Charges filed in shooting of Ralph Yarl, Black teen shot by homeowner when he went to wrong house in Kansas City

Prosecutors in Kansas City, Missouri, have filed felony charges against the homeowner accused of shooting Ralph Yarl, a Black teenager who was shot when he went to the wrong house to pick up his siblings last week.

At a news conference Monday evening, Clay County Prosecutor Zachary Thompson announced two felony charges against the suspect, Andrew D. Lester, whom he described as a White man who is 85 years old. The charges are one count of assault in the first degree and one count of armed criminal action. Thompson said bond would be set at $200,000.

“My heart goes out to the child and family involved in this case,” Thompson said. 

He said Yarl was shot twice, struck in the head and arm. 

“The probable cause statement indicates the rounds were fired through a glass door,” Thompson said, and that “the victim in the case did not cross the threshold.”

Thompson also said, “As the prosecutor of Clay County, I can tell you there was a racial component to the case,” though he did not elaborate.

A short time before the announcement, Kansas City police said a case file had been submitted to the Clay County Prosecutors Office “for their review and determination of charges” in the matter.

Yarl, who is 16 years old, was seriously injured in the shooting Thursday night. Yarl’s father tells CBS Kansas City affiliate KCTV that the teen has now been released from the hospital and is recovering at home.

Yarl was meant to pick up his brothers from a friend’s house on 115th Terrace, but he ended up ringing the doorbell at a home on 115th Street instead, Faith Spoonmore, the teen’s aunt, wrote online.

She said a man opened the door, saw Yarl and shot him in the head, and when Yarl fell to the ground, the man shot him again. Yarl got up and ran from the property, but he had to ask at three different homes before someone helped him, Spoonmore wrote.

Kansas City police said they responded at around 10 p.m.

Police Chief Stacey Graves said Sunday that the homeowner was taken into custody Thursday and placed on a 24-hour hold, but was then released, in consultation with the county prosecutor’s office, while the investigation continued. 

This is a developing story. Check back for updates. The Associated Press contributed reporting.