Tyreek Hill calls for accountability after detainment by Miami-Dade Police, says bodycam video can be "learning tool"
MIAMI — NFL star wide receiver Tyreek Hill called for more accountability after Miami-Dade Police detained him ahead of the Miami Dolphins opening game on Sunday, saying bodycam video showing the incident could be used as a "learning tool."
Hill spoke to the media Wednesday, after Miami-Dade Police identified one of the officers involved in the incident and after Hill's agent, Drew Rosenhaus, called for the termination of all officers involved.
Hill agreed that an officer who was placed on administrative duties should be fired.
"He got to go because in that instance right there, not only did he treat me bad, he also treated my teammates with disrespect," Hill said.
"There's not too many times that Cheetah says people got to go, but you out. Gone," he added.
Before the formal press conference, Hill took a moment to recognize Wednesday as the observance of 23 years since the terror attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, honoring those who died during the attacks and those who went to battle in the Middle East in the following years.
"My prayers are with you and your family always," he said, giving them thanks before turning back to why he came before the press again.
When questioned about his previous and unrelated actions off the gridiron, one reporter asked how the star wide receiver has grown over the years. Hill said the incident happened "at the right time" because he had matured in the way he has handled himself in the past.
"I have done all that [and] now see how important it is to be a father, be a husband, be a son, to be that family man that my grandparents raised me to be," he said.
Hill added that he is now handling himself with "a lot of dignity and a lot of respect."
"My whole life has been about accountability, like 'How can I get better?'" he said.
While sharing how he believed he could have handled the traffic stop better, such as keeping his window down, Hill said it does not excuse the officers' actions during the incident.
"Does that give them the right to literally beat the dog out of me? Absolutely not," he said. "But at the end of the day, I wish I could go back and do things a bit differently."
When the bodycam video was released, Hill said he was "unphased" by the images because he said he's "not the only one that goes through that," and acknowledged that not everyone who had similar experiences as him also shared the same resources he does as a professional athlete.
"That's why I was able to go out [and] play the way I did because I'm known to it, it's kind of expected," he said.
When asked what he would say to others to help them handle themselves better if they were caught in the same situation, Hill said he didn't have a "message" to share at this time as he's in the process of "putting together a good plan" to work together with them.
"I think it's good that we should lean on each other," he said. "We have influence on the community and I don't think that we should use this as a moment to separate people or divide people or make it a battle or anything like that."
Hill said he's focusing mainly on how he can continue to be a better football player as he prays and ttalks with his family about how to move forward.
Hill's detainment
Hill, 30, was detained by police on Sunday morning, just hours before the Dolphins' home opener against the Jacksonville Jaguars. A senior law enforcement source told CBS News Miami he was stopped for reckless driving.
Video of his detainment went viral on social media, showing passing fans and some teammates seeing Hill in handcuffs on the side of the road with at least three officers around him.
Following the incident, Hill went on to play in Sunday's game, where he placed his hands behind his back and pretended to be handcuffed following his 80-yard touchdown catch. After the game, Hill told the media his side of what happened during the incident.
On Monday, Miami-Dade Police released bodycam video of the officers detaining Hill. In it, two motorcycle officers went after Hill after he appeared to speed past them in a black McLaren on the roadway and entering Hard Rock Stadium in light traffic. The officers then pulled him over.
One of the motorcycle officers then went to knock on Hill's window and told him to put it down, which Hill did and handed him his driver's license. After a brief argument about keeping the window down, the officer demanded Hill to open his door as the second officer commanded him to get out of his sports car.
As the door opened, the second officer is seen dragging Hill out of his car by his arm and head before forcing him face-first onto the ground after the Dolphins wide receiver put up his window during the traffic stop. During the altercation, Hill is seen and heard telling Drew Brooks, the Dolphins' director of security, on his cellphone that he was "getting arrested." The officers handcuffed Hill and one of them was shown putting a knee in the middle of the wide receiver's back. Rosenhaus also came to the scene.
The video showed the altercation between the officers and Hill escalating quickly, as they cursed at Hill but he did not resist their physical force or strike them. The officers then stood Hill up and walked him to the sidewalk, pulling him into a seating position as Hill tried to explain to police he had recently had knee surgery.
At this moment, teammate Jonnu Smith parked his SUV in front of Hill's car, got out and asked police what was happening. The officers then ordered Smith to get back into his car and leave, saying they would ticket him for blocking the road. Defensive tackle Calais Campbell also pulled up to the scene, where officers told him to leave. When he didn't, Campbell was briefly handcuffed.
Hill and Campbell were eventually released and allowed to go into the stadium. Hill was cited for careless driving and failing to wear a seatbelt, but he was never arrested.
When asked about where he was when his "moment of vulnerability" was broadcast to the world, Hill said he was watching "Beetlejuice Beetlejuice" when he got a call from Drew Brooks about the bodycam video's release.
"I feel like I handled myself well in that situation but obviously, like I said, I could be better," he said. 'But, it's shell-shocking."
Hill continued, calling the incident "sad" because it brought up the conversation about how police officers act whether they're wearing body cameras. However, he added that the video can be used as a "learning tool" for everybody to move forward and hold each other accountable.
When asked whether there will be apologies and compromises coming from both sides of the incident, Hill said it's "up to everyone's judgment to have their own opinion about how they feel about the video."
"My whole goal and my whole thing around this whole thing is to not go backward," he said. "I don't want us to go backward, I want us to move forward in this moment."
Detainment aftermath
The officer who detained Hill was placed on administrative duties, pending the findings of an internal investigation. Steadman Stahl, the president of the South Florida Police Benevolent Association, said the officers followed policy in handcuffing Hill.
In a statement Sunday afternoon, Miami-Dade Police Director Stephanie V. Daniels said she requested an "immediate review" of the details surrounding the incident and initiated an Internal Affairs investigation "to ensure a thorough review of the matter."
Daniels wrote she is committed to "transparency and accountability to the community with any situation involving my officers."
Daniels told news partner the Miami Herald on Monday that the decision to place the officer on leave came after a review of the body camera footage from the roadside incident.
In a statement Monday night, the Miami Dolphins called the behavior of the officers who were involved "despicable" and urged the Miami-Dade Police Department to take "swift and strong action" against them.
Julius Collins, Hill's attorney, said on Tuesday they are "demanding for the immediate termination of the officer that has been placed on administrative leave." He also said the wide receiver's legal team is exploring all legal options, adding that the traffic stop escalated when Hill gave officers his license and rolled his window back up.