After inadvertently going to the incorrect home in Kansas City, Missouri, to pick up his younger twin brothers, a black teenager was shot twice in the head. Ralph Yarl, 16, was shot at on 115th Street on Thursday night by a white homeowner in what his family is calling a hate crime.
According to his relatives, he arrived at the house’s driveway at 10 p.m., thinking it was the right one on 115th Terrace, where he was supposed to pick up his brothers. The high-achieving teen rang the doorbell but was then fired upon. He wanted to attend Texas A&M University to study chemical engineering.
According to his aunt Faith Spoonmore, “The man in the residence opened the door, looked my nephew in the eye, and shot him in the head.” “When my nephew hit the ground, the man shot him once again.”
While on the ground, the teen managed to escape while still aware and rush to the neighbor’s house for assistance. However, no one came to his rescue right away, and it took him knocking on the doors of three different houses before anybody did. Even then, he was instructed to lie on the ground with his hands raised.
Ralph was taken to the hospital right away, where he is currently healing from his wounds. The teen is regarded as a “musical genius” by his friends and is intelligent. Ralph is one of the best bass clarinet players in Missouri and a member of his high school’s Technology Student Association and Science Olympia Team. He also plays in marching, jazz, and competition bands.
He had aspirations of going to college after being honored as a graduate of the Missouri Scholar Academy in 2022. His family says he has “a long road ahead of him intellectually and emotionally” and has put up a GoFundMe page to cover medical costs. The unidentified alleged shooter was detained shortly after the event and was asked to provide a statement before being released awaiting further investigation.’
Authorities were able to confiscate the incident’s gun, but they have stated that they are delaying filing charges against the homeowner as they await the teen’s account of what transpired. Civil rights lawyer Lee Merritt expressed his displeasure at the gunman’s release in a tweet on Sunday morning, writing, “Ralph is fighting for his life.”
“This man has to be put in jail. We are moving forward. Stacey Graves, the chief of the Kansas City Police Department, defended the choice to let the alleged shooter go on Sunday afternoon. According to Chief Graves, “the vast majority of incidents involving violent crime include the defendant being freed pending additional investigation.”
Graves stated that she was “listening” and “understood” the community’s “concern” and added, “We want the community to know that we are committed to justice in this case and every case and work every day to achieve that justice for all victims of all crimes.”
Before determining whether to file charges, Graves described how investigators were working to gather forensic evidence and interview Ralph in person. She gave the community her word that the police were determined to bring the accused person to justice.
According to Graves, the KCPD will refer the case to the Clay County prosecutor’s office, which will decide whether to file charges or not.