Joe Biden Invites Black Teen Shot at Wrong Door to White House

The president spoke to the 16-year-old who was shot and killed last week after knocking on the wrong door at a Missouri home.

Joe Biden announced Tuesday that he had called the White House to a black teenager who was critically injured with gunshot wounds after knocking on the wrong door at a Missouri home last week.

“Ralph, we’ll see you in the (office) oval when you’re feeling better,” Joe Biden tweeted his invitation to the 16-year-old earlier in the day.

The young man recovered

Ralph Yarl was picking up his brothers from a friend’s house on April 13 at 10pm in Kansas City, Missouri, a large metropolis in the center of the United States, when he accidentally rang the doorbell.

His owner, a white octogenarian, then shot the teenager through a glass door, hitting him in the arm and head, according to court documents seen by AFP.

The teenager is recovering “despite the severity of his injuries,” according to a press release from the family’s attorneys, including the renowned Ben Crump, who specializes in defending African-American victims of police violence in particular.

The 84-year-old suspect, Andrew Lester, was indicted by a Missouri court on Monday on two counts, one of which carries a life sentence, the county attorney said at a news conference.

In a statement sent to AFP, the district sheriff’s office said Andrew Lester reported for arrest at the detention center on Tuesday.

“to bury one’s head in the sand”

“There is a racial element to this case,” Attorney Thompson said at the press conference.

Quinton Lucas, the mayor of Kansas City, said, “Pretending that race has not entered into this situation is like putting an ostrich in an ostrich”.

The young man “clearly, clearly, knocked on the door of someone who is afraid of black people,” the city councilor declared on CNN on Tuesday, adding that he hoped justice would be held to account.

Calling for continued action against gun violence, Joe Biden said Tuesday: “No parent should have to worry about their son getting shot for ringing the wrong doorbell.”