A man has been released from police custody after shooting 16-year-old Ralph in the head after knocking on his door.
That is written by the newspaper Independent.
According to Kansas City Police, Ralph Yarl was shot in the head on April 13 in Kansas City, Missouri. He is now in hospital and, according to the police, is unable to comment.
Called in error
The police tell the newspaper that the teenager must have been confused with the address and went to the wrong street by accident when he was supposed to pick up his siblings.
Instead of going to 115th Terrace in Kansas City, he went to 115th Street. There, Yarl is said to have rang the doorbell and the landlord opened fire directly at the 16-year-old through a glass door.
When he fell over, the homeowner is said to have gone out and shot him once more, this time in the head.
Last update on Yarl was Sunday evening. He was then in hospital where his condition was stable, the police told the newspaper.
The boy’s family has now set up a GoFundMe to pay the boy’s medical bills. There they write, among other things:
“The man in the home opened the door, looked my nephew in the eye and shot him in the head. My nephew fell to the ground and the man fired again.”
The lawyers representing the victim and the family tell the newspaper that Yarl was shot twice – once in the head and once in the arm.
Suspect released
The suspect was released pending further investigation. Then according to Missouris law that a person can only be held for 24 hours on suspicion of a crime, before officials have to either charge or release them.
However, the police chief says that so far there is no evidence that the shooting is racially motivated.
The incident has caused a great deal of attention as the local community is not convinced that it was not racially motivated.
It has been branded a hate crime by the victim’s family and sparked protests in the city.
Hundreds of residents marched in the streets on Sunday where the teenager was shot, according to the newspaper.
Many carried placards reading “Black Lives Matter” and “Ringing a doorbell is not a crime”
