On April 13, 2023, Ralph Yarl, a 16-year-old black teenager, was shot twice and wounded after ringing the doorbell to the wrong house in

Kansas City, Missouri Kansas City (abbreviated KC or KCMO) is the largest city in Missouri by population and area. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 508,090 in 2020, making it the 36th most-populous city in the United States. It is the central ...

. Yarl was attempting to pick up his twin brothers and ended up at the wrong address, according to family members. Andrew Daniel Lester, an 84-year-old

white White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...

man, was charged in connection with the shooting on April 17, 2023. He is charged with armed criminal action and first-degree assault, which is the equivalent of

attempted murder Attempted murder is a crime of attempt in various jurisdictions. Canada Section 239 of the ''Criminal Code'' makes attempted murder punishable by a maximum of life imprisonment. If a gun is used, the minimum sentence is four, five or seven ye ...

in Missouri. The

Clay County Clay County is the name of 18 counties in the United States. Most are named for Henry Clay, U.S. Senator and statesman: * Clay County, Alabama * Clay County, Arkansas (named for John Clayton, and originally named Clayton County) * Clay County, Flor ...

district attorney stated that there was a "racial component" to the shooting. If convicted, Lester faces 10 years to

life in prison Life imprisonment is any sentence of imprisonment for a crime under which convicted people are to remain in prison for the rest of their natural lives or indefinitely until pardoned, paroled, or otherwise commuted to a fixed term. Crimes for ...

. The shooting gained additional attention as the first of four shootings across the US to occur in a one-week period, that were all characterized by young people being met with gunfire after making a mistake. The others were the

killing of Kaylin Gillis On April 15, 2023, 20-year-old Kaylin Gillis was shot and killed in Hebron, New York, after the car in which she was traveling turned onto the wrong driveway. The alleged shooter, Kevin D. Monahan, was arrested after a standoff and taken into cus ...

Hebron, New York Hebron is a town in Washington County, New York, United States. It is part of the Glens Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area. The town population was 1,773 at the 2000 census. The town is named after the same-named community in Connecticut. Geogra ...

, after she mistakenly entered the wrong driveway, the shooting of two cheerleaders in

Elgin, Texas Elgin ( ) is a city in Bastrop County in the U.S. state of Texas. The population was 9,784 at the 2020 census. Elgin is also known as the Sausage Capital of Texas and the Brick Capital of the Southwest, due to the presence of three operating bri ...

, after they mistakenly entered the wrong car, and the shooting of Kinsley White and her parents in

Gastonia, North Carolina Gastonia is the largest city in and county seat of Gaston County, North Carolina, United States. It is the second-largest satellite city of the Charlotte area, behind Concord. The population was 80,411 at the 2020 census, up from 71,741 in 2010 ...

, after her basketball rolled into a neighbor's yard.

Background

The victim was Ralph Yarl, a 16-year-old African American student at Staley High School. His parents emigrated to the United States from

Liberia Liberia (), officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country on the West African coast. It is bordered by Sierra Leone to Liberia–Sierra Leone border, its northwest, Guinea to its north, Ivory Coast to its east, and the Atlantic Ocean ...

. Yarl is described by friends and family as an academically gifted student with an interest in music, with plans to study chemical engineering at

Texas A&M University Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, or TAMU) is a public, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System in 1948. As of late 2021, T ...

Shooting

In the evening hours of April 13, Yarl had been sent to pick up his siblings from an address in the 1100 block of NE 115th Terrace. He mistakenly went to a home less than a block away on NE 115th Street and rang the doorbell. Investigators allege that Lester shot Yarl twice through the house's front glass door. The

Kansas City Police Department The Kansas City Police Department (KCPD) is the principal law enforcement agency serving Kansas City, Missouri. Jackson County 16th Circuit Court Circuit Court Judge Jen Phillips swore in Stacey Graves as the 46th chief of police of the KCPD on ...

responded to reports of a shooting near the home a little before 10 p.m. Yarl tried to get help at three different homes before someone finally agreed to help him. Neighbors had found Yarl lying injured in the street and called police, who found Yarl with at least two gunshot wounds to the head and arm.

Accused

The suspect was identified as 84-year-old Andrew Daniel Lester, a local resident. His grandson said Lester held a negative view of minorities. Other family members disputed this characterization. In the early morning hours of April 14, Lester was taken into custody. No initial charges were filed against Lester, and he was released after being held in custody for a short time, listed as "out of custody" and "general release" status on the same day. The Clay County, Missouri, prosecutor's office stated on April 17 that they had not received a criminal referral from the

in regards to the shooting. Later that day, it was announced that Lester would be charged with first-degree assault and armed criminal action. First-degree assault is the name in Missouri for the charge that other states call attempted murder. The district attorney stated there was a "racial component" to the case. Assistant prosecuting attorney Alexander Higginbotham clarified that "there is not a racial element to the legal charges that were filed". Legal experts noted this was likely because a

hate crime A hate crime (also known as a bias-motivated crime or bias crime) is a prejudice-motivated crime which occurs when a perpetrator targets a victim because of their membership (or perceived membership) of a certain social group or racial demograph ...

charge would have carried a lower maximum sentence than the charges filed. Lester surrendered himself to authorities on April 18, and was released on bail later that day. Lester stated to the police that he believed that Yarl was trying to break in, and was "scared to death" of Yarl's size. Yarl was subsequently described as a "lanky kid" who was tall and weighed . Lester also claimed that Yarl put his hand on the door handle, though Yarl disputes this.

Aftermath

A weekend rally was held after the shooting, during which members of the community and family members marched to and demonstrated in front of the suspected shooter's home, while calling for official charges to be filed. A

GoFundMe GoFundMe is an American for-profit crowdfunding platform that allows people to raise money for events ranging from life events such as celebrations and graduations to challenging circumstances like accidents and illnesses. From 2010 to the b ...

was created for Yarl by a family member to cover his medical bills, which had reached more than $2 million in donations by April 17 and nearly $3.5 million by May 4. Yarl was discharged from the hospital on April 16. Subsequently, President Joe Biden called Yarl and his mother to discuss his recovery.

Response

Kansas City Mayor

Quinton Lucas Quinton Donald Lucas (born August 19, 1984) is an American politician serving as the 55th mayor of Kansas City, Missouri. He was elected in 2019. He is affiliated with the Democratic party and is the city's third African-American mayor. Before hi ...

extended his sympathies to Yarl and his family, as did Kansas City Police Chief Stacey Graves. Yarl's family retained civil rights attorney

Benjamin Crump Benjamin Lloyd Crump (born October 10, 1969) is an American attorney who specializes in civil rights and catastrophic personal injury cases such as wrongful death lawsuits. His practice has focused on cases such as Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown, ...

shortly after the shooting, who stated that there was "no excuse" for the release of the suspect and demanded swift legal action.

References