At the start of 2019, Tyreek Hill was already demonstrating how far athletic talent can take you. Yes, he had pleaded guilty to domestic violence in college, including signing a document in which he said he placed his pregnant girlfriend in a headlock. Yes, he was later fired by Oklahoma State, transferring to Division II West Alabama. And yes, that’s why he fell all the way to the fifth round of the 2016 NFL Draft, where Kansas City selected him.
Hill became a key part of Kansas City’s explosive offense, helping the team win the Super Bowl. He even had his own play, Hill Mary. Head coach Andy Reid once said, “I’m probably more proud of him for what he does off the field than on the field.” »
Then, in 2019, news broke of an investigation into possible child abuse involving Hill. Kansas City police and child welfare investigators were investigating how Hill’s oldest son, who was 3 at the time, suffered a broken arm. The criminal investigation concluded without any charges being filed. The local prosecutor said he believed a crime had taken place, but he had no way of proving who committed it. WHB810, a Kansas City radio station, later reported that anonymous sources “close to the investigation” said the injury appeared to be an accident.
No information from the Kansas Department of Children and Families investigation was ever released, which is typical of such cases. But some of those details are now being made public, for the first time, because of what’s happening in a South Florida courtroom.
Hill is currently a defendant in a civil lawsuit filed by his estranged wife, Lakeeta Vaccaro, who claims Hill physically abused her during their marriage. As part of his case, related to their ongoing divorce proceedings, Vaccaro’s legal team deposed Hill’s former fiancée, Crystal Espinal. Espinal spoke under oath in the deposition about the 2019 DCF investigation, as well as that conducted by law enforcement.
The full deposition will not be presented to jurors in the civil trial. But the entire deposition is a public record in Florida. This includes discussion of the DCF case. Defector contacted lawyers for Hill and Vaccaro, both of whom declined to comment.
The following account is from the deposition, taken in July, in which notes and audio recordings from the 2019 investigations are read aloud and Espinal confirms their accuracy. They’re not complete, but they offer insight into what triggered child abuse cases and what investigators found.
In 2019, Espinal was living with Hill in Overland Park, about 20 miles west of Kansas City Stadium, and was pregnant with twins. On February 28, she went to a local hospital with contractions. They were due to stress, she said, because “I was in a stressful environment.”
It is unclear who specifically reported the alleged child abuse. But one document, read aloud by an attorney during the deposition, contained notes from a social worker indicating a call came in on Feb. 28, the same day as the hospital visit. The same social worker wrote that Espinal told her the couple had been at odds all day. A social service activity diary was also read aloud by a lawyer; as described, the couple’s son “said his arm was broken by his father, Tyreek.” Asked if that’s what she heard their son say, Espinal said, “Yes.”
Another note from a social worker, read aloud, said: “Crystal stated that Tyreek broke their son’s arm, and she knew that if she said that, Tyreek would be furious and take it out on her. Crystal expressed that she was scared – afraid of what Tyreek was going to do. I can’t live like this. She continued to express concern for their safety.” When asked to remember it during his testimony, Espinal replied: “I don’t remember much from that period. I was in survival mode.”
Espinal said she didn’t see how her son broke his arm. But, as she recalled in her testimony, her son told her that Hill, his father, had done it. (When asked by one of Hill’s lawyers later in the deposition, she also confirmed that her son had said different things to different people about what happened.)
Later, another note from a social worker is read aloud. He said Espinal initially withheld some information from investigators because “she was worried about how Tyreek would react.” The article continues: “Crystal said he wouldn’t talk to her about it because he was angry and blaming her for all of this. Crystal reiterated that she was scared and said Tyreek kept saying, ‘I’m going to make sure I have my son and my kids.’ She expressed concern that he might be able to get custody of the children because he had the resources.”
The attorney then asked Espinal if that sounded like something she would have said to a social worker. After an objection from Hill’s attorney, she replied, “Yes.”
Another note, read aloud, says Espinal says their son “is terrified of his father.”
“Crystal stated she had no motive,” another note said. “She doesn’t want to go after Tyreek.”
“She … blames herself for not revealing the truth the first time,” said one note, as read in the July deposition, “but said the detective kept telling her they had no concerns.”
A criminal investigation was then opened. Fragments of this document come up during the deposition, amid discussions about various documents. At one point, Espinal called one of the detectives assigned to the case and audio of the call is played. Throughout the deposition, the officer is referred to as Detective Reedy.
