() — A teenager was shot and wounded by a homeowner after he mistakenly entered the wrong house to pick up his siblings in Kansas City, Missouri, police said Sunday.
Agents responded to reports of a shooting on the night of April 13; when they arrived, they found a teenager who had been shot by a homeowner outside his home, according to Kansas City police.
The teen was taken to a local hospital, where he was in stable condition Sunday, police said.
Police learned that the teen’s parents had asked him to pick up his siblings at an address on 115th Terrace, but he accidentally went to a house on 115th Street, where he was shot, according to police.
The teen was identified as Ralph Yarl, a 16-year-old high school student, according to a joint statement by civil rights attorneys S. Lee Merritt and Benjamin Crump, who were retained by the victim and her family.
“Despite the severity of his injuries and the seriousness of his condition, Ralph is alive and recovering,” the attorneys said in the statement.
The homeowner, who was not identified, was taken into custody and held for 24 hours, then released pending further investigation due to the need to obtain a formal statement from the victim and gather additional forensic evidence, the Kansas City chief said. Police officer Stacey Graves at a press conference this Sunday.
Under Missouri state law, a person can be held for up to 24 hours for investigation of a felony, at which time they are required to be charged or released, Graves said at the news conference.
The shooting sparked a protest in Kansas City on Sunday, with hundreds of people gathered outside the house where Yarl was shot, according to KSHB affiliate.
Protesters gather in Kansas City after the shooting of Ralph Paul Yarl. (Credit: KMBC)
Protesters marched chanting “Justice for Ralph” and “Black Lives Matter” and carried signs reading “Ringing the doorbell is not a crime” and “Attacker should serve time,” the footage shows. of KMBC, a affiliate.
“We demand swift action by Clay County prosecutors and law enforcement to identify, arrest, and prosecute to the fullest extent of the law the man responsible for this horrific and unjustifiable shooting,” the attorneys’ statement read. of the victim.
Asked if the shooting could have been racially motivated, the police chief said: “The information we have now does not say that it was racially motivated. That is still an active investigation. But as police chief, I recognize the racial components of this case.”
Graves tried to assure the Kansas City community Sunday that the Police Department is committed to bringing justice to this case.
“We recognize the frustration this can cause throughout the criminal justice process. The women and men of the Kansas City Police Department are working as quickly and thoroughly as possible to ensure that the criminal justice process continues to move as quickly as everyone involved and our community deserve,” Graves said.
Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas said there will be a thorough investigation and review by the prosecutor’s office.
“As a parent, I certainly feel sorry for the victim’s mother and other family members. My heart goes out to them,” added the mayor.
A GoFundMe to help the family raise money for medical expenses, started by Faith Spoonmore, who identified herself as Yarl’s aunt, had raised more than $529,000 in donations as of Sunday night.
Yarl hoped to graduate from high school and visit West Africa before starting university, where he hopes to major in chemical engineering, his aunt wrote in the fundraiser.
The teen is a section leader in a marching band and can often be found with a musical instrument in hand, Spoonmore wrote. Most recently, Yarl earned a Missouri All-State Band honorable mention for playing bass clarinet, according to a North Kansas City Schools newsletter in February.
“Life looks very different right now. Although he is doing well physically, he has a long road ahead of him mentally and emotionally. The trauma she has to endure and survive is unimaginable,” the GoFundMe post reads.
