House Democrat "pissed" about Tyreek Hill traffic stop
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A screenshot of a bodycam video shows Tyreek Hill during his traffic stop in Miami on Sunday. Image: Miami-Dade Police Department via Reuters
Rep. Frederica S. Wilson (D-Fla.) said Tuesday that the police officers involved in Sunday's traffic stop with Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill lacked "temperament" and that she's "pissed" after watching the bodycam footage.
The big picture: The Miami-Dade Police Department is facing criticism for detaining the standout wide receiver shortly before the Dolphins' season opener. Some have called on the department to fire the officers involved.
- The agency also is facing charges of racial bias after a long and troubled history with Black residents.
Catch up quick: A routine traffic stop for speeding resulted in police handcuffing Hill.
- Body camera footage shows police became angry with Hill after he handed an officer his ID and rolled up his tinted window after being told to leave it down.
- Officers then ordered Hill out of the car and placed him in handcuffs. Hill was asked to take a seat on the sidewalk before Danny Torres, a 27-year veteran of the department, grabbed him around the neck and forced him into a seated position.
- Dolphins tight end Jonnu Smith and defensive lineman Calais Campbell both arrived on the scene shortly after Hill was pulled over, body camera footage shows.
- Smith was issued a citation and Campbell was handcuffed but released along with Hill.
Zoom in: Torres has since been reassigned to administrative duties, and the agency is investigating the stop, the Miami-Dade Police said in a statement.
What they're saying: "I've worked for decades with the Miami Dolphins, the police, and the 5000 Role Models of Excellence to foster civil relationships between the police and Black men, and I'm pissed at this interaction," Wilson said in a statement.
- "Just when we thought things were getting better between our officers and the Black community, this incident set us back, and I am even more committed now to easing that tension between the police and Black men, which has existed since slavery."
- Wilson said the officers in the Hill case don't represent the entire Miami-Dade Police Department.
The Miami-Dade Police Department did not respond to a request for comment about whether the Hill detainment opened up old racial wounds from the past.
Flashback: In 1979, four white Metro-Dade police officers beat to death black insurance salesman Arthur McDuffie and were acquitted, setting off one of the area's deadliest riots.
- Police in Miami Beach have faced allegations of racism for use of force against Black tourists.
- A 2018 ACLU of Florida report found that Black defendants were overrepresented in Miami-Dade County's criminal justice system relative to their population share.
