Kansas City: Arrest warrant issued for man charged with shooting black teenager in the head
An arrest warrant has been issued for the man accused of shooting a black teenager in the head in Kansas City.
Andrew Lester, 85, is accused of shooting 16-year-old Ralph Yarl, who reportedly went to the wrong house by accident when trying to collect his younger brothers last week.
Police said on Monday that Lester had been initially arrested, and had his weapon seized, then was released pending further investigation.
“The vast majority of cases including violent crime involve the suspect being released, pending further investigation. In this case, the prosecutor requires more information from investigators that would take more than 24 hours to compile,” police chief Stacey Graves said.
“We recognise the frustration this can cause in the entire criminal justice process.”
Missouri law allows a person to be held for up to 24 hours for a felony investigation. At that point, the person must be released or arrested and formally charged.
Zachary Thompson, a lawyer for the victim, said there was a “racial component” to the shooting, but did not offer any more details on possible motives during a news conference, adding a warrant has been issued for Lester’s re-arrest and his current location was unknown.
Mr Thompson also revealed Lester has been charged with first-degree assault and armed criminal action.
He also said Lester and the 16-year-old did not exchange any words before the alleged attack, where the former used a .32 revolver to allegedly shoot Ralph in the head and in the arm through a glass door.
A GoFundMe page, thought to be set up by Ralph’s aunt Faith Spoonmore, said the teenager escaped the alleged attack, but had to knock at three different homes before someone helped him.
Police earlier said Ralph had a life-threatening injury but was in a stable condition.
Ralph Yarl. Pic: Facebook
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‘I thought he was dead’
Speaking to NBC News, Sky’s US partner network, the man who found Ralph covered in blood said he “thought he was dead”.
“I heard somebody screaming, ‘Help, help, I’ve been shot!'” James Lynch said, adding the shouting was out of place for the normally quiet neighbourhood.
Mr Lynch added he heard the screams as he was getting ready for bed, before running over to Ralph by jumping over his own fence and checking his pulse as he arrived.
Ralph apparently struggled to respond before he spelled his name.
Another neighbour arrived with towels to help stem the blood flow, and she and Mr Lynch waited with Ralph until paramedics arrived.
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‘Stand up, fight back’
The shooting sparked a protest in Kansas City on Sunday, with hundreds gathering outside the home where Ralph was allegedly shot, with chants of “stand up, fight back!”.
Ms Spoonmore went live on Instagram from the protests, where she spoke to a woman who lived near the scene and saw Lester the morning after the alleged attack.
“This was a child that this man attempted to assassinate,” she said.
“He shot him twice. And we allowed him to not only go back home hours after the incident, but he was able to wake up the next morning and freaking claim like nothing ever happened.”
The GoFundMe for Ralph has raised more than $2 million since it was launched, with high profile donations from the likes of actress Julianne Hough, stand up comedian Ellyn Daniels, and screenwriter Mara Brock Akil.
Michael Cohen, Donald Trump’s former “thug” and “pit bull”, has been accused of lying about a phone call he says he made to the former US president about payments to ex porn star Stormy Daniels.
Cohen, a lawyer who worked for the Trump Organisation from 2006 to 2017, has been giving evidence in the case about hush money payments to Ms Daniels – in an attempt to cover up an alleged sexual encounter in 2006.
Trump’s lawyer, Todd Blanche, called into question an important detail – a phone call made by Cohen to Trump’s assistant, Keith Schiller, on 24 October 2016.
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Cohen, 57, has maintained that during that call he spoke to Trump (who was either given the phone by Mr Schiller or placed on loudspeaker – we don’t know which) and told him he had paid Ms Daniels $130,000 in hush money on his behalf.
But Mr Blanche called this into doubt – showing the jury a number of interactions suggesting Cohen was in contact with Mr Schiller about a different issue at the same time, namely that he was receiving harassing phone calls and texts from a 14-year-old child.
“That was a lie – you did not talk to President Trump on that night, you talked to Keith Schiller about what we just went through,” Mr Blanche said.
Cohen said that, based on his records, he believes he spoke to Trump about the Stormy Daniels matter.
“We are not asking for your belief,” Mr Blanche said. “This jury does not want to hear what you think happened.”
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Donald Trump in court on Thursday. Pic: Reuters
That exchange was part of several hours of questioning which apparently sought to paint a picture of Cohen as someone who is eager to see his former boss behind bars.
Mr Blanche played jurors audio clips of Cohen saying the case “fills me with delight” and that imagining Trump and his family in prison made him feel “giddy with hope and laughter”.
“Does the outcome of this trial affect you personally?” Mr Blanche asked.
“Yes,” Cohen replied. He is due to return to the witness stand on Monday.
Michael Cohen (right) was Donald Trump’s fixer. Pic: AP
Cohen worked as the former president’s fixer. He once described himself as Trump’s “spokesman, thug, pit bull and lawless lawyer”.
He once said he would take a bullet for his boss and admitted at the end of questioning on Tuesday that he “violated my moral compass” while working for Trump.
Hush money payouts are not illegal, but Trump is accused of falsifying business records to hide it – a claim he denies.
Cristiano Ronaldo has topped Forbes’ list of highest-paid athletes for the fourth time in his career.
Spanish golfer Jon Rahm took second place following his switch to Saudi-backed LIV Golf.
Ronaldo became the world’s highest-paid athlete after his move to Saudi Arabian side Al Nassr and Forbes said the 39-year-old’s estimated total earnings were around $260m (£205m) – an all-time high for a football player.
Jon Rahm came in second. Pic: Jeff Faughender/USA TODAY Sports/Reuters
His on-field earnings amounted to $200m (£158m) while off-field he earned $60m (£47m) thanks to sponsorship deals where brands make use of his 629 million Instagram followers.
Rahm earned $218m (£172m) and joins Ronaldo as the only two athletes to earn over $200m.
Inter Miami forward Lionel Messi. Pic: David Kirouac/USA TODAY Sports/Reuters
Third on the list is record eight-time Ballon d’Or winner Lionel Messi, who switched to Major League Soccer team Inter Miami, which helped the Argentine World Cup winner earn $135m (£107m).
The 36-year-old earned $65m (£51m) in on-field earnings but $70m (£55m) off it from deals with major sponsors such as Adidas and Apple.
Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James came in fourth at $128m (£101m), while fellow NBA star Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Milwaukee Bucks made fifth with $111m (£88m).
France football captain Kylian Mbappe dropped down to sixth with $110m (£87m).
Neymar, who also moved to the Saudi Pro League to join Al-Hilal, is seventh with $108m (£85m), despite sitting out the majority of the season with a torn ACL.
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French striker Karim Benzema, who also moved to Saudi Arabia, is eighth on the list with $106m (£84m), followed by Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry with $102m (£80m).
Lamar Jackson is the only NFL player on the list, in 10th place with $101m (£80m), thanks to the signing bonus negotiated into his new Baltimore Ravens contract last year.
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