Global Courant 2023-04-18 07:54:00
Ralph Paul Yarl, the 16-year-old boy who was shot after ringing the wrong door to pick up his brothers, is a “gentle soul” and gifted student who wants to study chemical engineering at university, said a former teacher.
Ralph was shot Thursday night after his parents asked him to pick up his 11-year-old twin brothers and he accidentally went to a house on the 1100 block of Northeast 115th Street instead of Northeast 115th Terrace in Kansas City, Missouri, police said.
A Good Samaritan who ran to Yarl’s aid said, “He didn’t deserve to be shot.”
He was in a stable condition in a hospital with life-threatening injuries, police said. He was released on Saturday and is recovering at home, said attorney Lee Merritt, who has been detained by the family.
Megan Lilien, who taught Ralph at Missouri Scholars Academy, a three-week residential program for academically gifted students, said he was a “highly intelligent” and observant student, curious about the world.
He was one of 330 emerging high school students selected last summer to participate in the prestigious program, which requires a nomination, on the campus of the University of Missouri at Columbia.
Ralph Yarl works in the chemistry lab at Missouri Scholars Academy.Megan Lilien
“He was curious, intelligent. He is quiet, but literally takes in the world. You just notice. He just observes everything,’ Lilien said.
She taught college-level chemistry and spent about three hours each day of the program in the lab with Ralph and about 17 other students.
“He has such a sweet face. He wasn’t the one talking all the time or answering all the questions, but you knew he was always learning. He was nice. He was absolutely respected by everyone in the group,” Lilien said.
“He was still working, still trying to figure out the problem, when we had to wrap up,” she added.
She said the news of the shooting “makes me sick.”
“It’s devastating. There are no words. I just don’t know how something like that happens. It’s unbelievable. This is a child who doesn’t deserve to go through this in his life at all,’ Lilien said. “I just have to think about the positive and that he will be able to chase his dream.”
On the last night of the summer program, as part of a tradition, the students light a candle and share a memory of a time at camp that made a difference to them.
Lilien said Ralph’s memory touched her, but she didn’t want to share what he said. “I want to keep that sacred,” she said.
Ralph is also a clarinet player who recently earned recognition from the Missouri All-State Band with an honorable mention.
Brad Hudson, the coordinator of the Missouri All-State Band, said 1,500 students auditioned to be part of the Missouri All-State Band in December and Ralph was recognized in the Honorable Mention Band for bass clarinet. Musicians in that category do not perform, but are recognized in the program, he said.
Ralph, a junior at Staley High School in Kansas City, is an outstanding student and a talented musician, the North Kansas City Schools superintendent said in a statement Monday.
“He maintains an excellent GPA while taking mostly college-level courses,” said Dan Clemens. “Although he loves science and hopes to continue that career path, his passion is music. Fortunately, we know that he is now recovering with his family.”
“I know many of you share the same anger, frustration, shock and disbelief that I am experiencing right now. We need to take time to complete the investigation.”
A ‘funny’ friend, passionate about band and his family
Faith Spoonmore, Ralph’s aunt, said he is “healing” and the family is taking it “one day at a time”.
“It is day by day, minute by minute. He has his good times where we remind Ralph, “You’re alive buddy,” and then he has times when he says, “Why?” I didn’t do anything wrong. Why?” she said.
She described Ralph as a shy person with a dry sense of humor who enjoys music and technology. He also protects his brothers and cousins, she said.
He wants to go to Texas A&M for chemical engineering, “because they have the most competitive program” and “he likes the competition,” Spoonmore said.
Ralph’s classmate Aiden Brady, also a junior at Staley’s, described him as quiet in public but “really funny” among friends.
“If Ralph says something, it must be important,” he said. “Some even joke by saying, ‘Shhh, Ralph is talking.'”
Aiden, who met Ralph in high school when they joined a band, called him a strong leader in their “band family.”
“Ralph knows so much, and when you ask him for help, what he suggests always seems right,” he said.
Another classmate, Elianna Brannlund, described Ralph as a “very kind and caring person” and “the smartest person I know”.
Elianna remembered Ralph staying with her a few months ago during orchestral auditions of all districts, after his own auditions ended, while she waited for her later callback time.
“Ralph stayed with me for five hours to talk about music, school and life,” she said. “Even when he had the choice to go home.”
Shooting
Just before the shooting on Thursday evening, Ralph rang the doorbell at the home and waited for a response. When the door opened, he was confronted by a man who said, “Don’t come back here again,” and opened fire and shot him in the head, said Merritt, one of the family’s attorneys, citing Ralph’s report to the police.
Ralph fell to the floor and the homeowner fired a second time, hitting him in the arm, Merritt said.
Ralph gathered the strength to run and stopped at three houses for help. At the third house, a person inside instructed him to raise his arms and lie down on the floor. Ralph lost consciousness and the police were called.
The shooting threw a spotlight on Missouri’s “stand your ground” law and sparked outrage on social media. It also sparked a weekend protest and called for the gunman’s arrest.
Two felonies were announced Monday night against a white man in his 80s: first-degree assault and armed criminal action, Clay County prosecutor Zachary Thompson said Monday.
A warrant has been issued for Andrew Lester, who is not in custody, Thompson said, adding that he did not know where Lester was.
Police Chief Stacey Graves said at a press conference on Sunday that the shooter at the residence has been taken into custody and held for 24 hours, the maximum time a crime suspect can be held until charges are filed. A firearm was also taken as evidence.
Graves said the vast majority of crime suspects are released after 24 hours, but are later re-arrested when enough evidence has been gathered for charges. Graves said detectives work “quickly” and the results will be sent to the Clay County prosecutor once the investigation is complete.
