Tyreek Hill has accepted he should have handled himself differently with police before they violently pinned him to the ground at a traffic stop on Sunday.
The Miami Dolphins star was asked on Wednesday if he thought he could have been more cooperative with cops after the bodycam footage of the incident emerged. He said: ‘I have (thought about it). My whole life is all about accountability. How can I get better?
‘I have family members who are cops. We’ve had conversations. Yes, I will say I could have been better. I could have let down my window in that instant.
‘The thing about me is I don’t want attention. I don’t want to be cameras out, phones on you in that moment. But at the end of the day I am human, I have got to follow rules and do what everyone else would do.
‘Now, does that give them the right to literally beat the dog out of me? Absolutely not. But at the end of the day I wish I could go back and do things a bit differently.’
Hill continued: ‘We have influence on the community. I don’t think we should use this as a moment to separate people or divide people, or make it a battle.
‘I still love cops. I want to be a cop. I’ve been standing on a table for the cops. At the end of the day, right now I’m focusing on my job, playing football.
‘I’ve been praying a lot with my wife. Having conversations with my mom a lot. The biggest thing for me is making sure I am alright and my family have been doing a great job on that.
‘I went to the grocery store last night and my wife called me literally 10 times. It’s crazy.
‘I was in the movie theater when they released the bodycam, watching Beetlejuice. When I saw it, for me I felt like I handled myself well in that situation but like I say, I can be better
But it’s shell-shocking, man. It is really crazy to know you have officers in this world that would literally do that when the bodycam is on. It is sad. What would they do if they didn’t have bodycams?
‘It is a lot to unpack, it is a lot we can learn. In football, how we get better from things is we watch the tape and we get better. This instance, we should do the same.’
Speaking moments before Hill, Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel agreed his player could have behaved differently with police prior to his violent apprehension on Sunday. But as McDaniel stressed to reporters on Tuesday, that doesn’t make his violent encounter with Miami-Dade police any less outrageous.
‘It wasn’t shock,’ McDaniel told reporters Tuesday when asked to react to the police footage of the violent incident. ‘It was sadness.’
Hill has since been cited for reckless driving and failing to wear a seatbelt after he was pinned to the ground and handcuffed by police while making his way to the team’s game against the visiting Jacksonville Jaguars. Police footage shows Hill struggling to follow instructions when an officer – later identified as Danny Torres – opened the receiver’s car door and violently handcuffed him before forcing him to the ground.
McDaniel was asked Tuesday if Hill could have done things differently during the encounter.
‘There are always things you can do different,’ McDaniel said, before agreeing with the premise of the question.
‘That’s a totally separate conversation,’ McDaniel said, before adding: ‘But for sure.’
Ultimately, McDaniel feels that Hill did nothing to provoke the violent reaction from Torres.
‘A conversation of what provoked the unnecessary is trivial to the unnecessary,’ McDaniel said.
Hill has battled personal issues throughout his college and NFL careers. He was accused of punching his now-former girlfriend Crystal Espinal in 2014, leading to his expulsion from Oklahoma State. Later, in 2019, Hill was investigated for allegedly abusing his son, who somehow sustained a broken arm.
While he did plead guilty to domestic assault and battery by strangulation, the 2019 probe did not lead to any conviction or even charges being filed.
Hill now has around 10 children, depending on the outcome of pending paternity cases.
Despite it all, McDaniel said he has seen Hill mature as a person.
‘Tyreek is a different human being than when I first met him,’ McDaniel told reporters. ‘He continues to evolve… You are held accountable for the things that people know. Sometimes when you’re taking a step forward, there’s another step back.’
Hill has since called for the firing of Torres, who has been placed on leave.
Hill believes a greater price must be paid for what he claimed to be ‘excessive’ force used against him.
‘After a careful and thorough review of the multiple body cameras and concern citizens’ videos that captured the unfortunate events that transpired on Sunday, September 8, 2024, between several officers of the Miami Dade Police Department and Tyreek Hill, we are demanding for the immediate termination of the officer that has been placed on administrative leave,’ Hill said in a statement via attorney Julius B. Collins.
Shocking videos showed Hill being handcuffed and restrained on the floor after he was stopped for speeding, while one officer even appeared to strike him on the sidewalk .
As he was violently apprehended by police, several of Hill’s teammates pulled over to try to deescalate the situation, only for defensive tackle Calais Campbell to briefly be placed in handcuffs himself.
In the astonishing footage, which emerged earlier this week, cops could be heard telling Hill to ‘stop crying’ while the NFL star said: ‘ Take me to jail… do what you have to do.’
On Tuesday, the police citations claimed Hill was stopped because he was believed to be driving 60mph – without wearing a seatbelt. He was fined a combined total of $308.
‘On at least two occasions, the escalating officer placed his hands on or around Mr. Hill’s neck during the traffic stop. After Mr. Hill was forcefully pulled out of his vehicle by this officer was then forcefully put face down on the pavement,’ Hill’s statement from his attorney added.
‘The officer then placed his knee in Mr. Hill’s back and his hand around the back of Mr. Hill’s neck. Once Mr. Hill was placed in handcuffs and standing on the sidewalk, after being told to sit down, Mr. Hill notified the requesting officer of his intent to do so and there again, the same officer as before grabs Mr. Hill from behind and forces him down to the ground. While doing so, the officer then again placed his hand on or around Mr. Hill’s neck.
‘Even while Mr. Hill was advising the officer that he had a procedure done on his knee, the officer ignored his statement and continued his escalation in his use of force.
‘Each action that a law enforcement official take is governed by standard operation procedures. We are of the opinion that the officers’ use of force was excessive, escalating, and reckless. We are demanding that the officer be terminated effective immediately.’
