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West Midlands Police Federation

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West Midlands Police Federation Bravery Awards: Fed member recognised after fighting through vitriol attack

14 January 2025

PC Jodie Cox found herself in a challenging position last May when she attended a domestic disturbance in Birmingham.

Alongside two student officers - who were on just their second day of response policing - Jodie arrived at a maisonette to find its upper flat in complete darkness, yet indicating clear signs of disorder.

Smashed glass on the landing and staircase outside of the flat, as well as screaming between two people from inside - which came to a sudden stop - raised immediate alarm bells in Jodie’s mind.

 

PC Jodie Cox.

 

“We were gradually approaching the flat from the stairs, and we heard someone say, ‘if anyone comes in, I’ll kill you’.

“Then, we noticed a bright orange glow from one of the upstairs windows.

“After pouring a load of white spirit onto a pile of rubbish on the landing, the man had started a fire, creating a barrier between ourselves and him. This obviously left him – and the other person – trapped inside his own flat, which showed how desperate he was for us not to come anywhere near.”

Blaze

While flames gathered swiftly on the building’s second floor, quick-thinking Jodie acquired an extinguisher, using it to put out the blaze before it became uncontrollable.

However, tension was still rife as the 40-year-old cop took charge of negotiating with the man, making it clear that he should exit the housing block for the safety of all its residents.

When the man eventually came flying down the stairs, full of aggression and attempted to slam shut the maisonette’s main entrance door, a relentless Jodie managed to wedge her foot in the door's threshold in the nick of time. 

Strained talks resumed as she noticed he had a bottle – presumably, the white spirit of earlier – in his possession.

“He told us we were about to find out what really was in the bottle, and I and three other officers had a caustic liquid thrown in our faces,” she continued.

 

 

“Immediately, I couldn’t see a thing. I was violently coughing, and my skin was burning so badly.

“The pain was unbearable, and I remember thinking to myself, ‘is this the end of my career?’

“As I heard the others shouting out in pain and panic too, I tried to calm myself down, and smelling the liquid, I realised it was ammonia.”

After she could assure her colleagues they had not been attacked with acid, Jodie and the officers eventually made a full recovery from their injuries at Dudley Road Hospital.

Before she could receive this treatment, however, Jodie, still in a world of discomfort, helped colleagues who had arrived on the scene, arrest the man.

Fast forward eight months, and she has seen her determination acknowledged with a Bravery Award for the Birmingham area, sponsored by Irwin Mitchell solicitors.

Thrilled

Reflecting on her recognition, she added: “I am absolutely thrilled to receive this award, and I am so grateful that someone has decided my actions were worthy of it.

“I think I just felt the responsibility of being the most senior officer there, and I wanted to do right by everyone involved.

“At the end of the day, the man needed help. We didn’t know what harm he wanted to do to himself or others. I just wanted to keep everyone as safe as possible.” 

Jodie will now go on to the West Midlands Police Federation Bravery Awards 2025, which will be held in Birmingham on Thursday 30 January and sponsored by Slater and Gordon Lawyers.

She will be closely supported by wife Kimberley as she faces selection for an overall regional title alongside other local winners from the Coventry, Dudley, Sandwell, Solihull, Walsall and Wolverhampton areas, as well as another Birmingham-based officer.