April 17, 2023 - Kansas City, Missouri, homeowner faces felony charges in shooting of teen

Andrew Lester, who was charged with two felony counts Monday for allegedly shooting Ralph Yarl, told police the night of the shooting that he was “scared to death” due to the 16-year-old's size, according to probable cause document released by Clay County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office.

On April 13 around 9:50 p.m., a witness said a car pulled into the driveway of Lester’s residence, the document reads.

In an interview with police, Lester said he had just lain down on his bed that night when he heard the doorbell ring, the document says. Lester told police he got up, picked up his Smith and Wesson .32-caliber revolver and went to the front door, where both the interior door and the storm door were locked, the document reads. 

When he opened the interior door, he saw a Black male who was approximately 6 feet tall pulling at the storm door, the document says. He told police that he thought he was trying to break into the house and “shot twice within a few seconds of opening the door,” the document reads. He then called 911, the document reads.  

Lester told police that he never saw Ralph before and that they didn’t exchange words during the incident, the document reads.

Police spoke with Ralph on Friday while he was being treated at Children’s Mercy Hospital for an informal interview, the document reads. Ralph told police his mother asked him to pick up his brothers at 1100 NE 115 St., although the actual address they were staying at was 1100 NE 115th Terrace, the document reads.  

When he arrived, he said he pressed the doorbell and waited for a while, a man eventually opened the door and immediately shot him in the head, the document reads. Ralph got up and started running away, and he heard the man say, “Don’t come around here,” the document reads.  

He then went to multiple residences asking for help, where he was able to get someone to call 911, the document reads. Ralph suffered gunshot wounds on his left forehead and right arm, the document reads.  

 Police recovered a blood sample from the front porch, as well as a fingerprint from the door, the document reads. Police went to Ralph's home on Monday to conduct another interview but weren’t able to find anyone, the document reads.  

President Joe Biden spoke to Ralph Yarl and his family by phone Monday, a White House official told CNN.

The official did not immediately provide additional details about the call.

Ralph, 16, was shot in Kansas City, Missouri, last week when he went to the wrong house to pick up his siblings.

The 16-year-old who was shot last week after going to the wrong house in St. Louis, Missouri, to pick up his siblings, has come home from the hospital, family attorney Ben Crump said Monday afternoon.

Ralph Yarl is still struggling with stress from the ordeal but he and his family are happy he lived after being shot in the head, Crump said. They hope for a full recovery because Ralph is young and strong, he added.

The Kansas City Star reported Ralph is being cared for by his mother, who is a nurse.

Following the announcement of charges late Monday, Crump said it was "certainly a step in the right direction."

A GoFundMe set up to help with medical expenses for Ralph Yarl has surpassed its $2 million goal as of Monday, the page shows.

It was started by Yarl's aunt Faith Spoonmore just one day ago, according to the page history.

The fund description says that the account will be used to pay for Yarl's "medical bills and therapy," and additional donations will go toward "college expenses at Texas A&M, a trip to West Africa, and other expenses."

CNN has reached out to Spoonmore for comment.

Ralph, a Black teenager, was allegedly shot twice by a White man when he rang the doorbell at the wrong address last Thursday.

The teen'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 twice and struck in the head and arm," his family said.

The suspect, Andrew Lester, faces two felony charges, according to Clay County Prosecuting Attorney Zachary Thompson. A warrant has been issued for his arrest.

Andrew Lester, who was charged with shooting 16-year-old Ralph Yarl, could face a life sentence if he is convicted, Clay County Prosecuting Attorney Zachary Thompson said Monday. 

Felony assault in the first degree carries 10 to 30 years or life in prison, Thompson said. If convicted of the felony count of armed criminal action, Lester could face 3 to 15 years in prison, he said. 

When asked if hate crime charges could be added, Thompson said that a hate crime is a lower class of felony than the current charges, which would result in lower sentencing requirements. Thompson explained that adding additional hate crime charges would create an issue of double jeopardy.

Thompson said his office has been looking at the case in an “objective and impartial manner."

The White man suspected of shooting Ralph Yarl, a Black teen, was released last week after being held for about one hour in custody because of a Missouri law regarding charges, said Zachary Thompson, the Clay County prosecuting attorney.

Andrew D. Lester was taken into custody just before midnight on April 13 but was released at 1:24 a.m. on April 14, according to police department officials who spoke to CNN.

Ralph was shot on April 13 after he went to the wrong home in Kansas City, Missouri.

The teen'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 twice and struck in the head and arm," his family said.

Lester faces two felony charges, according to Thompson. A warrant has been issued for his arrest.

Clay County Prosecuting Attorney Zachary Thompson said there was "a racial component to the case," while announcing charges related to the shooting of 16-year-old Ralph Yarl.

The probable cause statement, however, doesn’t include a description of what the racial factors were, he said. 

Thompson originally said Lester was 85 years old but the probable cause document obtained by CNN affiliate KMBC shows he is 84.

There is no indication that either Lester, who is White, or Ralph, who is Black, spoke to one another before the shooting, he said. 

Thompson said there is no evidence to indicate Ralph crossed the threshold into the home, and that Lester shot at him through a glass door with a .32-caliber revolver. Police previously said Ralph went to the wrong house while trying to pick up his younger brothers.

The prosecuting attorney said he is not aware of any witnesses or video of the incident.

Andrew D. Lester was charged with two felony counts in the shooting of 16-year-old Ralph Yarl, Clay County prosecuting attorney Zachary Thompson announced Monday.

The man faces one count of felony assault in the first degree and one count of armed criminal action, Thompson said.

A warrant was recently issued for Lester but he is not yet in custody, he said.

His bond was set at $200,000, according to Thompson.

Ralph Yarl's parents had asked him to pick up his siblings at an address in Kansas City, Missouri, but he accidentally went to a home on the wrong street, where he was shot, according to police.

A neighbor, who asked not to be identified, tells CNN she called 911 after the teen 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.”

While awaiting the ambulance, bleeding from injuries to the left side of his head and his right arm, the neighbor 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.”

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.”