The DC Traveler

The new National Museum of Crime & Punishment in Washington, DC opened last weekend and I had a chance to take a tour.

The museum offers visitors lots of history, photos and interactive experiences on crime and punishment, law enforcement and CSI stuff. 

The interactive stations and hands activities are geared more for children, but enjoyable and educational for adults as well. Visit the including an Old West shooting gallery, the combination safe you can attempt to “crack”, as well as trying to hack into fictitious computer site. Test your driving skills on one of 5 high-speed police driving skills simulators or test your reactions on the FBI shooting range simulator.

For photo ops, there’s a classic pillory, representative of colonial crime punishment, the 1934 Ford coupe form the movie Bonnie & Clyde, a couple prison cells to give you an idea of what life behind bars might be like, as well as many more. 

The history of exhibits and artifacts range from Medieval times to modern day. For American crime stop by the Early American and Wild West periods, as well as the era that gave birth to organized crime in America – The Roaring 20s, complete with a recreation of Al Capone’s’ comfortable first cell at Eastern State, before he was transferred to Alcatraz.

Kids should love digital fingerprinting, experiencing how they look on a night-vision camera, visiting the crime lab and morgue while learning about how CSI’s investigate crime scenes. Want to know who broke Grandma’s vase? Try asking a few questions and see if your children can pass the lie detector test.

Along the tour, you’ll see where criminals end up if they fail a lie detector test – the guillotine, gas chamber or electric chair displays.

Don’t miss the exhibit that examines some of the dumbest criminals in history or the television studio for America’s Most Wanted, hosted by crime fighter, John Walsh.

NOTE: The extensive biographies, crime descriptions and photos of some of the nation’s worst criminals (Richard Speck, John Wayne Gacy, Charles Manson, Son of Sam and more) may not be suitable for very young children.

National Museum of Crime & Punishment
575 7th Street, NW 
Washington, D.C. 20004   (map it)
202-393-1099

Dates and Times – Hours vary by season so check the website for daily hours.

Tickets – Adults – $19.95, Kids 5-11 – $14.95, Seniors, Military and Law Enforcement – $16.95, kids under 5 – free. Tickets are timed (on the hour). Advanced tickets are recommended and available online or by calling 202-393-51099. 

Nearest Metro Subway Station – Gallery Place/Chinatown, Red, Yellow or Green line, then a 1-block walk or use the DC Circulator.

Parking – Metered street and area garage parking is available in the area.

Images – from personal collection   ©2008, Jon Rochetti 

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