‘Never ass-ume,’ says Google, proves Street View car didn’t hit donkey (Photos)

So, earlier this week, the Internet was ablaze with criticism after a series of panoramic pictures from Botswana surfaced and suggested one of Google’s Street View cars ran over a donkey when capturing imagery.

Well, Google defended itself today and provided full photographic evidence to prove it did not commit a hit-and-run offense. The new photographs indicate the car’s direction and show the donkey actually walked away after randomly lying in the road:

As our imagery below shows, the donkey was lying in the path – perhaps enjoying a dust bath – before moving safely aside as our car drove past.

Google Maps Group Product Manager Kei Kawai said he is “pleased to confirm the donkey is alive and well.”

Get more images at Google’s official Lat Long blog.