A judge indicated on Tuesday that the prosecution of an 86-year-old white man charged in the wrong-door injury shooting of a Black teenager in Kansas City, Missouri, last year will proceed.
In September, Clay County Circuit Court Judge David P. Chamberlain completed a mental evaluation of Andrew Lester, which was entered into the record on November 15. However, the evaluation has been withheld from the public.
According to court records, the report has not affected the trial’s starting date of Feb. 18, which was scheduled during a hearing in early October. Additionally, a second week of trial, if necessary, has been scheduled for Feb. 24.
Ralph Yarl’s mother, Cleo Nagbe, expressed her satisfaction that the case stayed on schedule.
In a statement sent to NBC affiliate KSHB of Kansas City, Missouri, the family of Ralph Yarl expressed their gratitude for the progress made in the trial against Andrew Lester. They emphasized that this case holds significance beyond just holding someone accountable. It signifies a step towards justice for the trauma that Ralph and their family have experienced, all because he mistakenly rang the doorbell at the wrong home.
The pretrial hearing, initially set for Tuesday, has been postponed to January 25 at the request of Lester’s defense team, as stated in the court documents. There has been no immediate response from the defendant’s lawyer when asked for comment.
Lester, a retired aircraft mechanic, has entered a plea of not guilty to the charges in the felony case, which include first-degree assault and armed criminal action. According to the allegations, he shot Yarl, who was 16 years old at the time, with a handgun on April 13, 2023, shortly after the teenager rang his doorbell just before 10 p.m.
Yarl managed to survive and make a full recovery, although he still carries a scar on his head from a bullet that grazed him. Additionally, he was also hit by another round which struck his arm.
According to lawyers representing the family, the reason he went to Lester’s door was because he had been assigned the responsibility of picking up his younger twin brothers from a friend’s house. However, he mistakenly confused Northeast 115th Street with his intended destination of Northeast 115th Terrace.
After the shooting, Yarl reached out to the residents of nearby houses for assistance, according to his family’s legal representatives. Eventually, he was taken to the hospital for treatment. Authorities stated that Lester contacted the police and confessed that he had fired his weapon out of fear. A few days later, he surrendered to the authorities following the filing of charges, which caused significant outrage over the incident involving the teenager.
The defense team for the man has claimed that the extensive media coverage of the case, which includes protests regarding the alleged differential treatment Lester has received from the justice system compared to defendants of color, could potentially bias a jury and affect their judgment on whether his actions were justified and legal.
In May 2023, a judge assigned to the case raised concerns about potential racial motivation and the impact of public attention on the pool of potential jurors.
Statements made by celebrities Gwyneth Paltrow, Halle Berry, Chrissy Teigen, Kim Kardashian, and Viola Davis were officially documented as evidence of the extensive reach and impact of the news about the shooting.
In an interview in April, Yarl opened up about how he is dealing with the trauma following his shooting. He expressed that there is always a part of him that fears the potential danger someone could pose.
Yarl’s mother expressed her unwavering dedication to pursuing justice and preventing other families from enduring the same anguish solely because of their race.
If Lester is convicted of the assault charge, he could potentially be sentenced to life in prison. In addition, if he is found guilty of the armed criminal action charge, he may face a prison term ranging from 3 to 15 years.
