In August of 2015, Tyreek Hill pleaded guilty to punching and choking his pregnant girlfriend. Hill, drafted by the Kansas City Chiefs on April 30, is now on probation for the incident.
The charge will not be on his record if he completes probation agreement: a 52-week intervention course and supervision for two years.
“He has had counseling, he will continue to have counseling so we’re fine,” assured Kansas City Chiefs General Manager John Dorsey after Hill was drafted by the team.
Chiefs: We did our homework
But is it enough? At least one local advocate for domestic violence survivors wonders.
“I find it really frustrating that we’re still holding up these celebrities as, ‘Oh, they’re working on things. Things are getting better,’" said Irene Manning, of the Rose Brooks Center, a local domestic violence shelter. "I feel like until people are held accountable--not just being on probation but socially accountable for their actions of domestic violence and abuse--then I think it’s hard for things to change.”
WATCH: See what the Chiefs and Manning have to say in the video player above
Dorsey told the media that the proper research was done when the organization picked the former Oklahoma State wide receiver.
“I just want you all to understand we will do everything we can to ensure that this community does not have these types of situations," Dorsey said. "We’re not going to bring that into this community, OK? We will not do that.”
Domestic violence is a pattern
Manning believes offenders need more than a slap on the wrist.
“Domestic violence doesn’t happen," she said. "One day our relationship is perfectly healthy and then the next day they’re assaulting the other person. So it’s like a slow pattern that builds up.”
Manning said a victim needs to know she or her is not the trigger of domestic violence.
In the fall of 2014, the NFL teamed up with NO MORE, an organization that describes itself as a "campaign to raise public awareness and engage bystanders around ending domestic violence and sexual assault." A series of public service announcements feature NFL players condemning domestic violence.
During a Chiefs press conference about Hill, a reporter asked if the team has contacted the victim.
“You gotta trust us that we turned over every stone that we could possible turn over. We’ve done as much as we could in that area,” said Coach Andy Reid. “We have done as much as we possibly can and that kind of where that trust has to come in.”
Place for Domestic Violence Victims to Seek Help
