Prosecuting attorney Zachary Thompson said at a news conference that there was a “racial component” Thursday night when Andrew Lester twice shot 16-year-old Ralph Yarl, who is recovering at home after being released from the hospital.
But nothing in the charging documents says the shooting was racially motivated, Thompson clarified.
“We understand how frustrating this has been but I can assure you the criminal justice system is working and will continue to work,” Thompson said.
The shooting outraged many in Kansas City and across the country.
Civic and political leaders — including President Joe Biden — demanded justice.
Some, including lawyers for Yarl, pressed the racial dimension of the case.
Yarl, an honour student and all-state band member, was supposed to pick up his two younger brothers when he approached the wrong house at roughly 10pm local time.
Lester came to the door and shot Yarl in the forehead — then shot him again, in the right forearm.
No words were exchanged before the shooting, the probable cause statement said.
But afterward, as Yarl got up to run, he heard Lester yell, “Don’t come around here,” the statement said.
Yarl ran to “multiple” homes asking for help before finding someone who would call the police, the statement said.
Reverend Vernon Howard, president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference of Greater Kansas City, called the shooting a “heinous and hate-filled crime.”
Vice President Kamala Harris wrote on Twitter that “No child should ever live in fear of being shot for ringing the wrong doorbell.”
The Missouri Senate held a moment of silence for Yarl on Monday.
The civil rights attorneys for Yarl’s family, Ben Crump and Lee Merritt, said in a statement that Biden called Yarl’s family and offered “prayers for Ralph’s health and for justice.”
“Gun violence against unarmed Black individuals must stop,” the lawyers’ statement read.
“Our children should feel safe, not as though they are being hunted.”
Yarl’s supporters plan to hold a rally Tuesday evening in Kansas City.
The assault charge carries a penalty of up to life in prison. Lester also was charged with armed criminal action, which has a penalty range of three to 15 years in prison.
Lester was not charged with a hate crime. Thompson said Missouri’s statute is considered a lesser felony than first-degree assault, and carries a less severe penalty.
Missouri is among roughly 30 states with “Stand Your Ground” laws, which allow for the use of deadly force in self-defence, but the prosecutor determined the shooting was not in self-defence.
An arrest warrant was issued but Lester was not yet in custody, Thompson said.
Lester told police that he lives alone and had just gone to bed when he heard his doorbell, according to the probable cause statement. He said he picked up his gun and went to the door, where he saw a Black male pulling on the exterior storm door handle and thought someone was breaking in.
A number for Lester was not in service on Monday evening and it was not immediately clear whether he had an attorney to speak on his behalf.
Wounded teen returns home
Ralph was released from the hospital on Sunday, according to a report from The Kansas City Star, citing an interview with the teen’s father.
“He continues to improve. He’s responsive and he’s making good progress,” Paul Yarl told the newspaper.
After spending three nights in the hospital, Ralph is recovering at home, being cared for by his mother who is a nurse, the newspaper reported.
At a weekend rally, community and family members marched and demonstrated, calling for charges to be filed.
Protesters marched as they chanted, “justice for Ralph” and “Black lives matter,” and carried signs reading, “Ringing a doorbell is not a crime” and “The shooter should do the time,” footage from CNN affiliate KMBC shows.
The teen’s father said at the time, “We want charges. That’s what we want.”
Family seeking ‘swift action’
Police learned the teenager’s parents had asked him to pick up his siblings at an address on 115th Terrace, but he accidentally went to a home on 115th Street, where he was shot.
Lawyers for Ralph’s family also say the youth was shot after he went to the wrong house.
“Ralph Yarl was picking up his younger brothers when he mistakenly rang the doorbell at the wrong house. A man shot Ralph twice and now he’s in critical condition. His family needs support during this tragedy,” Crump tweeted.
Attorneys for the wounded youth’s family issued a statement demanding “swift action from Clay County prosecutors and law enforcement to identify, arrest and prosecute to the full extent of the law the man responsible for this horrendous and unjustifiable shooting”.
