Police union: Dolphins’ Hill not ‘immediately cooperative’ with officers during stop

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — The president of South Florida’s police union said Miami Dolphins receiver Tyreek Hill was handcuffed and placed face down on the ground during a traffic stop because he was not “immediately cooperative” with officers, but Hill said he was respectful throughout the interaction.

Steadman Stahl, president of the South Florida Police Benevolent Association, said Hill was “redirected” to the ground after refusing to sit when he was briefly detained outside the Dolphins’ home stadium in an incident that resulted in one officer being immediately placed on administrative leave amid an internal investigation.

Julius B. Collins, Hill’s attorney, said the receiver’s legal team is exploring all legal options and called the officers’ actions “excessive.”

Passing fans and some teammates saw Hill in handcuffs on the side of the road with at least three officers around him following the stop that quickly went viral just hours before the Dolphins kicked off their season Sunday.

“I wasn’t disrespectful because my mom didn’t raise me that way,” Hill said. “Didn’t cuss. Didn’t do none of that. So like I said, I’m still trying to figure it out, man.”

Collins, in a statement released Monday afternoon, said the traffic stop escalated when Hill gave officers his license and rolled his window back up.

“One of the officers then knocked on Mr. Hill’s driver side window and advised Mr. Hill to keep his window rolled down otherwise he was going to get him out of the car,” Collins said, adding that Hill rolled his window down each time he was asked to.

In his statement released earlier Sunday, Stahl said officers followed policy in handcuffing Hill.

“At no time was he ever under arrest,” Stahl said. “He was briefly detained for officer safety, after driving in a manner in which he was putting himself and others in great risk of danger.

“Upon being stopped, Mr. Hill was not immediately cooperative with the officers on the scene who, pursuant to policy and for their immediate safety, placed Mr. Hill in handcuffs. Mr. Hill, still uncooperative, refused to sit on the ground and was therefore redirected to the ground. Once the situation was sorted out within a few minutes, Mr. Hill was issued two traffic citations and was free to leave.”

Miami-Dade police still aren’t saying what infraction Hill was cited with — he said they told him he was stopped for speeding and reckless driving — but they have confirmed that Hill’s teammate Calais Campbell, who was also briefly detained, wasn’t cited. The officer who detained Hill has been placed on administrative duty, pending the findings of the internal investigation, which is normal procedure.

Miami-Dade Police director Stephanie Daniels told 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.

The Miami-Dade police department has declined an Associated Press request for the footage, citing the ongoing internal investigation.

“Mr. Hill understands the inherently dangerous job that law enforcement is tasked with and understands that officer safety is important;” read Collins’ statement, “however, at no point in time did Mr. Hill pose a threat to these officers. We believe that this matter was escalated due to overzealous officers attempting to impose their authority on Mr. Hill because they were not pleased with how fast he complied with their request and that Mr. Hill did not roll down his window far enough to their liking.”

Daniella Levine Cava, the mayor of Miami-Dade County, released a statement commending the department’s immediate launch of an investigation.

“In recent years, our nation has confronted important conversations on the use of force,” she said, “and the internal review process will answer questions about why the troubling actions shown in public video footage were taken by the officer.”

Hill’s teammate, Campbell, was also briefly handcuffed after he said he tried to de-escalate the situation. Campbell said he was on his way to the game when he saw Hill handcuffed.

“They were trying to yank him down to the ground,” Campbell said Monday on ESPN. “I saw them kick him and pull him down … I feel like one officer was pushing on his head.”

Campbell said he got out of his car with his hands up above his head and approached the scene, informing officers that he was a friend of Hill’s. He remained at the scene to “support” Hill after he said officers asked him to leave. Police later placed him in handcuffs for “disobeying a direct order” by being too close.

Campbell said tight end Jonnu Smith and later receiver Odell Beckham Jr. were also there to support Hill, who repeated to them, “Don’t leave me.”

Hill, 30, who is Black, said he wondered what would have happened to him if he weren’t an NFL star. Some of his teammates who are also Black said they were used to seeing that sort of interaction.

“Excessive force on a Black man, that’s not uncommon,” said safety Jevon Holland. “It’s a very common thing in America. So I think that needs to be addressed at a countrywide level.”

Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel said Monday he was upset by the situation. McDaniel appeared to fight back tears as he reflected on the incident.

“It’s probably more visceral because, yes, I do spend a lot of time prioritizing empathy, and when you know you can’t truly understand, the unknown is what crushes me,” McDaniel said. “I can only forecast, and so my forecast — what if it’s worse?”

Gov. Ron DeSantis, speaking at an unrelated event in Miami Lakes, Florida, on Monday, said he thought it was “appropriate” for the investigation into the officers’ conduct to be opened.

“I was pleased to see he did well in the game and it was good for the team, what happened on the field,” DeSantis said. “I have confidence in agencies throughout this state that they want to uphold the highest standards of professionalism and if for some reason that wasn’t followed here I know they will make that clear. But I’ll let that investigation take place.”

In May, golfer Scottie Scheffler was arrested and taken to jail after being accused of not following police orders during an investigation of a pedestrian fatality outside Valhalla Golf Course in Louisville, Kentucky, during the PGA Championship. Criminal charges against the Masters champion were later dropped.

This isn’t the first off-field incident involving Hill.

He was accused of punching his girlfriend in college and got kicked off the team at Oklahoma State, later pleading guilty to domestic assault and battery by strangulation. In 2019, prosecutors in suburban Kansas City declined to charge Hill after an alleged domestic violence incident involving his fiancée and their 3-year-old child.

Last offseason, Hill was under investigation by Miami-Dade police for assault and battery after it was reported that he got into an argument with a South Florida marina worker, which apparently ended with Hill hitting the worker. Hill and the man later resolved their dispute.