An Ipswich woman has received Queensland's highest civilian bravery award for shielding a teenage girl from a man who was trying to kill her with a bow and arrow.
Nicole Law was doing her fortnightly grocery shop in the Ipswich suburb of Booval in September 2020 when she heard the screams of a 15-year-old girl being chased by a man with a bow and arrow.
While most shoppers ran to safety, the 42-year-old mother walked towards the danger.
"I didn't feel any fear at the time ... all I knew [was] that this young girl was crying for help."
Starting a conversation
Ms Law said she asked the girl, who had an arrow lodged in her hand, to get behind her.
When the man appeared from around the corner, she held her ground and started a conversation.
A man with a bow and arrow attacked a teenage girl at a supermarket in Booval, Ipswich. (ABC News: Anna Hartley)
"I don't know my exact words, but it was just like 'what's happening for you? Why are you doing this?''" Ms Law said.
She said the man, a then 28-year-old named Benjamin Bourke, told her he had been recently hit by a car and was going through a "rough time".
"I just basically said to him 'well that's a really s*** time for you.'"
"He ended up getting down and dropping all his stuff and looking at me and basically telling me that we're ok. It was really weird."
Bourke was then tackled to the ground by two men, before being arrested by police.
Ben Bourke was jailed for 10 and a half years. (Facebook)
What Ms Law did not know at the time was Bourke's intent and the moments that had preceded their encounter.
Bourke later pleaded guilty to attempted murder of the 15-year-old and was jailed for 10 and a half years.
In court, the prosecution said he had earlier fired an arrow at an Indigenous woman for racial reasons, and briefly considered killing another woman with a baby but decided against it.
"I didn't know at the time what pain he was causing, I just saw he was struggling and he was chasing this girl,"
Ms Law said.
Gold medal for bravery
Ms Law's heroism was recognised at the Royal Humane Society of Australasia's Bravery Medals, sponsored by His Majesty King Charles III, at a ceremony in Brisbane on Thursday.
Ms Law picked up the ceremony's highest honour, the Clarke Gold Medal.
Nicole Law was awarded the ceremony's highest honour, the Clarke Gold Medal. (ABC News)
She was due to be presented with the medal in 2024, but was not able to attend the ceremony at the time.
Organisers postponed the event so Ms Law could be handed the medal by Queensland's governor, Dr Jeannette Young.
"That's unbelievable, thank you, you saved her life," Ms Young told Ms Law as she presented the medal.
Also among the award recipients were three Sunshine Coast surfers who used their boards to help rescue two men caught in a bad storm rip in April 2021.
Ms Law was presented the award by Queensland Governor Jeanette Young. (ABC News)
A 'sense of decency'
Looking back at that day almost six years ago, Ms Law said she thought about the impact on the teenage girl.
"It wasn't fair that that happened to her, and that's something that sticks with you for a long time," Ms Law said.
She said she had recently heard the now-adult woman was doing well and had been supported by her family.
"It was nice to hear that ... it meant a lot to me."
Ms Law plans to hand down the medal to her grandson. (ABC News: Charlie Mclean)
Looking forward, she thinks about her own loved ones.
She said she planned to hand down the medal to her grandson, as a reminder of the family's values and sense of decency.
"I hope they're proud of me, especially my two boys and my grandson ... they will have something to look back on," she said.
"It's just something special for them to have ... [and to know] it's okay to be a decent person."
"A lot of that gets forgotten these days."
