The family of a Black teenager who was shot by a white homeowner when he mistakenly went to the wrong Kansas City, Missouri, address has filed a lawsuit.
The complaint, submitted by Cleo Nagbe on behalf of her son Ralph Yarl, accuses 84-year-old Andrew Lester of negligence for shooting the 16-year-old without warning over a year ago. Yarl allegedly suffered permanent injuries, pain, and suffering due to Lester’s actions.
According to Lee Merritt, the family’s attorney, the civil suit allows the family to take an active role in seeking justice for Ralph during the criminal proceedings against Lester.
Lester, who pleaded not guilty in September 2023, is set to stand trial on October 7, 2024. Steve Salmon, Lester’s criminal defense attorney, stated that he is reviewing the civil complaint and will address it with his client.
During a preliminary hearing, Salmon argued that Lester acted in self-defense out of fear when a stranger knocked on his door late at night.
“The suit is based on what he has said,” Merritt told The Associated Press. “If he’s saying, ‘I mistakenly thought this person was a robber,’ we’re saying that’s negligence. You weren’t paying close enough attention. Everybody who rings your doorbell can’t be a robber.”
Yarl made a mistake and got confused with the street name of the house where he was supposed to pick up his siblings. During the hearing, Yarl testified that he rang the doorbell and reached for the storm door as Lester opened the inner door. However, Lester told him to never come back again, which Yarl remembered clearly.
According to Yarl, he was shot in the head, causing him to fall to the ground, and then he was shot in the arm.
This case gained international attention and sparked national debates about gun policies and race in America.
In a statement, Nagbe expressed that the shooting not only devastated their family but also revealed a significant flaw in our society, where the safety of our children is endangered by reckless actions.
The lawsuit also includes the homeowner’s association, Highland Acres Homes Association, Inc., as a defendant. The association has not yet responded to an email requesting comment.
Merritt mentioned that the family understands that the legal proceedings might be delayed due to the ongoing criminal case, but they still wanted to initiate the process.
He referred to a state law that grants the victim access to the criminal case records, which has not been fulfilled yet as the prosecutor seeks clarification from the judge regarding the case’s gag order.
Yarl was “uniquely resilient” after the shooting, Merritt said, but “his resiliency has kind of grown into some impatience with being the person who was shot a year ago.”
“He doesn’t want to be that person,” Merritt said. “He wants to be an amazing band player, a good friend, a student, a rising college student.”
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