NFL free agent wide receiver Tyreek Hill testified for a second day in his divorce battery trial, acknowledging that he verbally abused his wife, Lakeeta Vaccaro, but he maintained that he did not physically harm her. The attorneys representing Vaccaro have yet to provide concrete evidence of physical violence during the trial.
On Friday, Hill seemed to be attempting to clarify a troubling statement he made in his previous testimony while facing a relentless cross-examination from Vaccaro’s attorneys.
TYREEK HILL DENIES MOST ABUSE CLAIMS BUT ADMITS TO SHOVING WIFE INTO WALL
On Friday morning, Hill altered his earlier admission where he said he pushed Vaccaro, resulting in a hole in their condominium wall. Initially, he testified that he instructed her not to touch him again and that he created the hole while trying to force her away. However, his narrative shifted on Friday as he claimed the door was the culprit for the hole.
“It was the door, the main door,” Hill said. “I was trying to evade [Vaccaro], not to harm her or anything like that. In the process, I put a hole in the wall with the door.”
His legal team also made it clear that Hill denied any claims of hurting his wife’s breasts, which Vaccaro had testified about previously.
During cross-examination, Hill had to concede that he spoke to his wife in derogatory terms in front of her and friends. “The language… I’m ashamed of that,” he admitted, reflecting on the failed marriage and expressing a desire to improve for the future.
“All I can do is learn from it and make sure I never communicate like that again,” Hill added.
Vaccaro’s legal team pointed out several inconsistencies in Hill’s testimony compared to his earlier deposition, including claims about a fire at their home that was misattributed to Vaccaro. They pressed him on allegations he made about her supposedly stealing money and contributing to his post-marriage performance decline as a player.
Hill maintained that his personal support system involved challenges at home, but he acknowledged that Vaccaro did not influence his on-field performance directly.
In a revealing exchange, Hill attempted to distance himself from responsibility for problems related to his mom’s homelessness, stating he actually helped by moving his grandmother into a hotel. Furthermore, Vaccaro’s attorneys used footage from a nanny cam to argue that Hill emotionally hurt Vaccaro, a claim he ultimately acknowledged.
During questioning, when asked if he wanted to break Vaccaro mentally, Hill denied that was his intention. Yet, he did not shy away from admitting he verbally abused her.
“When you say verbally, you mean with words, right?” Hill asked, and upon confirmation, he conceded, “Oh, yes sir.”
The trial is ongoing in Miami-Dade County and will continue on Monday.