In a Monday interview with CNN, Crump said the shooting “hearkens back to Trayvon Martin and Ahmaud Arbery and so many of these other tragedies where you had citizens profile and shoot our Black children and the police then let them go home and sleep in their beds at night. Unacceptable.”
Asked whether the shooting may have been racially motivated, the police chief said, “the information that we have now, it does not say that that is racially motivated. That’s still an active investigation. But as a chief of police, I do recognise the racial components of this case.”
Graves sought to assure the Kansas City community Sunday the police department is committed to the case.
“We recognise the frustration this can cause in the entire criminal justice process. The women and men of the Kansas City Police Department are working as expeditiously and as thoroughly as we can, to ensure the criminal justice process continues to advance as quickly as all involved and our community deserve,” Graves said.
Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas said there will be a thorough investigation and review by the prosecutor’s office.
“As a parent, I certainly feel for the mother of the victim and others in the family. My heart goes out to them,” the mayor added.
Youth was a band section leader
A crowdfunding page started by Faith Spoonmore, who identified herself as Ralph’s aunt, to help the family raise money for medical expenses had garnered more than $2.2 million in donations by Monday afternoon.
Ralph had been looking forward to graduating from high school and visiting West Africa before starting college, his aunt wrote in the fundraiser.
The teen is a section leader in a marching band and could often be found with a musical instrument in hand, Spoonmore wrote.
Most recently, Ralph earned Missouri All-State Band honourable mention for playing the bass clarinet, according to a North Kansas City Schools’ newsletter in February.
He also plays multiple instruments in the metropolitan youth orchestra, his aunt wrote.
He is a member of his school’s Technology Student Association and Science Olympiad Team and is a 2022 Missouri Scholars Academy alumni, she wrote.
“Last summer, Ralph attended Missouri Scholar’s Academy, where he got a full college life experience,” Spoonmore wrote. “His goal is to attend Texas A&M to major in chemical Engineering. When asked how he plans to get into this university, he said, ‘Well, if they have a scholarship for music or academics, I know I can get it.’ “
“Life looks a lot different right now. Even though he is doing well physically, he has a long road ahead mentally and emotionally. The trauma that he has to endure and survive is unimaginable,” the post reads.
Dan Clemens, superintendent of North Kansas City Schools, released a statement saying Ralph is “an excellent student and talented musician”.
“We are devastated to learn one of our students was involved in a horrific incident last week,” Clemens wrote.
“Our thoughts are with the Yarl family, and I know I speak for all of us when we wish him a full and quick recovery. Ralph is an excellent student and talented musician.
“He maintains a stellar GPA while taking mostly college-level courses.
“While he loves science and hopes to pursue that career path, his passion is music. Thankfully, we know he is now recovering alongside family.”
Neighbour says she called 911
Emerging details of the incident illustrate the strength and bravery shown by the high school junior after he was shot.
A neighbour, who asked not to be identified, tells CNN she called 911 after Ralph came to her door, bleeding.
She was directed to stay inside her home by the emergency operator, for her safety as the shooter’s location was unknown.
“I wanted to help him, but they kept saying that we don’t know where the shooter is at,” the woman said.
She complied initially, then went outside with towels to help suppress the bleeding.
“I kneeled down next to him, and I said what’s your name … Who shot you?”
She said Ralph explained he “was supposed to pick up my brothers”.
“We figured out then he went to the wrong street, which is no excuse for what happened,” she said.
“This is somebody’s child. I had to clean blood off of my door, off of my railing. That was someone’s child’s blood. I’m a mum … this is not OK.”
While awaiting the ambulance, bleeding from injuries to the left side of his head and his right arm, the neighbour said Ralph told her he runs on the high school track team and plays the bass clarinet in band.
“He was very alert,” she said.
“He is a very strong man. Very brave.”
