Missouri’s Stand Your Ground and “castle doctrine” laws have come into focus in the aftermath of the shooting of Ralph Yarl, who was shot after ringing the wrong doorbell. But it’s unlikely these laws will apply to the case, experts tell NBCNews.
with two felony counts of first degree assault and armed criminal action after shooting 16-year-old Ralph Yarl, a high school student who rang his doorbell by accident, Clay County Prosecuting Attorney Zachary Thompson said at a news conference. Thompson said the shooting had a “racial component.”
“As a mother of four, I’m completely distraught at the possibility that I could send my child to play with a friend next door and something could happen and that child would suffer instead of holding the adult accountable for their actions,” said Jalisa Davis, an organizer with Decarcerate KC, one of several grassroots groups supporting Yarl and demanding accountability.“It’s very sad that we live in a world that would function that way,” Davis said.
The teen was taken to the hospital. Lester was initially taken into custody and released after 24 hours per Missouri law, which states that felony suspects can only be held up to 24 hours until charges are filed. Civil rights attorneys Ben Crump and Merritt, both representing Yarl and his family, condemned Lester’s initial release from police custodyearly on Monday.
“Castle doctrine doesn’t apply unless he’s an intruder. And there’s no 'stand your ground' because there’s no threat,” Tackett said of Yarl, adding that Yarl could be classified as a trespasser but, still, shooting a trespasser would result in criminal charges.“These doctrines don’t apply to someone who’s nonthreatening, knocking on the door on the stoop of a house. Otherwise, that means anybody who comes to your door, you can put a bullet in their head and it’s OK. You can’t do that.
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