A 16-year-old black teenager was shot after making a wrong address in Kansas City, Missouri, by the owner of the residence, and had to be hospitalized, in a case that has sparked protests and the intervention of renowned civil rights lawyers at the national level. national response to the possibility of racial motivation on the part of the attacker, who is white, and for his release after being detained for 24 hours.
Ralph Paul Yarl went to pick up his younger siblings from a friend's house on 115th Terrace last Thursday, his family and lawyers have said, and ended up ringing the doorbell of a house on 115th Street by mistake.
A man opened the door, they say, saw Yarl and shot him in the head.
As Yarl fell to the ground, he shot her again in the arm.
The teen got up and ran off the property, but had to ask three different houses before someone helped him, Faith Spoonmore, his aunt, said in an online post.
Police reported that they were summoned to the scene around 10:00 pm, and that Ralph was hospitalized with two gunshot wounds.
His condition is stable.
“He is doing well physically, [but] he has a long road ahead of him mentally and emotionally,” the aunt said.
Ralph Paul Yarl, high school student.via GoFundMe
The story of the incident spread through social networks nationwide, and by the weekend there were protests over the attack, classified by many as an act of racially motivated gun violence, since relatives maintain that the attacker was white.
Protesters marched towards the residence where the attack occurred, chanting “What do we want?
Justice!
When do we want it?
Now!".
"My nephew is now alive and healing. But that's not the story this individual wanted us to be telling," the aunt said at the protest Sunday, according to Kansas City's NBC affiliate KSHB.
Released after a 24-hour arrest
Lee Merritt and Ben Crump, nationally recognized civil rights lawyers, indicated Sunday they would take up the case and immediately criticized Kansas City authorities for releasing the shooter, saying he is a white man, NBC News reported.
"There can be no excuse for the release of this armed and dangerous suspect," they said.
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Police have indicated that part of the investigation is to determine whether there was a racially motivated motivation for the teen's attack and that they are quickly preparing evidence for prosecutors to pursue the case.
"I want everyone to know that I'm here to listen," Chief Stacey Graves said at a news conference at police headquarters, "and I understand the concern we're getting from the community."
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Graves said Sunday that the home's owner was arrested Thursday and taken into custody for 24 hours.
While searching the scene for evidence, detectives found the firearm used.
Police released the suspect pending further investigation after consulting with the Clay County District Attorney's office.
Missouri law allows a person to be detained for up to 24 hours for a felony investigation.
At that time, the person must either be released or arrested and charged.
To arrest someone, police need a formal statement from the victim, forensic evidence and other information to complete the case file, Graves said.
Because of the teen's injuries, he said, police have been unable to obtain a statement from the victim.
Initially it was reported that Yarl was stable but he had a life threatening injury to him.
Faith Spoonmore was the one who gave the details of what happened to her nephew in a GoFundMe post, where the family raises funds for Yarl's medical bills and other expenses.
The news, covered by local media, reached well-known civil rights advocates across the country, including famous artists.
"I was completely heartbroken when I found out what happened to this precious 16-year-old," actress Halle Berry said on Instagram.
"This could be your son, this should NOT happen again
," she added, asking her followers to call the prosecutor so that the attacker is arrested and charged.
Shot after ringing the bell
Graves indicated that other factors being analyzed also included whether the suspect was protected by
Missouri's
stand-your-ground
laws, which allow a person to use deadly force when they reasonably believe it is necessary for certain violent crimes by way of of legitimate defense.
They don't have to run away first, but can attack the suspected assailant directly.
In this case, Graves said, detectives are working "as quickly and as thoroughly" as possible to build a strong foundation for prosecution.
“As soon as the case is complete, it will be presented to the Clay County District Attorney for review,” he added.
The family and the teenager's lawyers maintain an account of what happened in which they consider that
there was no threat.
“You can't just shoot people without justification when someone knocks on your door.
And knocking on your door is not an excuse,” civil rights attorney Ben Crump told the Kansas City Star newspaper. “This guy should be charged,” he remarked.
The role of race in what happened
Crump said that based on what the teen's family told him, the shooter is white.
"It's inevitable not to recognize the racial dynamics here," he said.
Crump has represented families in several high-profile cases, including those of Trayvon Martin and Michael Brown, as well as Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and George Floyd.
The family also retained Lee Merritt, a Texas-based civil rights lawyer who previously represented the family of Cameron Lamb, who was fatally shot by Kansas City police detective Eric DeValkenaere in 2019.
Graves has also said that he has been in contact with the teen's family and is listening to the concerns of the black community.
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Mayor Quinton Lucas, who attended the news conference, said police understand the community's concern that the shooting may be racially motivated.
Some members of the police department attended Sunday's protest in the neighborhood where the shooting occurred to hear the community's concerns, he said.
“This is not something that has been written off, marginalized, or diminished in any way.
This is something that is getting the full attention of the Kansas City Police Department,” Lucas said.
Lucas also said he has been in contact with the teen's loved ones.
“My heart goes out to the victim of this shooting, the family of the victim, my heart goes out to everyone affected,” he said.
With information from
The Associated Press
.