A white man in the United States has been charged with two felonies after he allegedly shot a 16-year-old Black teenager who mistook his home for another.
The 85-year-old homeowner, Andrew Lester, faces charges of felony assault and armed criminal action for the shooting, which left teenager Ralph Yarl hospitalised with wounds to his head and right arm.
Zachary Thompson, the prosecutor for Clay County, Missouri, explained in a press conference on Monday that the charge of armed criminal action can incur a penalty of up to 15 years, but felony assault “carries with it a range of punishment of up to life”.
When asked why an attempted murder charge or a hate crime charge was not pursued, Thompson told reporters that the “A felony” was the “highest level of offence in the state of Missouri”.
Al Jazeera’s Lina Abu Akleh reports.
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