Defusing Crises Never-Ending Job For Safety Chief In Pr. George's

He later moved to the Maryland State Police, initially as a patrol officer at the Forestville barracks, and was quickly promoted to investigator. A memorable case was the Interstate 95 rock-throwing attack that left several people injured, including 16-year-old aspiring artist Destiny Morris. The defendants were convicted.

"That's when I realized that if you put a lot of hard work and dedication into a case, you might not close every case, but you'll close most of them," Herron said.

As a state police administrator, Herron supervised the violent-crimes strike force and narcotics. He retired in 2003 as a region commander.

"When I first met him" in the early 1980s, "my first thought was here is a centurion in the true sense of the word, one who protects the community," said William D. Missouri, chief administrative judge of the Prince George's Circuit Court. "He acted and looked the part of someone you would expect to see in a uniform. He was strictly on point and about the business of protecting the public."

Herron came to his current job at a time when the police department was operating under consent decrees with the U.S. Justice Department because of excessive force. Officials were struggling with increases in homicides, carjackings, rapes and robberies. Morale was low among police. There were problems with the 911 dispatch center.

Herron, with Johnson's blessing, increased staffing, upgraded technology and equipped the county with a more advanced radio system. He sent firefighters specializing in hazardous materials back to their stations to respond to regular calls until they were needed for incidents. He put desk police officers back on the street, called daily meetings for the department's command staff and eliminated the bonus day off given to officers working overtime at Washington Redskins games.

"I realized that our productivity didn't match the number of hours our officers were on patrol," he said.

His boss was impressed. "Vernon Herron has done an excellent job overseeing our public safety agencies," Johnson said. "His ability to be very forthcoming about issues we face in public safety has helped him earn the respect and trust of our citizens."

Herron, though, met some resistance. The fire chief opposed the redeployment of his hazmat personnel, but Herron pointed to $50,000 a month in overtime the county was paying for the 15-member unit.

Others have blamed Herron for some public safety missteps, including the jailhouse death last month of Ronnie L. White, 19, who was charged with killing police Cpl. Richard S. Findley.

"With all of this going on, we have to look at the person in charge," said Sharon Weidenfeld, a private investigator who often works for lawyers in police misconduct cases. "He hasn't given answers, and he has to be held accountable."

Herron said he has made it a policy to be open with the public. "I think we have the public's trust because we have been honest about our faults," he said.