Traffic infractions against Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill — which escalated to a tense police confrontation caught on video two months ago — were summarily dismissed on Monday when officers didn’t come to court, records showed.
Hill had been accused of careless driving and failing to wear a seat belt, but Miami-Dade County Traffic Infraction Hearing Officer Patricia Henrys dismissed those allegations, citing “lack of prosecution — officer/witness.”
Hill appeared to virtually spike the football on Tuesday, writing on X, “Where all the internet cops now,” in response to a post by WMEN radio personality Andy Slater, who first reported the dismissal.
The case’s dismissal appeared to catch Miami-Dade police by surprise. A spokesman on Tuesday called it “an oversight.”
“The Miami-Dade Police Department is aware that a docket of citations issued to multiple individuals including the non-criminal citations issued to Mr. Tyreek Hill have been dismissed because the officer did not attend the hearing,” department spokesman and Detective Luis Sierra said in statement.
“A citation dismissed due to this reason does not indicate that the citation held no merit. An internal review as to why the officer did not appear in court has revealed an oversight on his behalf. This matter will be handled administratively.”
Hill was on his way to the Dolphins game on Sept. 8 when Miami-Dade police pulled him over just outside Hard Rock Stadium, handcuffed him and put him face down on the pavement.
Bystanders recorded video of Hill lying face down on the ground as officers placed his hands behind his back and appeared to cuff him.
At least two Dolphins teammates, tight end Jonnu Smith and defensive lineman Calais Campbell, were driving by, saw Hill pulled over and stopped to help.
Campbell, a former Walter Payton Man of the Year winnerwas also handcuffed, even though he was standing off to the side, Hill said.
All of those Dolphins made it to their Sept. 8 season opener, won by Miami, 20-17, over the visiting Jacksonville Jaguars. Hill had a big game that day, catching seven passes for 130 yards and a touchdown.
“If I wasn’t Tyreek Hill, Lord knows, I probably would have been, like, worst-case scenario, I would have been shot or would have been locked up” and “put behind bars, you know, for a simple speeding ticket,” Hill told NBC News a day after the incident.
“And that’s crazy that officers would take it, you know, to that level.”
John Filippelli contributed.