Brockton Native Becomes City's First Female Police Lieutenant

BROCKTON, MA — A lifelong Brockton resident is making history in the Brockton Police Department. Brockton Chief of Police Emanuel Gomes told the City Council Finance Committee on Monday that Brenda Perez will be promoted to the rank of lieutenant — the highest rank a woman has ever achieved on the police force. She will serve as an interim lieutenant until a permanent spot opens.

"It's a historic moment," Chief Gomes said told the committee. "And I'm very proud of the fact that she will be the first female lieutenant on the Brockton Police Department.

“As a lifelong resident of Brockton, I am honored to be recommended for
promotion as the first female police lieutenant in the city," Lt. Perez told the City Council. "I'm
humbled and grateful, and I recognize the significance not only of the moment as a woman but as a first-generation minority."

Perez is of Puerto Rico heritage and was born to parents who came to the mainland United States to work seasonally in cranberry bogs to provide a living for their family. Perez is a Brockton High alumna who received her Master's Degree from Curry College. She served for 24 years in the Army Reserves who retired at the rank of Master Sergeant.

Perez heads the Records Division, which in addition to overseeing all records in the police department, includes those records having to do with grants, firearms, and crime analysis.