CNN Helped Raise over $230K for ‘Mom’ Worried About Eviction, Then Issued Correction: ‘She Is Not the Mother’

CNN recently published the story of a “mom” of three worried about being evicted due to the federal eviction moratorium and highlighted a GoFundMe to help her with rent.

However, it turned out the woman was not their mother after all, Fox News reported on Monday:

CNN reporter Nick Watt caught up with Dasha Kelly last week for a story on the recent eviction moratorium lapse. He referred to the three children as “her little girls” and noted they could all end up on the street as CNN’s on-screen chyron said, “Mom braces for eviction.” Watt explained that Kelly lost her job because of the coronavirus pandemic and can no longer afford child care, and her “little girls” were shown during CNN’s segment. However, it turns out Kelly isn’t the mother of the three young children used throughout CNN’s reporting.

In an update on the story featuring the headline “More than $170,000 raised in 24 hours for Las Vegas woman facing eviction,” the outlet said, “After CNN aired a story about her potential eviction, Dasha Kelly clarified to CNN that she is not the mother of the three children featured in the story.”

The outlet noted it verified she cares for them in her home for periods of time and said she initially described herself to CNN as a mom because she considered herself to be like one to the children.

The correction read:

CNN has learned the children are also cared for by their mother, Shadia Hilo, and their father, David Allison, who is Kelly’s boyfriend. GoFundMe tells CNN they are in close contact with Kelly and funds will stay on hold until they verify her information. GoFundMe says no funds have been withdrawn.

In the original video, Watt claimed Kelly had “pawned or sold nearly everything she had”:

As of Monday, what appeared to be Kelly’s GoFundMe page had raised $233,770 of its $2,000 goal.

During an interview Thursday on Fox News Radio’s the Brian Kilmeade Show, Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) blasted President Joe Biden for extending the eviction moratorium amid an increase in coronavirus cases.

“This is jaw-dropping. It’s just so brazen. Just like the Obama administration, the Biden administration is a lawless administration. He’s not faithfully executing the laws. He’s got an open border. He’s ignoring the Supreme Court ruling. He’s ignoring the Constitution,” he stated.