In connection with the shooting of a Black adolescent attempting to pick up his younger brothers from a friend’s residence on Thursday, Kansas City police are scrambling to quickly gather evidence for the Clay County prosecutor.
“I want everyone to know that I am listening,” Police Chief Stacey Graves said Sunday at a news conference at Kansas City police headquarters downtown, “and I understand the concern we are receiving from the community.”
According to The Kansas City Star, the 16-year-old kid was shot while attempting to pick up his younger twin siblings and was taken to the hospital Thursday night. Family members have identified him online as Ralph Yarl. He went to the incorrect house, according to the police, and was shot there.
Officials refused to specify how often the homeowner shot the victim or the exact location of his wounds.
The shooter’s identity and race are unknown to police. Officials’ current knowledge does not indicate that the crime was motivated by race, but Graves said that element of the investigation is still ongoing.
“This is not something that has been dismissed, marginalized, diminished in any way. This is something that is getting the full attention of the Kansas City Police Department,” she said, according to CBS Kansas City, Mo. affiliate KCTV.
According to Graves, investigators will also consider if the culprit was given legal protection under the Stand Your Ground statutes.
Police first described Yarl as stable but suffering from a severe injury. Besides saying he is stable, his current state has not been disclosed.
According to Graves, the homeowner accused of shooting the teen was arrested on Thursday and put on a 24-hour hold. Detectives discovered the allegedly used handgun while looking around the location for evidence.
After consultation with the Clay County Prosecutor’s Office, law enforcement released the subject awaiting additional investigation.
According to Missouri law, a suspect can be detained for up to 24 hours during a felony inquiry. The individual must then be either released or arrested and officially charged.
According to Graves, law enforcement requires a formal victim statement, forensic evidence, and other details to complete a case file and make an arrest.
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Graves claimed that due to the teen’s wounds, authorities could not obtain a victim statement.
Attending the press conference was Mayor Quinton Lucas, who stated that the police department is aware of the community’s worry that the shooting might have been racially motivated.
He claimed that some police officers showed up at a demonstration held on Sunday near the shooting to hear residents’ worries.
“This is not something that has been dismissed, marginalized or diminished in any way. This is something that is getting the full attention of the Kansas City Police Department,” Lucas said.
According to the Star on Sunday, the teen’s family has hired the legal services of Florida-based civil rights attorney Ben Crump.
“You can’t just shoot people without having justification when somebody comes knocking on your door and knocking on your door is not justification. This guy should be charged,” Crump said.
Crump has defended the families in several well-known cases, including Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, Trayvon Martin, and Michael Brown.
He claimed that after the teenager hit the ground, the homeowner shot him again in the head. Additionally, the family has hired civil rights lawyer Lee Merritt from Texas. Merritt previously worked with the family of Cameron Lamb, who was shot and killed by KCPD detective Eric DeValkenaere in 2019.
Crump claimed the gunman was Caucasian based on what the teen’s relatives told him.
“It is inescapable not to acknowledge the racial dynamics at play,” he said.
Yarl intended to go to a friend’s house on 115th Terrace and pick up his brothers. He ultimately decided to ring a doorbell at a residence on 115th Street. The teen’s aunt, Faith Spoonmore, posted something online.
A tweet from Halle Berry’s official Twitter account:
His name is #RalphYarl and I’m sick and tired of this feeling…my heart completely broke when I learned this precious 16-year-old, who accidentally rang the door of the wrong address in an attempt to pick up his siblings, was shot in the head… (1/3) pic.twitter.com/4VaZo7EFVE
— Halle Berry (@halleberry) April 17, 2023
She wrote that her “nephew Ralph Pual Yarl was on his way to pick up his twin younger brothers from their friend’s house a few blocks away from his house. He didn’t have his phone. He mistakenly went to the wrong house, one block away from the house where his siblings were. He pulled into the driveway and rang the doorbell. The man in the home opened the door, looked my nephew in the eye, and shot him in the head. My nephew fell to the ground, and the man shot him again. Ralph was then able to get up and run to the neighbor’s house, looking for help. Unfortunately, he had to run to 3 different homes before someone finally agreed to help him after he was told to lie on the ground with his hands up.”
Around 10 p.m., according to Kansas City police officers, they responded to the scene.
“Even though he is doing well physically, he has a long road ahead mentally and emotionally,” Spoonmore wrote in a GoFundMe she started to raise money for Yarl’s medical bills and other expenses.
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