The Tyreek Hill letter: Unpacking the latest legal bombshell

Let’s take a look at the latest bombshell in the Tyreek Hill saga as his attorneys sent a letter to the NFL in his defense.

On May 2, 2019, ESPN obtained a letter authored by Tyreek Hill’s attorneys and addressed to the NFL in an attempt to explain and defend himself following the release of audio recordings by KCTV5 last week. Let’s take a moment to unpack this from a legal standpoint.

First, attorneys are held to a very high standard when it comes to authoring letters on behalf of their clients. They follow a very strict code of ethical conduct, which includes the fact that they won’t lie on behalf of their clients to the court. They certainly may paint facts in a light most favorable, but they cannot blatantly lie. They also must zealously advocate for their clients. That is their ethical duty.

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In the letter, Tyreek’s attorneys make statements regarding Tyreek’s actions. These statements undoubtedly came from Tyreek himself. However, the most important part of the letter is its claims of the existence of text messages—hundreds of pages of them. These are solid pieces of evidence that, when provided to the NFL and authorities and properly authenticated, claim to show there was no anger between the two. Rather, they state that Tyreek lashed out in a moment of anger when he said what he did in the audio recording.

"We know this because we had a forensic examiner look at Tyreek’s text communications with Ms. Espinal dating back throughout the period before and during the investigation. There are hundreds of pages of text messages documenting entire conversations. Importantly, the forensic examiner verified that not a single text was deleted so it gives a clear picture of their demeanor toward one another. Several things were notable. First, Tyreek never once refers to Ms. Espinal by a derogatory name, not “bitch” or anything else. Second, their conversations were friendly and respectful without exception even during arguments. Tyreek never says anything that is even remotely demeaning, controlling, rude or threatening in nature to Ms. Espinal."

From a legal standpoint, in a “he said, she said” type of situation, actual evidence in the form of text messages holds a lot of sway. These are statements made by a party when neither would have reason to believe they were being recorded and neither party was egging the other on. It demonstrates the true nature of the relationship and the events between the parties.

If, and this is a big if, the text messages truly show what Hill’s attorneys say they show, this points to an entirely different situation, one in which Crystal Espinal was the one who inflicted harm on their son, rather than Tyreek. That changes everything.

"Tyreek: “Crystal you know I didn’t cause any bruising or harm to [our son.] But for some reason I still may be charged.”Crystal: “I know you didn’t. I did. I hurt [our son.] I’m the one that did it. I was hurt and mad at you so I blamed you for everything.”"

Second, letters like this are intended to persuade. These are defenders of Hill authoring the most persuasive argument they can to cast him as the good guy and everyone else as bad. It’s important to remember that they are painting him in the best light possible. They acknowledge Hill’s statements are indefensible, but they also defend his statements. This is the argument Hill is presenting to the Courts and to the NFL. This is his argument for why he is innocent and should not be suspended or charged. Every statement should be viewed through that lens.

Third, the attorneys claim that the audio recording was made during a time when the parties were contemplating separation.

"As Ms. Espinal mentions in the secret recording, the recording and the second report by Ms. Espinal were made during a time when the parties were considering separation and contemplating a custody battle."

That would then imply that there would be a huge custody battle. These cases get messy quickly. We have been led to believe that the audio was made as “insurance” and that would make sense if there was an impending custody battle. If Espinal truly believed she would need to fight Hill for custody of their son, she could have recorded him and egged him on in an attempt to gain leverage in a custody case. This is entirely speculation, but it does seem to make sense in context.

Finally, we are still stuck with confusion. If anything, this letter presents more questions, less answers, and still places a helpless child at the center of a horrible situation. Their child was still harmed and is still out of their custody. While we are assured that he is healthy and happy, being without his parents is nonetheless hurtful.

Next. Jamaal Charles thanks Chiefs Kingdom in farewell to NFL. dark

Hopefully, the courts can sift through the confusion and come to a resolution that is in the child’s best interest. We can also only hope the NFL and the Chiefs will do the right thing—whatever that may be.

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