Sept. 11—Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreke Hill wants to fire a Miami-Dade County police officer who detained him on Sunday.
“We demand the immediate termination of this officer, who has been placed on administrative leave,” Hill said in a statement Tuesday night through her attorney, Julius Collins.
“Every action taken by law enforcement officials is governed by standard operating procedures.
“We believe the officer’s use of force was excessive, uncontrolled and reckless. We demand that the officer be fired immediately.”
Earlier on Tuesday, the Miami-Dade Police Department released the identity of the officer under investigation. Officer Danny Torres has served in the position for 27 years.
According to the department’s statement, Torres “will continue to perform administrative duties as the internal affairs investigation continues. We will provide further information pending the outcome of the investigation.”
Hill’s agent, Drew Rosenhaus, also called for Torres to be fired.
Rosenhaus said Tuesday on “The Dan LeBatard Show” that police did not treat Hill “like a human being” after a traffic stop before Sunday’s home game against the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Police body camera footage of the incident shows officers pulling Hill out of his black sports car after he failed to comply with orders to open his window. He was forced to the ground and handcuffed.
Rosenhaus described what he saw in the video, saying, “Personally, I don’t think the police officers who did that to Tyreek should be in that position — they should be released.” “Look. The guy that kicked him — that guy should be fired. It got out of hand. The guy that jumped on him and choked him? That’s no place for a police officer to wear a badge like Joe, even though Tyreek wasn’t aggressive in any way the way they treated him was horrible too.
The officer’s representatives – attorneys Ignacio Alvarez of ALGO Law Firm and Israel Reyes of Reyes Law Firm – issued a statement demanding the immediate restoration of the identity of the involved party. The lawyers also said they support Miami-Dade Police Chief Stephanie Daniels’ call for a review of the incident.
According to the statement, the officer involved, later identified as Torres, would not comment on the matter until the investigation is complete.
Hill, 30, is scheduled to speak for the first time on Wednesday since the body camera footage was released on Monday.
Just hours before the Dolphins’ 20-17 win on Sunday, Hill was pulled over just blocks from Hard Rock Stadium and cited for careless driving and driving without a license.
The video released Monday shows an interaction between Hill and an officer before Hill opened his car window. The officer then knocked on the window and told Hill to close it. Hill opened the window slightly and then spoke a few words to the officer. The officer again told the 30-year-old to roll down the window and threatened to force Hill out of the car.
The officer then changed his mind and told Hill to get out of the car. Another officer intervened and told Hill that if he did not get out of the car, he would break the window, and the same officer opened Hill’s car door and helped push him to the ground.
Dolphins teammate and defensive end Calais Campbell was also detained at the scene after trying to help Hill. However, Campbell did not receive any notice. Miami tight end Jonnu Smith was also on hand to support Hill.
Hill was originally drafted in the fifth round by the Kansas City Chiefs in 2016 and spent the past two seasons with the Dolphins. He led the NFL with 1,799 yards on 119 receptions last season and tied for the league lead with 13 receiving touchdowns in 16 starts. It was the five-time first-team All-Pro selection’s sixth 1,000-yard season.
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