KANSAS CITY, Mo. _ The second chance that Chiefs wide receiver Tyreek Hill sought in Kansas City the past three years may be coming to an end.
Social media and radio talk shows exploded Friday with calls for Hill to be gone. Many wondered why the Chiefs didn't cut the receiver as soon as a recorded conversation reportedly between Hill and his fiancee, Crystal Espinal, talking about their 3-year-old son aired on local television Thursday night.
"Come on, Chiefs," one person wrote on Facebook. "Just release him."
Added another, on Twitter: "Ban him from the NFL for life ... ."
A local attorney, in an interview with The Star, said the recorded conversation could move prosecutors closer to being able to file charges against Hill and even Espinal. The Johnson County district attorney's office reopened the case Friday, Chiefs coach Andy Reid confirmed.
"It's complicated, it's not cut and dried," said Carl Cornwell, a Kansas City-area criminal defense attorney. "But I think that maybe that's going to help out."
In the recorded conversation, the couple talked about their son, the pair's parenting styles and an injury to the boy's arm. The Star reported on March 15 that a source familiar with the situation said an incident at Hill's home left the boy with a broken arm.
"Why does (he) say 'Daddy did it?' " Espinal asked. "A 3-year-old is not going to lie about what happened to his arm."
She went on to say, "He is terrified of you."
Hill responded, according to the recording: "You need to be terrified of me, too, b----."
The team suspended Hill Thursday night, hours after the recording aired. General manager Brett Veach assured the public: "We will make the right decision regarding Tyreek Hill."
Now the Kansas City community waits for the Chiefs' next move regarding a player drafted in 2016 who had pleaded guilty the year before to domestic assault after strangling Espinal in December 2014 when she was eight weeks pregnant. As part of the plea agreement, Hill was ordered to complete 52 weeks of domestic violence prevention classes.
The two are now engaged and she is pregnant with twins.
And, in the midst of Hill's team suspension, the Chiefs are set to add another superstar with domestic violence in his background when they hold an introductory press conference Friday afternoon for defensive end Frank Clark.
The recording of Hill and Espinal aired on KCTV-5 one day after the Johnson County district attorney declined to file charges against Hill or Espinal. District Attorney Steve Howe said Wednesday he believed a crime had been committed against the 3-year-old, but he couldn't prove who did it.
Though the recorded conversation appears damning and has enraged the public, it still may not be enough for the courtroom, Cornwell said. One problem, he said, is the recording could be considered "hearsay" if prosecutors attempt to use it in court.
Plus, Hill and Espinal both have legal counsel and at this point "they're not talking to anybody."
The defense attorney said, however, he wouldn't be surprised if charges were eventually filed.
"Steve Howe and that office, you can tell, are mad because they can't file," Cornwell said. "And they are going to do everything they can to protect that child."
By making the recording, Cornwell said, Espinal could have unwittingly made herself vulnerable to charges.
One example, he said, is her comment that Hill made their son open his arms so he could hit the boy in the chest.
"That's child abuse, because she knew it was going on and didn't stop it," Cornwell said. "And putting a child in a position where that child shouldn't be."
News surfaced in mid-March that Overland Park police took two reports at Hill's Johnson County home, one for battery and the other for child abuse and neglect. The police reports, dated March 5 and March 14, both involved a juvenile.
The Star reported last week that Hill's son recently was removed from the custody of Hill and Espinal. It isn't clear when the 3-year-old was removed, or who he is staying with now.
The Kansas Department for Children and Families has an ongoing child protection case focused on the couple's son. In the recording aired Thursday, Espinal appeared to say she defended Hill to investigators.
"I rode for you against that detective and the CPS (Child Protection Services) people," she said.
Later in the recording, Hill indicates Espinal isn't supporting him now and wasn't supporting him in 2014, possibly in reference to when Hill was arrested.
"You ain't riding for me in 2014, you damn sure ain't riding for me now, bro," Hill said.
People across the community are weighing in. Even Jean Peters Baker, Jackson County prosecutor, posted her take on Twitter about what's unfolding:
"A prosecution can't be proven but what will this community say about a man who strikes a 3YO with a closed fist and then cowers behind legal standards?" she tweeted. "Let's not make this overly difficult. He is an unrepentant abuser of a completely innocent child."
