An 85-year-old US man is accused of shooting a black kid who rang the doorbell

An 85-year-old white man is facing felony charges in the US state of Missouri after it was claimed that he shot and seriously injured a black teenager who accidently rang his doorbell.

Ralph Paul Yarl, 16, was shot twice last Thursday night, in the head and upper arm, and is currently in serious condition.

While attempting to pick up his twin siblings from a friend’s house nearby, the teenager accidentally rang the doorbell at the wrong residence.

After it was reported that the homeowner had been freed without being charged after spending 24 hours in custody, outrage over the issue continued to grow throughout the weekend.

However, the homeowner, named as Andrew Lester, 85, was charged with one count of felony assault in the first degree and one count of armed criminal action, which is also a felony, Clay County prosecutor Zachary Thompson said yesterday. His $200,000 bail was imposed.

On a GoFundMe page, the boy’s aunt, Faith Spoonmoore, said that her nephew was a talented student who had aspirations of majoring in chemical engineering.

In the US, a nation of about 330 million people with an estimated 400 million guns, deadly shootings occur frequently.

But given that there has a long history of avoiding accountability for violence against African Americans, the Yarl case has prompted a special outrage.

President Joe Biden spoke with Yarl on the phone yesterday evening, the White House reported, “and shared his hope for a swift recovery.”

At a press conference on Sunday night, Kansas City Police Chief Stacey Graves stated that the current information “does not say that it’s racially motivated, that’s still an active investigation.”

“But as a chief of police, I do recognise the racial components of this case. I do recognise and understand the community’s concern.”