Officers Under Fire, Athletes Above the Law: The Tyreek Hill Dilemma
When you get to the basics and strip away the nonsense, you really just have a prolific criminal resisting arrest
Authoritative sources have said that Tyreek Hill was clocked at 120 mph (193 k/mh) in a 40 mph (63 k/mh) zone before being pulled over by off duty officers working a detail. Some accounts have him doing 60 mph in a construction zone which is an enhanced penalty when workers are present. I really don’t see legal margin for error when you are looking at a range of 50% over or 200% over the speed limit.
“Part of being a police officer is having patience,” says a contributor on X. “They didn’t need to be so aggressive and could have game (sic) him more time to comply instead of escalating it in less than 30 seconds.”
Lets strip away the nonsense
What if we deconstruct this event and strip away all the nonsense? Isn’t that the healthy and wise thing to do? Today, we have panels on ESPN who are discussing this like they have the first clue as to what they are speaking about. Also today, a commentator credentialed himself as a black man in furtherance of promoting the racial layer of this case.
Let’s remove three layers
Let’s take away the fancy car. It is still up for debate if the car is rented, leased or owned but the McLaren 720S is a very desirable supercar and Hill can afford it in any case. The daily rental rate is $1200, or 50% more than the purchase price of my first car. McLarens retain value, or grow in value well and the example in the BWC footage is easily worth $350,000. It does have over 700 horsepower, with a zero to 60 mph of 2.8 seconds (best Toyota Camry is 6 seconds) and a top speed of more than 200 mph. You should be more intimidated of getting in and out of the car than driving it as they are all equipped with a seven-speed automatic transmissions. It is very low to the ground.
I apologize to any readers who are football fans, but I was not familiar with Tyreek Hill and his gifting in the sport. The more I research him, the more I wish he was granted a talent level that he could better manage both businesswise and emotionally. His chart is trends toward self-destruction.
I’ve come of the age and maturity where I can understand what wise older people were saying years ago: some people are too talented for their own good.
We must all agree that football is never forever.
Don’t blame the cops!
It is also important to take away the overzealous cop. The administrative suspension of the officer, a 27-year veteran of the force who was working the detail off-duty is an indication of his dedication. I worked my first off-duty detail two days after I got off field training. More than two decades later at peak seniority I got ordered to work the county fair, which I renamed ‘The Unfair.’ I can say with authority, that the last thing you want to do is get into a crazy ‘goat rope’ (a crazy case that goes on forever) like dealing with an emotionally handicapped immature 30-year-old NFL player on the way to an NFL game.
Hill is a criminal
Let’s also pull down the façade that Hill is a decent citizen. He is a criminal with contempt for the law. There’s an arrest in 2014 with an unknown disposition. He is convicted of Domestic Violence against a pregnant girlfriend in 2015. Any prosecutor will tell you how hard it is to get a conviction on that charge. In 2019, a criminal investigation of Child Abuse with charges dropped. Sporting News reports:
Hill's latest incident involves Instagram model Sophie Hall, who claims that Hill broke her leg while running football drills at the receiver's mansion in June 2023. That incident occurred just eight days after Hill's allegedly assaulted a marina employee in Miami Beach, Fla.
Let’s face it. We don’t demand the level of character from football players with $30,000,000 contracts that we do from cops starting at less than $50,000.
We can euphemize his conduct over the last ten years with delicate terms such as being ‘justice involved.’ But face the facts: if you had his criminal history over the last decade, you would be eating cold beans off a metal tray and be thankful for it. This is happening too often in professional sports.
An officer I follow on X stated that he thought the conduct of the officers was out of line, and that he had in the past, let known criminals off with a warning. But I also know this about that officer – he would never have suffered the disrespect and contempt that was plainly pushed on the six Miami Dade officers. Then there were the friends of the defendant who showed up in a Rolls Royce Cullinan SUV bringing a new level of chaos to the scene.
Safer for everyone
Ask once, tell once, zero more chances!
