Fact Check: Did Kamala Harris really commit a hit-and-run that left a girl paralysed? (2024)

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A recent wave of social media activity has ignited a rumour about United States Vice President Kamala Harris. Claims have surfaced suggesting that Harris was involved in a hit-and-run incident in 2011, allegedly leaving a young girl paralysed.

What are the “accusations” around Kamala Harris?

In early September, various accounts on the social media platform X (formerly known as Twitter) began circulating a story published on a mysterious website, KBSF-San Francisco News.

The story made the claim that Kamala Harris was involved in a hit-and-run accident in 2011, leaving a mother and her 13-year-old daughter seriously injured.

According to the story, the girl — referred to both as Alicia and Alisha Brown — was left paralysed for life due to the crash. The article featured an alleged interview with Alicia Brown, now 26, and included supposed x-rays of her injuries, as well as a video of her discussing the incident from an undisclosed location.

Is the story true?

The fake story included several elements designed to lend credibility to the hoax. For example, the article was accompanied by a five-minute video, allegedly showing Alicia Brown discussing the hit-and-run.

However, key details raise doubts about its authenticity. Alicia Brown is shown sitting, filmed only from the waist up, and there is no direct evidence to support her claims of paralysis.

Furthermore, x-rays displayed in the video have been traced to unrelated medical cases. A reverse image search revealed that the first x-ray comes from a 2010 article about a 58-year-old Chinese patient, while the second is from a 12-year-old girl admitted to a hospital in the Netherlands in 2017.

This is so messed up. The images they use are from a 12 year old case from an open access journal. https://t.co/44XgVZo2Kz @KamalaHQ please find the IP and sue for defamation and improper use of a medical image, this is bonkers. pic.twitter.com/Vr8XSwQowq

— Arturo LoAIza-Bonilla, MD MSEd (@DrBonillaOnc) September 3, 2024

Same patient. Playing soccer and dancing ballet a year after surgery. pic.twitter.com/7d5G3v9C7e

— Arturo LoAIza-Bonilla, MD MSEd (@DrBonillaOnc) September 3, 2024

Using a reverse image search tool – it was found that the image of the cracked windshield of the car was originally posted in a news story about a crash in Mangilao, Guam, in 2018.

But what of the video and the characters in it?

Experts were consulted about the possibility that the video might have been generated using artificial intelligence (AI), but Professor Hany Farid, a specialist in digital manipulation, concluded that no evidence of AI involvement was found. He told BBC, “I think it is most likely that this is an old-fashioned (and not particularly well-executed) cheap fake that is simply staged.”

Farid went on to explain that “cheap fakes” do not require advanced technology to create misleading content. This type of disinformation can range from slowing down audio to make someone sound drunk to cropping images to mislead the viewer.

URGENT: This story about a Kamala Harris Hit and run is FAKE!

A Video reportedly coming from a FAKE news organization called KBSF-TV in San Fransisco, has been shared hundreds of thousands of time with a person named Alicia Brown claiming that Kamala Harris hit her with her car… pic.twitter.com/B6tJzcbQce

— Brian Krassenstein (@krassenstein) September 3, 2024

Farid said, “It is a good reminder that we don’t need a lot of technology to perpetrate lies.”

What happened to the KBSF “news outlet”?

The website, KBSF, where the story originated, was only registered on August 20, 2024, and no records exist of a legitimate television station by that name in San Francisco or anywhere else in the US.

KBSF-San Francisco News, has since been taken offline. Investigations into the site reveal that it shares many characteristics with a network of other fake news websites that have been previously exposed.

These sites often mimic legitimate US local news outlets and are known for disseminating disinformation, particularly targeting political figures in the US

Was there such an incident in 2011?

Given the severity of the allegations, journalists and fact-checkers conducted a thorough search for any reports of a hit-and-run incident involving Kamala Harris in 2011, when she was serving as California’s Attorney General.

However, no such reports were found in public records or media archives. Both the San Francisco Police Department nor the Harris campaign could confirm any involvement of Harris in such an incident.

The story appears to be part of a broader disinformation campaign aimed at undermining Harris and spreading misinformation in the lead-up to the 2024 election. In fact, several experts have noted the resemblance between this fake report and other fabricated stories that have been circulating on fake news websites in recent years.

Is this kind of disinformation new?

This network fake news websites has been known to publish fabricated stories on a range of topics, from accusations against US politicians to misleading information about Ukraine.

For instance, one story falsely claimed that Ukraine’s First Lady Olena Zelenska purchased a rare Bugatti, while another spread rumours about wiretapping operations at Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence.

Also Read:Is Russia meddling in the 2024 US election? What we know so far

Experts have warned that such disinformation campaigns are part of a broader strategy to sow discord and confusion among US voters.

Chris Krebs, former director of the US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, highlighted the involvement of foreign actors in these efforts, telling BBC, “Russia will be involved in the US 2024 election, as will others. We’re already seeing them—from a broader information operations perspective on social media and elsewhere—enter the fray, pushing against already contentious points in US politics.”

What now?

The claim that Kamala Harris was involved in a hit-and-run accident in 2011 is unequivocally false. The website from which the story originated has been exposed as part of a larger network of fake news sites that specialise in disinformation.

The fabricated story, fake images, and staged video all serve as tools in a broader effort to mislead the public ahead of the 2024 US election.

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With inputs from agencies

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