On August 23, 2020, Jacob Blake from Kenosha, Wisconsin, was shot several times in the back after he broke a fight between two women.
The whole encounter was recorded by using a cellphone. The 29-year-old victim was rushed to the hospital, and he is now left paralyzed from the waist down.
Nationwide protest
The shooting of Blake immediately sparked protests for three nights in Kenosha and other major U.S cities, adding to the already existing wave of protests over racial injustice and police brutality that followed the death of George Floyd, a black man who did in the hands of Minneapolis police in May 2020.
However, there are some netizens who tried to justify the shooting of Jacob Blake, saying that there is a reason behind it.
A rumor emerged days after the shooting that Blake had been charged with sexual assault offense that involved sexual penetration of a minor between 14 and 16 years old, labeling him as a "pedophile" and a "rapist."
There are social media posts that showed a graphic that comprised of what appeared to be a list of charges against Blake, including third-degree sexual assault.
The truth
The rumor about Blake being a rapist and a pedophile are false. He faced charges of sexually assaulting his ex-girlfriend, with whom he has three children with.
In July 2020, prosecutors in Kenosha County applied for an arrest warrant for Blake on charges of third-degree sexual assault, disorderly conduct, criminal trespass, and all were designated as acts of domestic abuse.
The warrant was issued on July 7. According to a criminal complaint that was filed by the Kenosha County District Attorney's office, Blake is accused of having entered the home of his ex-girlfriend in Kenosha, without her permission, on May 3, 2020, before sexually assaulting her, taking her car and debit card and making two withdrawals of $500 each.
In Wisconsin, third-degree sexual assault is not defined as involving sexual penetration of a minor. The definition included in the graphic shared on social media was taken from the laws of an entirely different state. It was taken from Section 11-37-6 of the Rhode Island General Laws.
Whoever created the graphic that has now spread online took a screenshot of an authentic list of charges against Blake, but juxtaposed it with an excerpt from the laws of a different state, in order to give readers the entirely false impression that Blake had been accused of committing an act of sexual penetration against a child.
Blake has never had a sexual encounter with a child. Claims that Blake is a rapist or a pedophile are all baseless.
Blake's name was searched in Wisconsin Circuit Court showed records revealing one child support disputes and a conviction in June 2018 in Racine County on a charge of operating a vehicle without a driver's license, which is not considered as a criminal offense.
In 2015, the Racine County Eye reported that Blake had been arrested after brandishing a gun at a bar in Racine and that officers require the assistance of a police dog when Blake allegedly refused to comply with the police orders.
Blake was charged with several offenses, including felony resisting arrest causing a soft tissue injury to a police officer, carrying a firearm while intoxicated, and endangering safety by the use of a dangerous weapon.
To recall, George Floyd also faced a similar issue when he was accused of assaulting a woman in a robbery back in 2007. A picture of Aracely Henriquez, the alleged victim, circulated online. However, the story was merely fabricated since Floyd did not injure Henriquez. Although the robbery case is true, he did not assault anyone. The image being shared online showing a woman with bruises is not that of Henriquez.
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