Carson City Sheriff's Office gets baton in final leg of Law Enforcement Memorial Run

The Carson City Sheriff's Office was handed the baton this Wednesday afternoon in the final leg of the annual Law Enforcement Memorial Run which began April 27 in Las Vegas.

Each leg of the run is completed in the memory of each officer listed on the state law enforcement memorial in Carson City. The final leg is dedicated in memory of Carson City Sheriff's Deputy Carl Howell who died in the line of duty August 15, 2015.

Howell will be honored at the 19th annual Nevada Law Enforcement Officers Memorial ceremony Thursday, noon in Carson City.

The service will honor the 129 Nevada Peace Officers who have been killed in the line of duty. More than 100 police Honor Guards, accompanied by a Pipe and Drum Corp, buglers, rifles teams and horse mounted officers are expected to participate in the memorial service.

The first officer killed in the line of duty was Carson County Nevada Territory Sheriff John L. Blackburn who was killed in 1861 while making an arrest. The last officer killed in the line of duty was Deputy Howell of the Carson City Sheriff’s Office who was murdered while he handled a domestic violence dispute on August 15, 2015.

The service will begin with the presentation of colors by the combined Nevada Law Enforcement Honor Guard and the delivery of a runner’s memorial baton. The baton is being relayed by Nevada peace officers from Las Vegas to Carson City. The Annual Law Enforcement Memorial Run began Wednesday, April 27 with each leg of the run completed in the memory of each officer listed on the memorial.

This year, Deputy Howell will honored at the memorial service. Sheriff Ken Furlong will dedicate his name in the memory of the ultimate sacrifice Howell made in the service of the citizens of Nevada. Special keynote speakers will be Gov. Brian Sandoval and Carson City Assemblyman P. K. O’Neill.

The Nevada Law Enforcement Officers Memorial was dedicated on May 13, 1998 when Gov. Bob Miller, hundreds of state dignitaries and law enforcement officers from around the nation attended the first Nevada Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Ceremony. The memorial to Nevada's slain law enforcement officers was built through private funds. The fund raising effort was led by the Nevada Conference of Police and Sheriffs. The Memorial receives no funding from any government agency. The maintenance and up-keep is also paid by private contributions.

Thursday's event culminates with the presentation of the baton carried from Las Vegas to Carson City for the Nevada Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Run.

Each year in May, Nevada's law enforcement officers make an Olympic type run from Las Vegas to the Memorial in Carson City. They carry a roll of the names of all the officers that have lost their lives so they will always be remembered. It starts a week before the Memorial Ceremony and ends at the presentation.

Also, there are two fundraisers underway to raise money for Carson City Honor Guard to attend memorial services in Washington, D.C.

A fundraiser to help pay for expenses associated with a memorial for Deputy at the National Law Enforcement Memorial in Washington, D.C. will be held immediately following Thursday's Nevada Law Enforcement Officer Memorial.

The Carson City Deputy Sheriff’s Association, the Carson City Sheriff Supervisors Association and the Fraternal Order of Police Association will hold the fundraising event at Jimmy G’s Cigar Bar, 301 N. Carson Street.

The three associations are teaming up to assist deputies who were on scene the night Deputy Howell was killed and Honor Guard members who are attending the National Law Enforcement Memorial.

Monies raised will help with the cost of travel and lodging as they travel to Washington, D.C. to honor Deputy Howell when his name is added to the wall at the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial.

The public is invited to participate at Jimmy G’s. If you cannot attend and would like to help, donations can be dropped by the Sheriff’s Office at 911 E. Musser Street (Att: Don Gibson or Jim Primka). Checks can be written to CCDSA or CCSSA “Howell DC Memorial.”

Also, a raffle is being held by Carson City Sheriff’s Office Honor Guard to send members to Washington D.C., for the National Law Enforcement Memorial. The item to be raffled is a River Rock Elite Comp rifle valued at $1,515.

Tickets are available at the Carson City Sheriff’s Office front counter from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. (Ask for Sgt. Fry or any Honor Guard member). Tickets will also be available at the State Honor Guard Memorial practice at the capitol grounds Wednesday between noon and 3 p.m.