Former state Rep. Joe Harding. Credit: Photo via Joe Harding/Facebook

Former state Rep. Joe Harding expressed a new outlook on law enforcement as he posted online about the detention and handcuffing of Miami Dolphins star Tyreek Hill shortly before the team’s home opener on Sunday.

Harding, R-Ocala, said in a post Tuesday on X that the encounter Hill had with law enforcement “is not uncommon for a Black man.”

“My entire life I have been someone that has always respected and defended law enforcement,” Harding wrote. “Then my life changed. I came in contact with law enforcement. I saw what it was like to be intimidated and manipulated. I spent 3 months in Federal Prison, had many long conversations with men who had very different life stories than me.”

“White people generally are conditioned and exposed to law enforcement on their own time and not during crisis,” Harding, who is white, continued. “Minorities, specifically black males, are exposed to law enforcement at a young age because of those around them having encounters with law enforcement and they have seen the ugly and corrupt side and know what it is like to look a crooked cop in the eye. Those same kids grow up to not trust law enforcement and I don’t blame them at all.”

In 2023, Harding pleaded guilty to charges of wire fraud, money laundering and making false statements related to a scheme to obtain pandemic-related business loans.

Hill’s traffic-related arrest has drawn heavy national attention. Police suspended one officer, called for an internal investigation and released nearly two hours of body-camera footage.

A state law that went into effect on July 1 (HB 601) prevents investigations of local law-enforcement officers by civilian review boards.

A police union criticized Hill as “uncooperative.”

DeSantis, who attended Sunday’s game, called an investigation “appropriate” when asked about the arrest Monday while in Miami.

“But I think that I have confidence in agencies throughout this state that they want to uphold the highest standards of professionalism. And if for some reason that wasn’t followed here, I know that they will make that clear, but I’ll let that investigation take place,” DeSantis said.

Subscribe to Creative Loafing newsletters.

This article appears in Sep 12-18, 2024.