86-year-old man from Kansas City, Andrew Lester, admitted guilt on a lesser charge related to the shooting of Ralph Yarl, a 16-year-old Black honor student, in 2023. Yarl accidentally rang Lester’s doorbell while trying to pick up his twin siblings and ended up getting shot.
Lester was originally facing serious charges of first-degree assault and armed criminal action, which could have led to a long prison sentence. However, as part of a plea deal, he pleaded guilty to second-degree assault, which carries a lighter sentence of up to seven years. He is set to be sentenced on March 7.
Lester appeared frail in court, being wheeled in with his hands folded. The agreement to plead guilty to a lesser charge means that there will be no trial and no chance for appeal, which may have been preferable for him. The defense attorney explained that the second-degree assault charge could suggest that Lester acted out of fear or strong emotion, which might not fully excuse his actions.
On the night of April 13, 2023, Ralph Yarl mistakenly knocked on Lester’s door. Lester’s lawyer claims that he acted in self-defense because he was scared of the stranger at his door. Reports indicate that Lester shot Yarl twice—first in the head and then in the arm.
The incident gained significant attention and sparked discussions about gun laws and race in the United States. Yarl testified that he rang the doorbell and waited longer than usual for someone to answer. When the door opened, he reached for the storm door, thinking the people inside were friends of his brothers. Instead, he was shot in the head, and Lester allegedly warned him, “Don’t come here ever again.” Although the bullet didn’t penetrate his brain, it knocked him down, and he was shot in the arm afterward. Yarl spent three days in the hospital before being released.
Yarl’s family has said that the shooting has had a serious emotional impact on them and has filed a lawsuit against Lester. Meanwhile, Lester’s attorney mentioned that his health has worsened over the past year, citing heart problems, a broken hip, and significant weight loss due to stress from media attention and threats he received. A judge had ordered a mental evaluation for Lester, but the results of that evaluation have not been made public.
