Protesters took to the streets in Kansas City, Missouri, on Sunday after a homeowner shot and wounded a teen who went to the wrong house to pick up his sibling, police said.
Ralph Yarl, 16, was “shot twice and suffered head and arm injuries,” his family’s attorney said in a statement.
Protesters marched, chanting “Justice for Ralph” and “Black Lives Matter” and carrying signs reading “Ringing the doorbell is not a crime” and “Snipers must be on time”.
According to Kansas City Police, officers arrived on the evening of April 13 to find a teenage girl who had been shot outside her home by her landlord after receiving a shooting report.
Police said on Sunday that the 10-year-old boy was taken to the hospital and his condition is stable.
“Despite the severity of his injuries and the seriousness of his condition, Ralph is alive and recovering,” civil rights attorneys S. Lee Merritt and Benjamin Crump, who were detained by Yarl and his family, said in a statement.
Police learned that the teenager’s parents had asked her brother to pick her up at an address on 115th Street Terrace, but mistakenly drove to her home on 115th Street and was shot.
“Ralph Yarl was picking up his siblings when he accidentally rang the doorbell at the wrong house. Ralph was shot twice by a man and is now in critical condition. His family needs support during this tragedy,” tweeted Crump.
The unidentified homeowner was taken into custody and held for 24 hours before being released while police took statements from the victims and gathered more forensic evidence.
Under Missouri law, you can be held for a criminal investigation for up to 24 hours, at which time you must either be charged or released, Graves told a news conference.
Attorneys for the families of the injured youths issued a statement calling for “prompt action by Clay County prosecutors and law enforcement agencies to identify, arrest and prosecute those responsible for this horrific and unjustified shooting, within the limits of the law.” issued a statement.
When asked if the shooting was racially motivated, the police chief said, “With the information we have right now, we’re not saying it was racially motivated. It’s still an active investigation. But police As commissioner, I acknowledge the racial component of this case.”
Graves worked Sunday to reassure the Kansas City community that police were committed to the case.
“We recognize the frustration that can arise 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 is as expeditious as possible. move on, as fast as everyone involved and our community deserves,” Graves said.
Kansas Mayor Quinton Lucas said there would be a thorough investigation and review by prosecutors.
“As a parent, I certainly feel for the victim’s mother and the other family members. My heart goes out to them,” the mayor said.
Was the teen band section leader.
The GoFundMe, launched by Faith Spoonmore, who identified herself as Ralph’s aunt to help raise money for her family’s medical bills, had raised more than $1 million in donations as of Monday morning.
Hoping to move to West Africa before Ralph graduated high school and started college, his aunt wrote a fundraiser.
Spoonmore writes, the teen is the section leader of the marching band and can often be found with an instrument in hand. According to the North Kansas City school’s newsletter in February, Ralph recently received a Missouri All-State Band Honorable Mention for his bass clarinet performance. He also plays several instruments in the Metropolitan Youth Orchestra, composed by his aunt.
He is a member of the school’s Technical Student Association and Science Olympiad team, and is a 2022 Missouri Scholars Academy graduate, they wrote.
Spoonmore writes, “Last summer, Ralph attended the Missouri Scholar Academy and got the full college experience.” “His goal is to major in chemical engineering at Texas A&M. When asked how he plans to enter this university, he said, ‘Well, if there’s a scholarship for music or academics, I guess I can.’
“Life looks very different now. I am doing well physically but mentally and emotionally I have a long way to go. The trauma they have had to endure and survive is unimaginable,” says the GoFundMe post.