The 16-year-old Ralph Yarl was supposed to collect siblings from a place he’d never been to but went in the wrong direction through error. The 84-year-old Andrew Lester owned the address where he ended up. The specifics of what transpired following aren’t precise. However, one thing is sure: Lester shot Ralph in the head and then on the shoulder.

Ralph is Black. Lester is white.

The good news is that Ralph should recover fully. Lester has admitted not guilty to charges of assault in the first degree and armed criminal act and will claim self-defense. However, if Lester thinks he has a legal basis for firing Ralph and killing him, he has another accusation.

What Happened? 

On the 13th of April, around 10 pm, Ralph was called to meet his younger brothers at an apartment north of Kansas City, Missouri. He erred by going to NE 112 ^{Street instead of NE 115} Street and not NE 112th Terrace, which was just a block away. Andrew Lester answered the door. He was carrying a .32 caliber revolver.

The stories vary on what transpired the next day. As per the police complaint, Lester confessed to the officers that he witnessed a Black man “pulling on the exterior storm door handle” and said he was convinced that Ralph was trying to gain entry into his home. Lester confessed to police that he had been “scared to death” by Ralph’s size and ability to protect himself, given his seniority.

Ralph’s story is in contradiction to Lester’s. The teenager claimed to a police officer that he did not ring the doorbell but did not strike the door in any way. While the prosecutor stated that there was no evidence of any exchange of words, Ralph reported to the police that Lester told him, ” Don’t come around here.”

Lester then fired on Ralph repeatedly through the glass doors. Ralph was struck with a headshot and right arm. A neighbor reported to CNN that they did not hear the shots when they went outside; they discovered Ralph lying in the street with neighbors. He was taken to a hospital and treated there for medical attention.

Lester’s Release and Public Outcry 

Kansas City police arrested Lester at around midnight that same day and released him within two hours in the early hours of Friday. The weekend was a time when anger was felt throughout the entire community. On Sunday, protesters were seen marching on the home of Lester. Kansas City Police Chief Stacey Graves acknowledged the protest during a press conference. Ralph was released from the hospital on Sunday evening.

The family of the teenager’s father and his attorneys, Ben Crump and S. Lee Merritt criticized authorities for not the release of Lester. In the joint statement on Sunday, the attorneys stated: “There can be no excuse for the release of this armed and dangerous suspect after admitting to shooting an unarmed, nonthreatening and defenseless teenager that rang his doorbell.” They directed potential supporters to a GoFundMe page created by the aunt of Ralph, which had already exceeded its $2.5 million target by more than 1 million dollars.

This morning, Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas, who is Black and a Black man, stated that he was ” heartbroken and angry” over the issue. “You’ve heard about all the other issues that Black people confront in life,” he said. “Can be expected to approach the door when you’re Black? It’s like you don’t exist.” President Biden spoke to Ralph via telephone at night and offered him a speedy recovery.

The Charges 

In the meantime, Clay County Prosecutor Zachary Thompson announced that Lester was indicted for “armed criminal action” and “first-degree assault.” In Missouri, armed criminal activity can result in a maximum penalty of 15 years of prison; at the same time, assault with a first degree carries the potential for life-long prison. Even though Thompson stated that “there was a racial component to the case,” Lester is not being accused of committing the hate crime, but Lester has been charged with other charges.

“Stand Your Ground” Defense? Seriously? 

According to Ralph’s attorneys, Lester admitted to shooting Ralph. It appears that he’s seeking to avoid conviction through the shield of self-defense. Unfortunately for him, this most likely won’t work.

On the other hand, Missouri is a “stand your ground” state. This means that if someone is threatening to kill you, you have no obligation to retreat to security as your first choice before using the force of death to defend yourself. If you kill the opponent during self-defense, you may be able to avoid a criminal conviction based on the self-defense doctrine.

However, to be eligible for self-defense protection in a stand-your-ground situation, the fear of dying or sustaining serious bodily injury must remain “objectively reasonable.” And that’s where Lester gets into problems in its legal argument.

Let’s believe in his word. Let’s say that Lester was also scared at the sight of Ralph. Ralph took the door handle on the outside around 10:00 in the evening (although it’s not confirmed). A jury must decide if this was enough to support an objectively reasonable assumption that Ralph was dangerous to Lester.

However, a jury is not likely to find that an average sensible person in Lester’s shoes would think the situation was to be a threat. Ralph might be significant. However, he’s still just an infant in high school. He didn’t appear to be making threats or any other threats that Lester informed the police about. At the very least, Ralph opened a door. Then, lastly–we must stress–Ralph was not armed!

Self-Defense Won’t Fly 

We’re not able to penetrate Lester’s mind. He could have been genuinely terrified of Ralph. If so, it’s an unfortunate and poignant comment about the realities of America for a Black teenager. However, that’s a different matter entirely.

It’s important to remember that, regardless of how terrified Lester might have been, his fear was an opinion; it was not reasonable. Ralph was not a threat to his life, and certainly not the threat needed for self-defense in the law. Lester’s stand-your-ground Hail Mary isn’t going to perform.