A Missouri judge ruled Thursday that an elderly white man must stand trial for shooting and seriously injuring unarmed Black teenager Ralph Yarl in April when the high school honor student mistakenly rang his doorbell in Kansas City, the Associated Press reports.
Andrew Lester, 84, pleaded not guilty to charges of first-degree assault and armed criminal action on April 20. The ruling came after a preliminary hearing to determine whether to move forward with a criminal trial. Lester is now slated to appear in court on Sept. 20 for an arraignment.
Yarl, now 17, was among the witnesses who testified in the Clay County courtroom. At least six other witnesses, three neighbors and three police officers, also testified, and a recording of Lester’s 911 call was played, local station KCTV reported.
Click play to listen to the AURN News report from Clay Cane. Follow @claycane & @aurnonline for more.
