocked it, got in and immediately locked it just before the man was at the window, pulling on the door handle.

Malone said even self-defense experts successfully thwart attackers only about half of the time.

"Your best defense is your instincts," said his wife, Elizabeth Malone, during a discussion after the first showing. Law enforcement and rape crisis officials were invited to participate in the forum.

When asked about the right response to a situation, Pat Malone said it varies and no advice is correct for every incident.

"There is no easy answer," he said. "It's all about keeping the problem at long range. Trust your instincts."

He also advised women not to make themselves vulnerable to attacks by returning shopping carts after putting purchases in the car, telling a story about a woman who was grabbed because she had done so. Just leave the cart by your car and go, he said.

Elizabeth Malone said the intent of the film is to spread her husband's message about personal safety, which he also presents in two-hour seminars to businesses and organizations.

She said he frequently shares his wisdom when he sees someone who may be vulnerable to an attack.

"We go to the store and he sees a woman sitting there in her car with the window down and she's getting a lecture whether she wants one or not," she said.

Elizabeth Malone said the film serves as an introduction to Pat Malone and his lectures and they're hoping to find sponsors to help bring the Take Control Tour across the country.