Teesside police assaults: PC tells us about being bit, headlocked and choked
We're highlighting the realities of what some officers go through in Teesside
Last updated 10th Feb 2026
People in Teesside are being urged to be kind to the police and to think about who's behind the uniform before attacking them.
We're highlighting the realities of what some officers go through in Teesside.
Earlier, we told you about the Middlesbrough PC who was punched, pinned down and strangled.
Now, we're hearing from PC Tom Birkinshaw who was assaulted in the early hours of Boxing Day 2024.
He had arrived at a property in Middlesbrough because of a concern for safety.
It was there that 38 year-old William Cash became volatile as soon as officers arrived at his address. He initially kicked at Tom who was trying to detain him then a scuffle ensued where Cash bit him twice, got him in a headlock twice and squeezed him with his arm, choking him.
On Wednesday (4th February) Cash received a 30-month sentence after admitting assault and strangulation. Cash also has to pay over £200 surcharge fees.
He also made as if to use his Alsatian dog as a weapon against both officers and was sprayed with an incapacitant while numerous other officers rushed to the scene and to their colleagues’ aid.
About the impact of that attack, Tom said: "It makes you nervous and I think I would be lying if I said I wasn't scared to go back to that address. When you drive past it, which was on a regular basis because it's such a small area is Middlesbrough, and we're out and about all the time, driving past that address it always comes up in your memories about what happened on that day and time. When you hear his name come through on the radio, you think 'what if I get called to that? What's going to happen again? What could he do to my colleagues considering we know what he's capable of?'
"I wouldn't say we expected to be assaulted every day. I think everyone in the police knows it's a hazardous job. You're going to deal with the most violent people that anyone will ever see. I think as a member of the public you don't see what the police see. We generally see the lowest of life and with that uniform, you put it on expecting that something might happen, not necessarily it will happen, but you have that expectation that there's a chance of something happening.
"I think people need to see that it's more than a uniform. A lot of people just see the uniform, see the police, and grade everyone the same. But they need to see that there's a person behind that with a family back home, who's potentially left on one of the most celebrated days of the year, which was Christmas on this occasion, and we've got people to go home to as well. It can ruin lives the actions that people take against the police."