The elderly homeowner accused of shooting black teenager Ralph Yarl twice has been arrested after handing himself in.
Andrew Lester, 84, surrendered to Clay County’s Detention Centre in Kansas City, Missouri, on Tuesday afternoon.
He is facing life in jail after being charged with first-degree assault and armed criminal action.
Ralph Yarl, 16, was shot twice through the door of Lester’s property, which is just a block away from the property his younger twin brothers were waiting to be picked up from.
Lester was initially arrested on April 14, hours after the shooting, when he told police that he was ‘scared to death’ of Yarl standing at his front door.
But he was then released on the opinion of the Clay County Prosecutor’s Office, who went on to charge him six days later.
Andrew Lester, 84, surrendered to Clay County’s Detention Centre in Kansas City, Missouri , on Tuesday afternoon
He is facing life in jail after being charged with first-degree assault and armed criminal action in relation to the shooting which saw Ralph Yarl rushed to hospital
Yesterday Kansas City Police Department submitted a file to the Prosecutor’s’ Office, who confirmed a warrant for Lester’s arrest on Monday evening.
It is unclear when Lester will appear in court, but he faces a maximum of life in prison for the charges if found guilty.
Ralph was shot in the head and the arm on April 13 after mistakenly ringing the doorbell at the Missouri property where he thought he was meant to pick up his younger twin brothers.
In a probable cause affidavit, Lester told KCPD that shooting Yarl was the ‘last thing he wanted to do’ but was terrified of the teenager because of his size and age.
The document also revealed that cops discovered a Smith and Wesson .32 caliber revolver with two spent shell casings still in the cylinder after officers arrived at the scene.
Police say Yarl was shot after he knocked on the door, with Lester telling officers he saw him ‘pulling on the door handle’ – something which the teenager denies.
Yarl also told authorities that Lester told him ‘don’t come around here’ after being shot in the head and the arm through the glass at the front of the house.
Lester shot twice within seconds of opening the door, according to his statement, and claims that no words were exchanged.
Ralph was shot in the head and the arm on April 13 after mistakenly ringing the doorbell at the Missouri property where he thought he was meant to pick up his younger twin brothers
Andrew Lester, 84, told Kansas City Police Department that shooting Ralph Yarl, 16, was the ‘last thing he wanted to do’ but was terrified of the teenager because of his size and age
Lester shot twice within seconds of opening the door, according to his statement, and claims that no words were exchanged
The document revealed that he was shot in the left forehead, and right arm, with a neighbor telling cops they thought it was ‘odd’ for their ‘elderly neighbor to have a visitor this late at night’.
A witness added that they heard ‘two or three gunshots’ from Lester’s home, and heard Yarl screaming that he had been shot.
Lester told officers that he felt he was ‘protecting himself’ at the property where he says he lives alone.
He also claimed that he called 911 after the shooting, claiming that Yarl ‘ran away’ after the incident.
However, the statement shows that he was ‘visibly upset’ and ‘repeatedly expressed concern’ for Yarl during the interview.
He said he ‘believed he was protecting himself from a physical confrontation and could not take the chance of the male coming in’.
Ralph Yarl, 16, was shot twice in the head by a white man after he approached the wrong house by mistake when going to collect his siblings
Ralph, center, was said to be trying to pick up his younger siblings from a friend’s house but went to the wrong address
Yarl told officers that he pressed the doorbell and waited outside of the door, adding that the man inside ‘took a long time but finally opened the door holding a firearm.’
Officers took a hard drive from Lester’s home to preserve video, but the video system was ‘no longer functional.’
Lester’s home had signs warning trespassers and unwelcomed visitors, though it is unclear if Yarl saw any of them before approaching the property.
The doorbell had a small ‘no solicitors’ sign on top while another sign claimed the property was ‘protected by surveillance cameras.’
Clay County prosecutor Zachary Thompson announced the two felony charges on Monday, and confirmed that there was a ‘racial component’ to the case but would not elaborate further.
Lawyer for the family Lee Merritt added that Yarl’s legal team was not aware of what the ‘racial element’ of the case was which was announced by Clay County Prosecutors office on Monday night.
He said: ‘It’s a white shooter and a black boy. The man in his 80s went home and slept in his bed that night. But I’m not sure what the prosecutor was referring to exactly.’
Lester’s bond is set at $200,000. If convicted, he could face life in prison for the assault charge, and 3 to 15 years for armed criminal action.
Ralph’s mother told CBS News that her son was waiting for a hug from his twin brothers but instead ‘got a couple of bullets’.
Yarl is said to be recovering, but his mother said he mostly ‘just sits there and stares and the buckets of tears just rolls down his eyes’.
A talented bass clarinet player, Ralph also leads a section of his school’s marching band and plays multiple instruments in the Northland Symphony Youth Orchestra
The house in Kansas City, Missouri had a ‘no solicitors’ sign on top of the doorbell which Ralph mistakenly rang
She said that the bullet in his arm was not removed for 12 hours, and that the residual effect of the injury is going to stay with him for ‘quite a while’.
President Joe Biden rang the Yarl family on Monday, and invited them to the White House when Ralph is well enough.
Yarl’s mother revealed that they spoke about music, with the President saying that if his family had to rely on his musical skills then they would ‘die hungry’ – and the teen quipping that Biden ‘had jokes’.
Crump added that it was a tragedy it had taken the prosecutor so long to charge Lester, saying: ‘I think it is appropriate, you can’t send a message to society that it’s okay to shoot black people in the head just for ringing your doorbell.
‘Gun violence against unarmed black individuals must stop. Our children should feel safe, not as though they are being hunted.
‘While this is certainly a step in the right direction, we will continue to fight for Ralph while he works towards a full recovery.’
Thompson, asked why Lester was not charged with attempted murder, said they had decided to charge him with an ‘a felony’ because it was the most serious crime.
Lester was taken in for questioning immediately after the shooting, but was released two hours after he was arrested – without any charges.
Police took a statement from Ralph in hospital last Friday before he was released on Monday, to continue to recover at home with his mother – who is a nurse.
President Joe Biden rang the Yarl family on Monday, and invited them to the White House when Ralph is well enough
The property also had a sign claiming it was ‘protected by surveillance cameras’
Cleo Nagbe, with attorney Lee Merritt, said that her son Ralph Yarl is able to communicate ‘when he feels like it’
‘He continues to improve. He’s responsive and he’s making good progress,’ said his father, Paul.
Celebrities have been quick to support the teenager, actresses Viola Davis, Jennifer Hudson and Halle Berry calling for justice.
Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes said he hopes ‘the justice system does right by him.’
Jennifer Aniston called on her followers to demand ‘an immediate arrest’ of the shooter.
She also posted the prosecutor’s contact address and said: ‘Use the contact information below to demand Prosecutor Zachary Thompson make an immediate arrest and bring the appropriate charges.’
Her comment comes as a GoFundMe fundraiser set up by Yarl’s aunt has raised more than $2.7million for the teenager just one day after it was created.
