Washington, Apr 17 (EFE)
Clay County Prosecutor Zachary Thompson filed criminal charges against 84-year-old Andrew Lester on Monday for wounding teenager Ralph Yarl.
Lester was charged with first degree assault and armed criminal action.
Yarl was trying to pick up his siblings from a house last Thursday night in a Clay County neighborhood but took the wrong address.
After knocking on the door, they shot him, wounding him in the head and arm.
Paul Yarl, father of the 16-year-old student, said this morning that his son has been released from the hospital and is at home where his mother, who is a nurse, is caring for him.
“Keep getting better. He responds and is making good progress,” she added.
Lester was held for 24 hours, the maximum for a criminal suspect until charges were filed, and then released while police searched for more evidence.
According to court records cited by KCTV television, Lester said he fired two shots within seconds of opening the door. He saw the teen run away and called the police from his home phone.
Lester told police that no words were exchanged and that the teen had not said anything before opening the door.
He explained that “it was the last thing he wanted to do (shoot), but he was ‘scared to death’ due to the size of the man and Lester’s age (84) and his inability to defend himself”.
Missouri is one of the states in the country with a “defense your own space” law, which allows those who feel threatened to defend their life or property without backing down.
Prosecutor Thompson noted that the maximum punishment for the assault charge is life in prison.
A GoFundMe campaign started by Faith Spoonmore, Yarl’s aunt, had received more than $1.2 million by noon Monday and family lawyers criticized the suspect’s release.
Jennifer Houston, Leslie Jones, Halle Berry and other celebrities have joined the chorus of those who have protested the incident.
“My God! My heart breaks for this young man and his family,” tweeted the singer Houston, whose seven-year-old nephew died in 2008 in Chicago. “I pray for his full recovery.”
