Kamala Harris accused of hit-and-run in viral hoax

A story on a mysterious website has been circulating widely on social media after it made an unsubstantiated claim that Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris was involved in a hit-and-run incident.

The article alleges, without evidence, that a 13-year-old girl was left paralyzed by a car crash in San Francisco in 2011.

Published on 2 September by a site posing as a media outlet called KBSF-San Francisco News, the story has been shared extensively online, with some posts by right-leaning users gaining millions of views.

BBC Verify found several inaccuracies indicating the story is fabricated, and the website has since been taken down.

The online piece includes a five-minute video featuring an interview with a woman identified as 26-year-old Alicia Brown, who the article claims is paralyzed.

There is no proof of her identity or whether she is indeed paralyzed, as she is filmed sitting down, visible only from the waist up, at an undisclosed location.

In the video, the woman claims she was struck by a car while crossing the street in June 2011 with her mother in San Francisco and alleges, again without providing evidence, that Kamala Harris was the driver.

The video narrator claims the woman has undergone 11 surgeries, and two X-rays are shown.

No proof of the accident or Harris's involvement is presented.

BBC Verify conducted a search of the website’s registration details, revealing that the domain was created only a few weeks ago on 20 August 2024.

There is also no public record of a KBSF news outlet in San Francisco.

The website has been removed and is no longer accessible.

The lead image used in the story, which also appears in the video, shows a smashed car windshield with what seems to be a police officer and fire crew standing by. 

BBC Verify downloaded the image and ran a reverse image search, which showed the photo originally appeared in a news report about a 2018 crash in Mangilao, Guam.