Dolphins star Tyreek Hill calls for detaining officer to be fired
The arrest has reignited the debate over the treatment of black people in America
Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill has called for one of the police officers involved in his detainment on Sunday to be fired.
Hill was pulled over for an alleged speeding offence as he made his way to Hard Rock Stadium for the Week 1 opener against the Jacksonville Jaguars.
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Body cam footage released on Monday showed Hill and one officer, now identified as Danny Torres, in a verbal exchange before the NFL star was forcibly removed from his vehicle, placed on the ground and put in handcuffs.
Hill, speaking through a statement released by his attorney Julius Collins, said: “Each action that a law enforcement official take is governed by standard operating procedures.
“We are of the opinion that the officer’s use of force was excessive, escalating, and reckless. We are demanding that the officer be terminated effective immediately.
“The events that occurred on Sunday, September 8, 2024, are just a reminder of the realities of the many injustices that people of black and minority communities face at the hands of law enforcement.
“While we are in no way accusing the officer of being racist, we are accusing the customs and practices of law enforcement from a historical standpoint of being discriminatory and oppressive to black and minority communities. We cannot ignore this fact and remain silent on the issue just because it’s a tough conversation.”
Body cam footage of Tyreek Hill and Calais Campbell’s detainment Sunday has been released pic.twitter.com/aZw5eNy6Ht
— Marcel Louis-Jacques (@Marcel_LJ) September 9, 2024
Torres was placed on administrative leave on Sunday evening as a result of the incident with footage taken by passers-by going viral on social media.
His attorneys, Ignacio Alvarez of ALGO Law Firm and Israel Reyes of The Reyes Law Firm, said that decision was premature and called for his immediate reinstatement until a thorough review – as announced by Miami-Dade PD director Stephanie Daniels – has concluded.
“We call for our client’s immediate reinstatement, and a complete, thorough, and objective investigation, as Director Daniels has also advocated,” Alvarez and Reyes said in a news release.
“Our client will not comment until this investigation is concluded and the facts are fully revealed.”