No self defense and mutual combat are far from polar opposites, they are extremely close, especialy without a duty to retreat. One is just justified and the other is criminal.
Standing your ground is escalating the situation to some. While more is necessary to be considered escalation for others.
Some people consider anything except being extremely passive and fleeing from any possible situation to be worthy of the "mutual combat" label if the other decides to take it to that level.
Now many will picture one guy thumping his chest, then the other thumping his chest, and then a progression to violence. We have all seen such cases where that is the situation.
However that can be an exageration of someone just not being passive well.
For example if someone bumps into you, takes offense you dared to be in that spot, and then tells you off are you not allowed to make any comment? What if they demand an apology? Is not giving one mutual combat if he then attacks?
Or what if for example someone rudely or inconsiderately, knocks you or your girlfriend/wife over and then you say "watch it" or "watch where you're going" justifiably upset with thier clumsiness and the person is a hothead who takes offense?
If they then escalate things on thier own are you a mutual combatant because you were not completely and totaly passive, said nothing, and then didn't retreat?
According to many you are. If the person then attacks you and you defend yourself many would consider that mutal combat, and recall things that way.
How things happened would also be less clear with different stories and witnesses. That would let the prosecutor create thier version of reality.
In court the way it would play out according to a proesecutor is you had a mutal verbal exchange and mutualy progressed to combat. Some witness statements would also likely concur even if it was not the case.
You may have had no intention of progressing to blows or deadly force, but many others will not see it that way.
So you see the line between mutual combat and self defense is quite blurry.
If a total stranger walks up to you, calls you whatever, gets in your face, you exchange some words and they then attack you and you defend yourself that will often be veiwed as mutal combat.
Think it never happens?
Many punks, gangs and other thugs have such ego trips all the time.
In the UK they even have the "Happy Slap" where immature individuals smack or punch a total stranger for no reason to get a reaction and then try to just leave (they are not continuing the attack so technicaly any reaction is not even self defense necessary to stop the attack.)
Groups of teens, gang members and non gang members go around looking to start even more serious escalations with people on occasion.
Some thugs just have such high ego problems that anyone that gets in thier way intentionaly or by accident must pay for the offense. However they often tend to express themselves before the attack, so the incident to casual observers will often appear a mutual exchange prior to the incident.
