TERRORISM ON MIND OF RALEIGH'S NEW CHIEF

Security Of Buildings To Be Reviewed

RALEIGH -- The city's new police chief, Jane Perlov, took office
Monday with a promise to pay attention to the little things to fight
crime and with a vow to make sure terrorist attacks don't happen here.

"Like everyone else in the world, it reminds us that we have to be
really vigilant and can't be lax," Perlov said in an interview Monday
night. " 'It can't happen here' will be banished forever from our
vocabulary."

As chief, she plans to order assessments of security at municipal
buildings, the department's readiness to respond to terrorism, its
rapid response plans, whether training exercises are being done and
whether the communication system can withstand a major incident. She
also wants to look into the department's intelligence capability.

Perlov, who spent the past three years as secretary of public safety
for Massachusetts and the previous 18 years in the New York City
Police Department, is Raleigh's first female top cop.

The half-hour ceremony had a bittersweet feeling as some speakers
noted their solidarity with New Yorkers who lost colleagues, friends
and family members in last week's terrorist attacks on the World Trade
Center.

"Each of us knows that you must come to Raleigh with a heavy heart,"
Mayor Paul Coble told Perlov (pronounced PERL-ov) as he introduced
her. "We add our condolences to you and every person who suffered a
loss in such a horrific atrocity."

Perlov's husband, Robert Maas, said the couple lost three friends when
the twin towers collapsed on about 5,000 people, including more than
300 firefighters and police officers. Maas, a retired New York police
sergeant, held the Bible during Perlov's swearing-in and pinned a
shiny new badge on her blue Raleigh police uniform.

"It's been hell," he said later about the past week, during which the
couple watched television news 12 hours a day and woke early and
stayed up late to check on friends by phone. But he insisted that
Monday was still "a joyous occasion."

"On the one hand, we didn't really feel like celebrating, but we felt
that by not, we'd let them win," Maas said, referring to the
terrorists. Perlov, 44, made a short statement to about 200 police
officers, city staffers and Triangle law enforcement officials who
attended her swearing-in at City Hall. "I am energized by the
enthusiasm of the people of this great city," she said.

"This past week many people asked, 'Why put on a uniform again, how
can you?' " she said. "My answer was very simple, and that was, 'How
can I not?' "

Perlov vowed that her department will take the initiative to fight
crime. "When one window in a building is broken and left unrepaired,
it's a sign that nobody cares, and pretty soon all the windows will be
broken," she said.

Perlov developed a reputation in New York City as a hard-nosed
commander who successfully reached out to the community as she led the
30th Precinct in Harlem from 1995 to 1997. She took over about six
months after 30 officers were arrested for shaking down some drug
dealers and cooperating with others for drugs and money. Her mandate
was to improve relations with residents of the precinct, which has a
population roughly the size of Raleigh.

On the streets, she was nicknamed "Miss Lockdown" for her penchant for
blocking off neighborhoods and arresting people for every minor
infraction in her campaign against drug dealers.

She was also hailed for her ability to pull together various city
agencies. That skill was cited by public safety officials in
Massachusetts after she coordinated the state's response when six
firefighters died fighting a warehouse fire in Worcester in 1999.

Her reputation as a leader is what impressed Raleigh police Lt. Al
White. "I'm looking forward to the teamwork, the leadership she's
going to bring," he said.

David E. Jones, executive director of the Governor's Crime Commission,
said Perlov "sounds like she's going to be a real go-getter, down to
earth, a real believer in community policing."

Jones commented as Durham Police Chief Teresa Chambers congratulated
Perlov after the ceremony. Five women now lead state and local law
enforcement agencies in the Triangle. "We've come a long way," he said.

Perlov said she's eager to get started. She spent her first day on the
job meeting with the three majors who answer to her and with several
captains, touring the police building and meeting employees.

Meeting her officers, city residents and community leaders is a
priority in her early days. Perlov planned to attend the funeral of
Clayton police Lt. Monica Carey in Wilmington this morning and her
first City Council meeting tonight. On Wednesday, she will visit
officers at the Litchford Village Substation and will attend a public
meeting at Lake Lynn in North Raleigh. And a still-unscheduled meeting
is being planned for Southeast Raleigh, said Jayne Kirkpatrick, the
city's spokeswoman.

"We want to make sure that the people who are going to need her more
get an opportunity to meet her," Kirkpatrick said.

City Manager Russell Allen, who hired her, predicted that Perlov's
experience with diverse communities and cutting-edge techniques will
benefit the city as it grows.

"I'm very excited," he said. "She's going to do a terrific job. She's
a chief for our future. ... And I think we got one of the most
passionate police officers in the country."