BY PETER SESAY

Yesterday evening, President Biden spoke to Ralph Yarl, the teenager shot at point blank in Kansas City, Missouri by a homeowner, and invites him to the White House. The president also reportedly said “He and the rest of the nation are looking for a speedy recovery.”

Biden spoke to the young man, his mother and his aunt, apparently with the family’s lawyer, Lee Merritt, present. The lawyer told the press Biden “offered his prayers for Ralph’s health and justice.” Typical of him, a compassionate President Biden who was known for his role as “comforter in-chief” long before becoming president, shared some personal connections with the youngster. He allegedly told Yarl, who plays in a marching band, that his (Biden’s) father once played an instrument. The president shared another connection with Yarl, whose mother and aunt are a nurse and a physical therapist, by saying that the first lady, Dr. Jill Biden, has healthcare workers in her family.

Ralph Yarl made the common mistake of knocking on the wrong door on Monday, April 13, in an attempt to pick up a sibling. Instead of going to an address in the 1100 block of NE 115th Terrace, he mistakenly went to another home less than a block away on NE 115th Street. What was not supposed to be a fatal mistake, triggered the homeowner, 84-year-old Andrew Lester, to pull the trigger, lodging—through the house’s front glass door—one bullet in the young man’s head, and another one, intended for his chest, on his arm. Neighbors who saw Ralph lying bleeding on the street called the police. But he recovered from his wounds and was released from the hospital three days later in stable condition.

Not unlike countless similar shootings of Black men in this country, the incident made national headlines, causing outrage that was worsened by the fact that the homeowner spent no more than 2 hours before being released. But he turned himself in yesterday, Monday, and was charged with first-degree felony assault last night.

In a half-hour press conference yesterday evening, the local prosecutor, Zachary Thompson, said that, if convicted, Andrew Lester faces 10 to 30 years behind bars or life in prison. Though unwilling to elaborate, for fear of compromising the case, the prosecutor said investigators believe there was “a racial component” in the case.

The family’s attorney said the shooter was “given preferential treatment“ for not being arrested the night he shot the 16-year old. The lawyer vowed to question prosecutors today, Tuesday, when he meets with them, about why Lester received that “preferential treatment.”

In an interview with NBC News, the attorney shared his client’s excitement after talking to the president.

“Ralph just got off the phone with the president of the United States tonight,” said Merritt. “So he has had a whirlwind of a week. Thursday he was confronted with deadly force and shot in his head, and he recovered, was released from the hospital on Saturday in stable condition… And like I said he had a chance to speak with the White House and the President of the United States and get some direct encouragement.”