“You told Detective Reedy that Hill said if he fell, you were going to fall with him,” said attorney Paul Schwiep, who represented Vaccaro. “Did you hear that?”
“Yes,” she replied.
More audio is played and Schwiep describes it like this: “Detective Reedy says he understands you were a victim of domestic violence.” Was she a victim of domestic violence at the hands of Hill, Schwiep asked? “Yes,” she replied. Was that why she was afraid to be frank with the investigator? She said yes.
But at some point, Espinal began to have doubts about the criminal investigation.
“Crystal expressed hesitation about meeting Detective Reedy again,” one note read aloud. “Crystal said Detective Reedy also told her he felt like she was abusing the system to get back at Tyreek.”
Schwiep asked Espinal if she felt like the detective was trying to cover for Hill. She said she didn’t remember. All she remembered was that at some point, that detective was no longer on the case.
Another note, also read aloud, said: “She, referring to you, expressed concern that Detective Reedy is just telling Tyreek’s attorney everything she says. Tyreek tells her that Detective Reedy said this and that. She stated that he shared this information with Tyreek and his attorney before Friday’s meeting. Why would you tell her that?”
Schwiep asked Espinal, “You know, so, again, did you feel like the detective was giving Hill, an NFL star, the benefit of the doubt?”
Espinal responded: “I can’t give you a positive answer on that.”
Defector Media contacted the Overland Park Police, asking them to comment on the quotes in the deposition, and they provided the following response: “We have never employed Detective Reedy within the Overland Park Police Department.” When Defector noticed that other court documents referred to the officer as Detective Reeder, we asked again if the department employed an officer by that name who had worked on the Hill case. This post will be updated if they respond.
A recording was made of her and Hill talking about what happened while they were in Dubai in 2019. This audio would be obtained and broadcast by KCTV5 in Kansas City. In the audio, Hill can be heard telling Espinal, “You must be afraid of me too, bitch.” Audio appears in the deposition.
In the testimony, there is also talk of punches. Reading aloud from a social worker’s notes, Schwiep said, referring to the couple’s eldest son: “He stated that he was going to see his father tomorrow. When asked several questions, he stated that his father wanted to hit him with his arm, then he raised his fist and pointed it at his leg.”
Espinal was asked to confirm that this was indeed what she saw in the document and she said yes. A lawyer for Hill objected, and Schwiep sued. He asked Espinal: “Did you testify earlier that Hill would hit them? Again, she said yes.
Espinal was also asked if she remembered her son, when asked to draw a drawing of his father pumping his fist. Espinal said she didn’t remember it, but assumed it was part of her therapy.
Toward the end of the deposition, Schwiep read a document sent to investigators by a Kansas City-area hospital. It is dated March 2019. It lists the couple’s young son as a patient. He said: “He demonstrated that his father put his hands around his throat, fearing he had twisted his arm.” Espinal confirmed that this was read correctly.
Schwiep read more of the document. He said the child had “numerous buckle marks on his buttocks and bilateral legs.” The lawyer asked if it was correct that at that time the child had buckle marks suggesting he had been whipped with a belt. Espinal said yes. “These marks correspond to a hit with a flexible object,” Schwiep read aloud. “His injuries are consistent with child abuse.” Again, Espinal confirmed that the information was read aloud, while Hill’s attorney objected.
Schwiep then read one last piece aloud:
“And then the sentence at the bottom of that same page says: ‘Previous fractures of (their son’s) left arm are green stick fractures. The green stick fracture is caused by a bending force perpendicular to the bone. Is it possible that a fall could cause this type of injury? There are…there are reports that (he) revealed that his father had twisted his arm. Based on the information provided, this injury is of concern in cases of physical abuse on a child. Recommend further investigation.
“Did I read that correctly?” he asked Espinal.
“Yes,” she replied.
During her deposition, Espinal said it was the first time she had seen the report.
Toward the end of the deposition, an attorney for Hill spoke to Espinal. She confirmed that no criminal charges had been filed, that there had been conflicting evidence regarding who was responsible for the child’s injuries and that at one point neither she nor Hill had custody of their son. And Espinal said “correct” when asked to confirm that a document said she told investigators she would deny there had been domestic violence since 2014.
(In the deposition, Espinal said the couple currently had a parenting plan in place for their three children, but Hill did not visit her children much during her marriage to Vaccaro. She said he visited them a few weeks before Espinal’s deposition, for about two hours.)
At the end, Espinal is asked if she would like a copy of the transcript of her deposition. “I don’t want it,” she told the lawyer. “No.”
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