Las Vegas Police Protective Association
Kirk Hooten
Published Friday, Nov. 22, 2019 | 2:52 p.m.
Updated Friday, Nov. 22, 2019 | 6:40 p.m.
A retired Metro Police officer has been accused of soliciting a teenager for prostitution, according to Las Vegas Justice Court records.
Kirk Reed Hooten, 51, was booked Thursday at the Clark County Detention Center on one count of being a customer engaging in soliciting a child for prostitution, Metro booking logs show.
He has since posted a $10,000 bond, court records show.
Metro learned about the alleged incident on Nov. 15 through a social media post, police said. The same day, detectives found the alleged victim and her family and further investigated the allegations, identifying Hooten as a suspect, police said.
Further details were not immediately available.
Attorney David Chesnoff, who is representing Hooten, said the public should reserve judgement, noting that the “true facts” will come out in court.
Hooten is set to appear in court Monday.
Metro issued a statement on behalf of Clark County Sheriff Joe Lombardo, who calls Hooten a friend.
“Yes, among the many friends I have on the department, Kirk is one of them. I’ve known him for many years and I find his arrest distressing,” Lombardo said.
Hooten's wife, whom he wed in 1993, according to Clark County public records, is a sergeant with Metro.
Hooten was hired the following October and retired April of this year, according to spokesman Officer Larry Hadfield.
In 2018, Hooten was on the Las Vegas Police Protective Association board of directors, in charge of health care, according to a pamphlet of the organization, which represents Metro's rank-and-file officers.
His status with the union was not immediately unknown.
