Man to plead guilty to 2023 shooting of Black teen Ralph Yarl, 2 people familiar with case tell AP

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — An 86-year-old Kansas City man will plead guilty Friday to the 2023 shooting of Ralph Yarl, a Black teenager who rang the man’s doorbell by mistake, two people familiar with the case told The Associated Press.

Andrew Lester was scheduled to stand trial next week on charges of first-degree assault and armed criminal action in the shooting of the then 16-year-old, who survived.

On Thursday, prosecutors said Lester would appear in court Friday, but they did not say why. Two people familiar with the case who requested anonymity to speak in advance of Friday’s hearing told The Associated Press that Lester will plead guilty. One of those people said he will plead to a lesser charge of second-degree assault.

Yarl showed up on Lester’s doorstep in April 2023 after he mixed up the streets where he was supposed to pick up his twin siblings.

Lester’s attorney, Steve Salmon, has long argued that Lester was acting in self-defense.

The shooting shocked the country and renewed national debate about gun policies and race in the U.S.