Attorneys for the family expressed their frustration with the handling of the case by the prosecutor after a white man mistakenly knocked on the door of a Black teenager’s family in Kansas City, Missouri.
Lester Andrew, an 84-year-old, had a preliminary hearing scheduled for August 31 to September 1. After the hearing, Lester’s attorney filed a request to seal the documents, which was approved by a judge in Clay County.
Lester, who was trying to pick up his young brothers while Yarl Ralph, a criminal armed with a gun, knocked on Lester’s door on April 13th, has pleaded not guilty to the first-degree assault and armed criminal action charges stemming from the shooting.
Thompson adamantly refused to step aside as the special prosecutor in the case, despite Baker Peters Jean previously asking him to do so. Merritt Lee and Benjamin Crump, civil rights attorneys, stated this during a news conference on Zoom.
Thompson did not raise any objections in court regarding the postponement of the preliminary hearing for a period of 90 days, which has left the family disappointed as they had hoped for a more assertive response from Thompson in contesting the motion to secure court records.
Crump stated, “If an elderly Caucasian gentleman was the perpetrator, and we have an adolescent African American youth as the victim, we do not seek any alternative approach to justice or policy. Given the distinct circumstances, the prosecutor would vigorously pursue the prosecution of this case, just as he did previously.” We persist in promoting this stance.
In a statement, Thompson’s office emphasized that their primary focus is on adhering to the law and attaining justice.
After the shooting, Yarl received preferential treatment from investigators, which drew international attention amid claims that Lester issued several statements calling for justice for celebrities and President Joe Biden.
After depositing $20,000 – 10% of his $200,000 bail, Lester is still at liberty. The African American individual standing at his doorstep, he was “terrified” that he was on the verge of being burglarized when, unexpectedly, Lester confessed to shooting Yarl through the entrance.
The father of the teenager, Paul Yarl, stated after the hearing on Thursday that he wishes for Lester to eventually be incarcerated.
“That,” declared Paul Yarl, “is a matter we must seek justice for. Indeed, his purpose was to complete the act. He fired his weapon two times. It’s evident, isn’t it? The assailant had the intention to terminate Ralph.”
Yarl Ralph, who celebrated his 17th birthday since the shooting, continues to recover at home from the gunshot wounds to his wrist and head. Cleo Nagbe, his mother, said he is trying to regain some normalcy in his life.
Nagbe stated that Lester needs to be the one who steals him away. Ralph needs to be the teenager who needs to be, just for a few years of his teenage years, doing teenager stuff. It takes a little longer for him to get that little bit he needs, so we need to stretch this out longer.
Merritt stated that Yarl and his family have not met the appropriate circumstances to seal the court documents, which benefits them in terms of expenses at Lester.
Merritt expressed, “the state’s lack of action, Mr. Thompson’s failure to raise the necessary concerns about the seal is causing this family considerable distress.” “According to the law, the unavailability of fair access to them is causing harm.”
The case, which is set to be heard before a just and unbiased jury, has become more challenging due to the extensive media coverage, according to his statement. He further mentioned that the media attention has resulted in threats against Lester, who, as per his lawyer, has been compelled to relocate on three separate occasions. On Tuesday, Judge Louis Angles of Clay County approved the request made by Lester’s attorney to confidentially secure the court records.
In the decision, Angles stated, ‘The purported behaviors of (Lester) were driven by racial bias, which if accepted, essentially eliminates the defense accessible to (Lester) concerning the rationality of his behaviors.’ The reporting persists in affirming the dominant majority.
Ever since the incident of the shooting, Lester’s residence has suffered from acts of vandalism, with individuals making menacing threats to attack it. Numerous text messages labeling him as a “killer” who “deserves to suffer in eternal damnation” resulted in the exposure of Lester’s private mobile phone number on a publicly accessible platform, as explicitly mentioned by the judge in his official ruling.
Sealing the records did not directly contradict Thompson, but he contended that legal precedents mostly favored maintaining court documents accessible to the public in his response to the motion.
Ralph is encountering difficulties in carrying on the discussion about Lester’s health problems, as he has been bothered by the ongoing shooting incidents. Faith, Lester’s aunt, mentioned that the family was upset about some arguments in court regarding the sealing of records. Yarl’s and Nagbe also expressed their concerns.
Ralph, who is going to enter his final year of high school in the autumn, mentioned that despite enduring the emotional distress caused by the shooting incident, he is subjected to limitations when it comes to socializing with friends and engaging in his musical activities with his band instruments.
Spoonmore stated, “That is the topic we must discuss, that is what the judge must comprehend. That is what the judge must listen to. That Lester is enduring the repercussions of his deeds, but Ralph is enduring the repercussions of being African American in the United States.”