Like son, like father

It's not uncommon for a son to follow in his father's footsteps.

On Thursday, a father followed in his son's.

Thirty-two recruits graduated to become corrections officers for the Metropolitan Police Department. Among those were Victor and Christopher Hunter, the first father-son duo in the department's history to graduate together.

"I thought it would be a good thing for my dad to do," said Christopher, who had previously worked in law enforcement in Chandler, Ariz. "It's a long-lasting career."

Victor, 45, from Los Angeles, spent the past 25 years working for Vons grocery but was injured and out of work.

Christopher was moving to Las Vegas to take advantage of the higher pay the Police Department offered and thought it would be a good fit for his dad as well.

"I had always pushed him to go into law enforcement," said Victor. "So when this opportunity came, he was the one who pushed me."

They went through the application process and, after passing background, physical and general knowledge tests, began the 14 weeks of training at the academy.

During their time at the academy, Victor, who is a little slimmer than Christopher, had less of a problem with the physical tests, but struggled a bit with the academics.

"I had to drag him along most of the time," Victor said, laughing. "But it was a great team effort."

For Christopher, his strengths were opposite, so he helped his father with the academic side of things.

"We studied together and trained together," Christopher said. "We were each other's backbone throughout the academy."

During graduation, Victor was the first to receive his badge. He then turned around to pin on his son's badge.

It was an emotional experience for both men. But after spending so much time together, Victor said, "We can't wait to get away from each other."

The graduating class included 32 officers. Five were from the Las Vegas area, with 21 from outside Nevada.

"Irregardless of where they come from, there's something they all share," Undersheriff Rod Jett said during the ceremony. "And that is a strong desire to serve the community."

Contact reporter Scott Spjut at sspjut@reviewjournal.com or (702) 383-0279.