Andrew Lester, the 86-year-old Missouri man who pleaded guilty to a lesser charge in the 2023 shooting of a Black honor student who rang the White man’s doorbell in Kansas City by mistake, has died, prosecutors announced Wednesday.
Lester was charged with first-degree assault and armed criminal action in the shooting of then-16-year-old Ralph Yarl, who survived and is now a freshman at Texas A&M. Before Lester’s trial was scheduled to begin, he pleaded guilty Friday to a lesser charge of second-degree assault, which carries up to seven years behind bars. He was scheduled to be sentenced on March 7.
Cher Congour, a spokeswoman for the Clay County prosecutor’s office, said Lester’s attorney called the office and the court, and informed them of his death.
“We have learned of the passing of Andrew Lester and extend our sincere condolences to his family during this difficult time,” the prosecutor’s office said in a news release. “While the legal proceedings have now concluded, we acknowledge that Mr. Lester did take responsibility for his actions by pleading guilty in this case. Our thoughts remain with both families affected by this tragic incident as they continue their healing process.”
The news release offered no cause of death.
“Now, another Black child harmed by prejudice will never see the man who shot him face the full weight of the justice system. While Lester finally admitted guilt, it came at the very last moment-after two years of stalling. That delay leaves our family reeling,” Yarl’s family said in a written statement Wednesday.
After Lester was arrested and charged, he initially pleaded not guilty. The case shocked the country and renewed the national debate about gun policies and race in the U.S.
KMBC via AP, Pool
Yarl showed up on Lester’s doorstep on the night of April 13, 2023, after he mixed up the streets where he was supposed to pick up his twin siblings.
Lester’s attorney, Steve Salmon, had argued that Lester was acting in self-defense and that he was terrified by the stranger who knocked on his door as he settled into bed. Authorities say Lester shot Yarl twice: first in the head, then in the arm.
Yarl testified at a hearing that he rang the bell and then waited for someone to answer for what seemed “longer than normal.” As the inner door opened, Yarl said, he reached out to grab the storm door, assuming he was at his brothers’ friends’ parents.
He said Lester shot him in the head and uttered, “Don’t come here ever again.” Although the bullet didn’t penetrate Yarl’s brain, the impact knocked him to the ground. Yarl said Lester then shot him in the arm. The teen was taken to the hospital and released three days later.
His family said the shooting took a big emotional toll and they had filed a lawsuit against the retired aircraft mechanic.
