Fund drive for police museum launched
WASHINGTON -- You're a cop. You've been summoned to an alley behind a strip mall that's a known drug hangout. You hail a man and two women lounging by an old car.
The man, a beefy guy in a plaid workshirt, gets belligerent and starts toward you. One of the women grabs his arm to hold him back, and as you focus on them, the other woman slips a pistol from her pocket and opens fire.
Bang. You're dead.
This big-screen interactive simulation of an 8-second slice in the virtual life of a police officer was demonstrated as th e National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund this week kicked off the money-raising campaign for a new museum, planned to open in Washington in 2011.
Nearly $30 million has been raised for the museum, which is designed to showcase police work and the history of American law enforcement. Wednesday's event began a drive to raise the rest of the $80 million cost, with officials previewing some of the attractions.
The police training simulation, in which participants must make snap shoot-or-don't-shoot decisions, is one of several interactive features. Visitors also will be able to attend a simulated autopsy, do realistic forensic and detective work, and see a world-class collection of police memorabilia, museum officials said.
The fund-raising drive was launched at the National Press Club, with a boost from former presidents Bill Clinton and George H. W. Bush, who spoke via video recording.
Also present was Jean Hill, president of Concerns of Police Survivors, which supports families and friends of slain police officers. Hill's son, Barry Hill, a 38-year-old deputy sheriff in Harris, Texas, was shot and killed while trying to arrest a car thief on Dec. 4, 2000.
"It's a matter of honor that we not forget the sacrifice of the living or the dead, and with the construction of the National Law Enforcement Museum we will forever be honoring all men and women who have taken the oath to protect and to serve," she said. A hall of remembrance is planned to honor the country's 17,500 fallen police officers.
Plans call for the 90,000-square-foot museum to be built across from the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial, according to the fund's chairman, Craig Floyd.
A sampling of museum artifacts on display included historic handcuffs and badges, some collectible crime cards featuring the likes of Machine Gun Kelly and John Dillinger, and an original "Wanted" poster from the 1932 kidnapping of the son of famed aviator Charles Lindbergh.
