The 86-year-old Kansas man who pleaded guilty last week to second-degree assault for shooting an unarmed Black teen, died Wednesday while awaiting sentencing, according to a Clay County prosecutor.
Andrew Lester admitted to shooting then-16-year-old Ralph Yarl, who mistakenly rang his doorbell while attempting to pick his siblings up from a friend's house. Yarl was shot twice—once above his left eye and once in his upper right arm—but survived the attack.
Lester was initially charged with first-degree assault and armed criminal action but avoided trial by pleading guilty on February 14 to second-degree assault, a charge that carried a maximum of seven years in prison. Prosecutors were seeking a five-year sentence, with a sentencing hearing set for March 7.
Following news of his death, Yarl's family issued a statement expressing frustration that Lester never fully faced justice, FOX 4 reported.
"For nearly two years, Andrew Lester never apologized... Now, another Black child harmed by prejudice will never see the man who shot him face the full weight of the justice system," the statement read.
The cause of Lester's death has not been disclosed.
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