Metal detectors at Smithsonian museums are mostly unused

WASHINGTON — Metal detectors installed at the Smithsonian Institution's four most popular museums after the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks are not being used for most of the day because of a staff shortage, officials acknowledge.

Twenty-two machines, known as magnetometers, have been installed at the National Air and Space, American History, Natural History and American Indian museums since 2001.

The museums' approximately 15 million annual visitors all pass through the detectors. But except for an unspecified number of brief periods every day, the only security check they are actually subjected to is to have their bags checked, according to a memo from the National Air and Space Museum's security unit.

"I don't have the staff to do full-time screening" with the devices, said Smithsonian Security Director J. J. McLaughlin. Random screenings "was the second best thing we could do," he said.

"There is a lack of adequate security officers, and lines would be too long if people have to wait 30 (or) 45 minutes," he said. "We have to balance security and customer service."

A Smithsonian spokeswoman, Vicky Moeser, emphasized that "there are guards at all the entrances all the time. They check (for the presence of metal objects) when the magnetometers are on, and when they are not on, they are checking bags."

The machines warn of the presence of metal in two ways: by making a sound and by flashing red lights. For a certain number of 15-minute periods each day the sound is turned on, and only people who trigger a beep are scanned with a hand detector, according to a security officer who asked not to be identified.

"Security officers will not inform visitors of the discontinuation of electronic screening," the security unit memo says.

Officials would not say what percentage of the museums' visiting hours the sound is turned on. A computer selects exact times for the screenings, McLaughlin said.

"You don't know when we do random screening," he said. "These were tough decisions to make, and nobody at the Smithsonian wanted them."

At least an additional 60 officers would be needed to staff the magnetometers and check handbags full time at the four museums, McLaughlin said. He noted that like many security agencies, "we have a large turnover. Security officers go to better-paying security jobs."

Operating each magnetometer station requires three officers, he said. One officer welcomes visitors, a second instructs them to walk though detectors, and a third uses a hand detector when needed.

A supervising security officer who asked not to be identified called Smithsonian security measures little more than a pretense.

"They pull (guards) to the gallery (and) take the officers away from the door under the impression that if you have officers walking around people won't try anything," he said.

But he added, "It is a facade that the appearance of a first-rate security system is a deterrent factor."

Although there has not been a serious security breach, the officer said he is concerned. He said that in one incident, bail bondsmen were arrested after they reported bringing guns into one of the museums. Had they not volunteered the information, the officer said, they could have remained in the museum with their weapons.

"If it's not 'mag time,' nobody is going to ask you anything," he said, using the security term for the period when the machines' alarms are activated. "If you have a gun in your pocket, and the magnetometer turns red, nobody is going to check because they have been ordered not to check."

Officers do perform "a thorough but speedy" hand check of bags, according to the Smithsonian Web site.

Some visitors have complained that the security checks are too swift.

Debbie Williams, a Tennessean visiting the nation's capital during the Cherry Blossom Festival in April, said she expected her cell phone to trigger a beep when she walked through detectors in the American History Museum.

"I feel safe, but I am just concerned my phone did not" set off an alarm, she said.

Orlando Alvarez of Richmond, Va., complained about the bag checks.

"There was very little (of a) check at the front door," he said. "They need to put more people out there."

The Smithsonian's Office of Protective Services has a staff of 800, including security officers and administrative personnel, McLaughlin said.

The museums received $57.5 million in federal funding for security for the current fiscal year, up 4.1 percent from the previous year.

Close to $1 million dollars of that is for hiring 34 security officers to screen at the National Museum of Natural History, according to a Smithsonian Facilities Operations, Security and Support budget request summary.

A new class of officers joined the department this May, according to McLaughlin. The Smithsonian refused to specify exact numbers because of security reasons.