Body camera footage reveals Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill being forcibly removed from his car by police officers after a traffic stop. Police justified the action, explaining that Hill was pulled from his vehicle, handcuffed and placed face down because he was not “immediately cooperative.” Hill, however, maintained that he was respectful throughout the encounter. The incident, which involved at least three officers, occurred outside the team’s home stadium and quickly gained attention online after videos circulated on social media. Hill stated that he still didn’t understand why he was handcuffed, despite his polite and non-aggravating demeanor.
The president of the South Florida Police Benevolent Association, Steadman Stahl, shared that Hill was “redirected” to the ground as he refused to comply with the officers’ orders to sit. According to Stahl, Hill was not taken under formal arrest. Instead, he was handcuffed for the officers’ security due to his reckless driving, which had apparently endangered himself and others around him. Allegedly, the situation was resolved within minutes; Hill received two traffic citations and was then allowed to depart.
The exact charges for which Hill was stopped remain unclear – while Hill claims he was told he was driving recklessly and speeding, Miami-Dade police have not confirmed these allegations. They verified, however, that Hill’s teammate Calais Campbell, who was also briefly detained, wasn’t cited. Following the incident, the officer involved was placed on administrative duty, which is a standard procedure while investigations take place.
Miami-Dade Police director, Stephanie Daniels, in an interview with the Miami Herald said that the decision to put the officer on leave was made after reviewing the body camera footage. The police department declined to release the footage publicly due to the ongoing internal investigation. The mayor of Miami-Dade County, Daniella Levine Cava, praised the department for their swift start of the investigation and hoped it would answer the questions raised by the video footage of the altercation.
Adding to the complexity of the situation, Hill’s teammate, Calais Campbell, was also briefly handcuffed. Campbell had tried to deescalate the encounter between Hill and the officers. According to Campbell, he spotted Hill in handcuffs en route to their game, noticing that the police seemed to be forcefully trying to get Hill on the ground. After witnessing what he described as the mishandling of Hill, Campbell reached the scene with his hands up and informed the officers of his acquaintance with Hill, only to find himself handcuffed as he allegedly disobeyed a direct order by staying too close to the scene.
The incident comes as another off-field controversy surrounding Hill, who has a history of accusations involving domestic violence and assault; resulting in his ejection from his college team and a previous investigation by Miami-Dade police. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis deemed the opening of the investigation into this matter as appropriate, expressing his confidence in the police agencies to uphold high standards of professionalism.
