The attorney for 84-year-old Andrew Lester accused of shooting and injuring 16-year-old Ralph Yarl asked the court to keep new information about the case private, per The Associated Press. Why? Apparently, the ol’ man has been experiencing all types of harassment since the shooting went national. Now, the judge in the case has agreed and will keep the court documents sealed.
Clay County Judge Louis Angles granted the request by stating: “The overwhelming majority of the reporting continues to assert that the alleged actions of (Lester) were racially motivated, which if believed, virtually eliminates the defense available to (Lester) related to the reasonableness of his actions.”
Angles also noted that if defense documents were made available to the public, tentative witnesses for Lester’s defense could experience threats and other intimidation, making them less willing to come forward or testify in the case. He also said redacting the documents wouldn’t be sufficient enough.
Andrew Lester was named as the suspect who shot Yarl from the inside his house after the teen mistakingly rang his doorbell, looking for his siblings on April 13. Yarl suffered two gunshot wounds, one to the head and one to the arm which left him in the hospital for three days, the report says. His family and attorneys told NBC News weeks ago that he’d been discharged and home on the road to recovery. However, at that time, Lester’s hell had just begun.
His relatives took to the media, describing him as a racist, paranoid and violent person, further fueling the speculation the shooting was racially motivated. His defense attorney, Steven Salmon, made a legal filing this week arguing that the court should seal records pertaining to the case from this point on because his client had been harassed and threatened as the investigation progressed.
Read more from AP News:
Salmon also noted that the publicity could make it difficult to find an impartial jury and that potential witnesses may be reluctant to testify.
“The release of further information will continue to add fodder to oftentimes inaccurate and speculative statements about the case,” according to the motion. “This publicity in the case has already caused a widespread adverse and prejudicial reaction against the defendant and prejudice to his case.”
Salmon said Lester has been forced to live away from his home, which has been egged and spray-painted. He said Lester has sought law enforcement assistance when traveling and his wife had to be moved from her nursing home.
Other widely sensationalized trials such as for the men who killed Ahmaud Arbery or even the ex-cops who killed George Floyd still went forward while the public found out new information about the case along the way. Lester pleaded not guilty to armed criminal action and first-degree assault. He was released from jail on $20,000 bond and is due back in court Thursday (June 1). The hearing for Lester is to set new dates for future hearings pertaining to the case.