The Miami Dolphins have sharply criticized the behavior of police officers during a brief arrest of NFL professional Tyreek Hill before the season opener. In a statement, they said: “It is both insane and heartbreaking to see the very people we trust to protect our community use such unnecessary violence.” Hill’s teammates Calais Campbell and Jonnu Smith were also involved in the incident.
Recommended editorial content
Here you will find external content selected by our editors that enriches the article with additional information. You can display or hide the external content with one click.
I agree to the external content being displayed to me. This means that personal data can be transmitted to third-party platforms. You can find more information about this in the data protection settings. You can find these at the very bottom of our page in the footer, so that you can manage or revoke your settings at any time.
In a video from a bodycam of a police officer who was present at the operation, Hill can be seen standing on the side of the road in a supercar. A police officer comes to his car, Hill hands the officer something through the lowered window and then rolls it back up again.
The police officer then asks him to roll down the window again, but Hill does not do so. Another police officer then forcefully opens the driver’s door, Hill is pulled out of the car and pressed to the ground. An officer presses his knee into Hill’s back. The 30-year-old is handcuffed.
Dolphins: Officials with misplaced power
“We are proud to have a strong and positive relationship with the Miami-Dade Police Department and other law enforcement agencies and recognize that the vast majority of officers serve the community with the utmost character and a desire to protect all citizens. However, as is clearly seen in the videos released tonight, some officers confuse their responsibility and commitment to duty with misguided power,” the Dolphins wrote.
The NFL club called for swift and forceful action against the officials “who exhibited such despicable behavior” and assured the players that it would stand by them “as they work to use their platform and this situation should have a positive impact on our community.”
An official was initially suspended
Hill, who scored an 80-yard touchdown in the 20-17 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars to start the season, stressed after the game that he had behaved correctly towards the officials: “I was not disrespectful, that’s not how my mother raised me. I didn’t swear, none of that. Like I said, I’m still trying to understand it.” He had never seen anything like it, said Hill’s manager Drew Rosenhaus on ESPN. According to media reports, one of the officials was initially suspended.
According to Hill, he himself was stopped for speeding and reckless driving, reported the American news agency AP.