Swift and decisive action saves both civilian and officer lives. Retired Sgt.
speaks in his conference sessions and in his book “Surviving Self Inflicted Wounds, A Deputy’s Life of Redemption” about his assignment to training in South Florida when his agency was losing deputies to criminals. Long story short, a move to assertive and constitutional standard tactics saved both criminals and cops lives. Dr. teaches the ‘Seconds for Survival’ seminar, that provides officers, deputies and all other peace officers, the mindset of decision above reaction.The Miami Dade Officers are due commendation in their approach. Hill pulled over initially in an area that was unsafe and was directed to another area on the right side of the road. According to the available footage, peak compliance was reached when he moved to the second stop location. It plummeted downhill from there. Hill, arrogantly, made no secret that he was finished complying.
Observers who note how ‘that escalated quickly’ discount the lack of equality of the role in the situation. Hill was the one who caused the situation with his clownish driving outside the stadium. Hill put the police in a power role over him with his doofus maneuver. His terrible behavior gave the officers authority, depriving him of his liberty briefly, due to his conduct.
Today, there is discussion whether ‘minor’ offenses should even be enforced by police. Tyreek Hill is making that argument, that yes, we will only know the bigger crimes and identify the real offenders by making sure we enforce those quality of life offenses, like screaming around at triple the speed limit endangering others.
Please keep all our peace officers in your prayers.
Roland Clee served a major Florida police department as a Community Service Officer for more than 26 years. His career included uniformed patrol, training, media relations, intelligence, criminal investigations, and chief’s staff. He writes the American Peace Officer newsletter, speaks at public safety, recruiting and leadership conferences and helps local governments and public safety agencies through his business, CommandStaffConsulting.com. His work is frequently featured on LawOfficer.com, the only law enforcement owned major media presence in the public safety realm.
He is also honored to serve as the Director of Engagement for Shepherds and Sheepdogs, LTD on the team hosting the inaugural conference in Orlando, May 12-14. Three days of exceptional speakers who will help you revolutionize the way we treat, train, and lead! Click below to find out more.
References:
https://www.lawenforcementlifecoach.com
https://www.travisyates.org/seconds-for-survival/
https://bleacherreport.com/articles/10083786-dolphins-tyreek-hill-reaches-settlement-after-allegedly-assaulting-marina-employee
Mr. Clee:
Great article! Sadly, sports figures like Tyreek Hill have been artificially elevated to levels of societal status they simply do not deserve. So Tyreek can catch a ball. So can my dog. People like Tyreek think they are special and, therefore, are not bound by the same laws the rest of society must follow. This artificial elevation starts in K-12 and continues on into the collegiate system where athletes can obtain a degree without being able to write their names. But athletics is where the money is, so colleges and universities abandon their values like a used Kleenex to make sure they have winning sports teams. In the meantime, academics be damned. This is how the Tyreeks of the world make it through college and into the professional leagues. Who cares if they are criminals as long as they can play ball. If they can play ball, they are very “special.” They spend their lives risking nothing for a big paycheck. Juxtapose that risk/reward with underpaid and underappreciated police officers who risk their lives every day and during every shift for many people who could care less about them. So a police officer sees a puke like Tyreek Hill exceeding the speed limit by 80 MPH. He stops the car and encounters the very special Tyreek Hill. Predictably, Tyreek Hill is incensed that he is stopped. The gall of a police officer to stop such a very special superstar. But he does the police officer a HUGE favor and actually stops. However, the cooperation does not last long because very special people like Tyreek Hill should not be bothered by pesky police officers. So Tyreek Hill resists the officer’s lawful commands and is amazed when he is taken out of his car and placed in cuffs. Surely, very special superstars should not be subject to the orders of police officers, thinks Tyreek Hill.
People like Tyreek Hill make me sick. Low-IQ people like Tyreek Hill would be working at a fast-food place if they could not play ball. And then the Dolphins issue a statement condemning the police? WTF? Maybe the police should stop working Dolphins games and let them take care of their own problems. Better yet, let Tyreek Hill work security at Dolphins games. Since he is very special, he should have no difficulty doing both jobs. Show us how it is done, Tyreek.
Tom
Well written and information, as always. Thank you, and I agree!