Earlier this month, Citrus County Sheriff's Office Investigator John Plevell, a 29-year veteran of the Citrus County Sheriff’s Office, received some unexpected good news.

The acquisitions review committee for the first-ever National Law Enforcement Museum in Washington, D.C., is accepting his 2000 goldtone detective’s millennium badge as a “valuable addition to the NLEM’s badge collection.”

Plevell had made the offer back in mid-September.

When the century was due to roll over, Sheriff Jeff Dawsy gave his sworn officers the option of purchasing their own millennium badges, which were of a design selected by the agency. The badges would be worn for calendar year 2000, and then retired.

With his own retirement date fast approaching, Plevell wondered if the new museum might have an interest in acquiring one of his favorite law enforcement keepsakes for its own badge collection.

According to Vanya Scott, the museum’s collections manager, the badge will offer valuable research and educational opportunities for visitors. She went on to say that the museum staff works hard to balance numerous artifact donation offers to meet diverse educational, exhibit and scholarly needs. For helping to make the National Law Enforcement Museum a fitting, appropriate and lasting tribute to American law enforcement, Scott added her personal thanks.

Construction of the new museum isn’t due to commence until the fall of 2010, with completion expected by mid-2013. The museum will be located in historic Judiciary Square in the nation’s capital, adjacent to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial.

In 2000, the U.S. Congress and President Bill Clinton authorized the establishment of a National Law Enforcement Museum on federal land in Washington, D.C., paving the way for the nation’s largest and most comprehensive museum honoring the duty and sacrifice of America’s law enforcement officers. Furthermore, the authorizing law required that the museum be funded by private donations.

In an effort to keep the project on track despite the current economic climate of the country, the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund (which is in charge of the undertaking) decided to scale back the museum to a three-level, 55,000-square-foot facility.

Through interactive exhibitions and compelling first-person narratives, visitors will step into the lives of American law enforcement officers throughout history. They’ll witness how law enforcement has developed into a high-tech professional force to be reckoned with. And they’ll experience the physical and emotional challenges that law enforcement officers face every day, seeing what it really takes to keep America free and safe.

“I’m extremely pleased to know the Citrus County Sheriff’s Office will be recognized in one of the world-class museums on the National Mall,” Plevell said.