Bravery Award today for Devon's PC Beer - after she was attacked by the person she tried to help
PC Beer will today attend the 2026 Devon and Cornwall Police Federation Recognition Awards
A young in service officer who fought to restrain a violent offender who tried to throw her off a balcony will today be given the Bravery Award at the 2026 Devon and Cornwall Police Federation Recognition Awards.
In the early morning of 10 February 2026, officers including PC Alice Beer, who was only a few weeks into her operational career, responded to reports of an intoxicated man behaving aggressively to a woman in a block of flats in Newton Abbot.
When PC Beer entered the block, she was immediately confronted with a highly volatile and life-threatening situation. The suspect was standing dangerously on the wrong side of a railing on a communal walkway, threatening to jump. Without hesitation, PC Beer seized hold of the man’s arm to prevent him from falling.
PC Beer recalled: “I thought, ‘I can't let him jump’. I know he's a suspect, but the main role of a police officer is not to let anyone come to any harm. So I ran up to him and shouted, ‘Don't do it, get back over’, and I held on to his arm.
“But because of the railings, I couldn't see what was in his left hand. Before I knew it, he looked me straight in the eyes, and then he bottled me around the face. He's hit me on the right side of my head, just above my eyebrow.”
The bottle shattered on impact, causing PC Beer multiple facial injuries. Despite this, and while under sustained attack, PC Beer continued her efforts to restrain him.
The suspect escalated his violence, lifting PC Beer from the ground and attempting to throw her over the railing while repeatedly punching her in the face.
PC Beer said: “He grabbed me, and he tried to push me headfirst over the railings. I remember I'd gone past the vertical, and all I could see was the ground. My only point of contact was my ribs on the railings, and my hands, trying to stop myself from being pushed. I had such a clear thought when I was looking at the ground. I was like, ‘I'm going to die’, which is a really scary feeling that I've never had before.”
She continued: “I really don't know how, but I somehow managed to push myself back. He punched me in the face several times, and I somehow managed to push him off me.”
PC Beer succeeded in spraying the man with PAVA spray, and her colleague deployed a Taser. Backup officers then arrived and arrested the man.
PC Beer was treated in hospital for a large cut over her right eye and multiple smaller cuts to her face; she also sustained a chipped tooth and bruising and scratches to her neck and arms.
The offender, who had a history of serious violence to others, was later jailed for 10 years and six months for the charge of attempted grievous bodily harm and three years for unlawful wounding, to be served concurrently.
The judge said the man presented a significant risk to the public, and added an extended licence of five years to the sentence.
When PC Beer heard she’d won a Bravery Award, she said: “It's not part of the job to be assaulted, but I was just trying to do my job at the end of the day. I feel very privileged to be nominated for an award. I was shocked, but it was very kind that I was nominated.”
Devon and Cornwall Police Federation Chair Katie Clements said: “Alice is the example of the police officer we always aspire to be. Not afraid to run towards danger, not afraid to try to protect others, not afraid to continue to try despite being under attack. She didn’t run away, she ran toward. Her bravery, tenacity and professionalism are inspirational and incredibly humbling, especially considering she is so young in service.
“We are incredibly proud of her.”
PC Beer will attend the 2026 Devon and Cornwall Police Federation Recognition Awards on 1 October 2026.