James Blake: Tennis Star Gets 200,000 Google Searches, Wants NYPD Cop James Frascatore Fired [Video]
James Blake, a former tennis star, is getting a lot of attention. According to Google Trends, Blake received more than 200,000 searches from Googlers turning to Google on Saturday, September 12, for more information about James. Those searchers alternately added the word “tennis” to the ex-tennis star’s name in order to glean information about the correct Blake. The new searches for James are likely due to Blake’s unlikely response to going viral in a video that showed James being slammed to the ground by James Frascatore in a case of double mistaken identity.
Ironically, the cop who tackled Blake is also named James — but his last name is Frascatore. Frascatore has been sued four times for excessive force, reports RT. Amazingly, Frascatore has been accused of punching a man in the mouth three times after stopping him for a taillight that was broken, reports the New York Times.
After news of James’ false detainment went viral, Blake said the NYPD cop shouldn’t have a badge, reports the New York Daily News. In the days following the time when the video went viral, folks turned to social media to express their views of James Blake, stating that the incident wasn’t about race.
Blake previously spoke out about the unexpected moment when he was thrown to the ground, reports ABC News. In the shocking video, the former tennis player can be seen outside of a hotel in New York when he is suddenly tackled by Frascatore and handcuffed. Passersby alternately can be seen viewing Blake on the ground, some with brief looks of shock while they continue on their ways. One woman stops and says something to either Frascatore or James or both, and points, and then exits out of the video frame.
The incident showing the cop slamming Blake to the ground prompted an internal investigation. Video footage of the tennis star, like that video from Russia Today, are rampant on YouTube and are gaining plenty of views. In the 18 hours since that video was uploaded to YouTube showing James getting slammed to the ground by the policeman, it has gained 14,311 views.
After the surveillance footage went viral and the New York Police Department top cop issued a mea culpa to James, as reported by ABC News, Blake reported that he didn’t want merely an apology. With James calling for the responsible cop to be fired, Blake is hoping that the cop never has the opportunity to do what he did to James to ever happen to anyone else.
[Image by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images Sport]
