Man charged in front-door shooting of black teenager Ralph Yarl

(Ben Crump Law via AP)

An 84-year-old white man in Kansas City, Missouri has been charged with first-degree assault for shooting a black teenager that mistakenly approached his house while trying to pick up his siblings.

Prosecuting attorney Zachary Thompson said at a news conference that there was a “racial component” to the incident last Thursday night when Andrew Lester twice shot 16-year-old Ralph Yarl, who is recovering at home after being released from the hospital. But nothing in the charging documents says the shooting was racially motivated, Mr Thompson clarified.