LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — Law enforcement officers are on the move as the 23rd Annual Nevada Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Relay Run kicked off in Las Vegas on Wednesday.
Participants from each area jurisdiction will run a specific distance carrying a baton containing the names of the officers on the Nevada Law Enforcement Officers Memorial, which is in Carson City.
We don't forget.
— LVMPD (@LVMPD) April 27, 2023
Nevada Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Run began today and will cover more than 400 miles.
The run ends on May 4 in Carson City.
There will be 8 officers added to the Nevada Law Enforcement Officers Memorial this year: 💙 pic.twitter.com/NUJ3GdC1t7
Eight officers will be added to the memorial this year.
That includes LVMPD's Officer Philip Closi, Sergeant Douglas King, Officer Ed Contreras, Detective Justin Tery, and Officer Truong Thai.
Officer Thai was shot and killed while responding to a domestic call. He had been with the department for 23 years.
Detective Terry died in an accident on his way to work after a construction beam was knocked from an overpass and fell onto the highway. LVMPD said he spent most of his 21-year career protecting vulnerable children in the Homicide Sex Crimes Bureau.
Officer Closi, Sergeant King, and Officer Contreras all passed away due to COVID-19. Closi had been with the department for 21 years and worked on multiple school programs to combat drugs, graffiti and safety issues.
King was a second-generation police officer who served for 17 years. He was scheduled to receive the Medal of Honor for protecting a domestic violence victim when he passed away.
Officer Contreras was a Marine Corps combat veteran who served for 15 years and was assigned to the Traffic Bureau where his brother Michael still works.
Homeland Security Senior Federal Air Marshal Shawn Hennessee, Walker River Paiute Police Department's Officer Ray East, and U.S. Marshals Service's Special Deputy Marshal Joe Gomez will also be added to the memorial.
The event runs through May 4 and leads up to National Police Memorial Week, which is May 9 through May 15.
On Wednesday, Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department Sheriff Kevin McMahill kicked off the start of this 487-mile run with an event at Police Memorial Park.
Nevada Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Run!
— LVMPD (@LVMPD) April 26, 2023
The 23rd annual event kicked off this morning at Police Memorial Park in @LVMPDNWAC.
Law enforcement from all over Southern Nevada took part.
The 487-mile run started with @Sheriff_LVMPD running the first leg. pic.twitter.com/KusXVR2e7T
LVMPD said runners also passed Darnell Elementary School and Thompson Elementary School today and that students made signs with the fallen officers' names to show their support.
Officers started at Police Memorial Park on Cheyenne and Metro Academy Way all the way up the U.S. 95 through Indian Springs and Cactus Springs before ending at Mile Marker 131.
That's where they will start tomorrow as they run north on the 95 through Mercury, Amargosa Valley, and Beatty before ending at Nye Mile Marker 60. On Friday, they'll travel up the 95 and end at Esmeralda Mile Marker 21. On Saturday, they'll wrap up the Southern Nevada leg of the run by going through Gold Field and ending at Mile Marker 108 near Tonopah.
