The Black community once again is in tears and shaken by fear due to a shooting incident that led 16-year-old Ralph Paul Yarl to be hospitalized. The shooting of the teen led to an uproar on social media for the arrest of the shooter who shot Yarl after he mistakenly ranging the wrong doorbell after thinking the house across the street was his.
After making their acceptance of the case public, nationally renowned human rights lawyers Lee Merritt and Ben Crump immediately slammed Kansas City, Missouri, authorities for releasing the shooter, who they claimed is a white guy.
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According to police and the teenager’s attorneys, Yarl was said to be in stable condition at a hospital.
In a joint statement, Merritt and Crump claimed that Yarl, a high school junior whose instructor indicated his desire to pursue chemical engineering in college, was shot twice and hit in the head and arm.
The attorneys argued that there could be no justification for releasing this dangerous and armed criminal.
According to Kansas City police, the child thought his siblings were at a home in the 1100 block of Northeast 115th Terrace which is in fact valid, however, the teen had mistakenly visited the wrong house in the area which led to him being innocently shot.
As news of the shooting spread around the country via social media, protesters converged on the area.
“What do we want? ” protesters chanted as they marched toward the home where the incident occurred. “Justice! When do we want it? Now!”
At the demonstration, the victim’s aunt, Faith Spoonmore, stated, “My nephew is alive and he is healing. It is not the story that that individual intended for us to tell. We are telling a story that is different from the stories that you normally hear.”
Police Chief Stacey Graves gave the reason the shooter was let go and promised to conduct a thorough investigation.
The resident, whose race and name were withheld, was apprehended and detained for the maximum period of time for a suspect in a felony—24 hours—until charges were filed.
According to Graves, a firearm was taken as evidence.
The overwhelming majority of criminal suspects, according to her, are freed within a day, but many are later detained again once enough evidence has been obtained to justify filing charges.
In this instance, detectives will seek to establish a strong case for prosecution, according to Graves, working “as expeditiously and thoroughly as we can.”
She added, “As soon as the case is complete, it will be presented to the Clay County prosecutor for their review.”
“I want everyone to know that I am listening and I understand the concern we are receiving from the community,” she noted.
Clay County prosecutors noted in a recent statement that, “at this point, we have not yet received a criminal referral from the Kansas City Police Department regarding this case. However, we are actively working with law enforcement in an attempt to speed up that process so that we can review the file when it is submitted and determine whether criminal charges are appropriate.”
According to Graves, investigators will examine whether Missouri’s “Stand Your Ground” law applied to the suspect.
According to the law, a potential gunman is not required to flee before using violence to protect people or property.
Graves added that she has spoken with the teen’s family and is taking the Black community’s worries seriously.
At the press conference, Mayor Quinton Lucas stated that a “thorough” investigation is currently being conducted.
He noted that his team will be doing their best in bringing justice to young Yarl’s case as soon as possible, “We will make sure we do all we can to be fair, to make sure we’re as expeditious as possible and more than anything to make sure that everyone, no matter their background, knows that justice can be obtained here in Kansas City.”
Lucas expresses a heartfelt message to the family, “My heart goes out to the victim of this shooting, the victim’s family, my heart goes out to everyone impacted.”
