Andrew Lester, who pleaded guilty in Ralph Yarl shooting, died of 'medical issues,' attorney says

Nathan Pilling, The Kansas City Star on Feb 20, 2025

By clicking submit, I authorize Arcamax and its affiliates to: (1) use, sell, and share my information for marketing purposes, including cross-context behavioral advertising, as described in our Privacy Policy , (2) add to information that I provide with other information like interests inferred from web page views, or data lawfully obtained from data brokers, such as past purchase or location data, or publicly available data, (3) contact me or enable others to contact me by email or other means with offers for different types of goods and services, and (4) retain my information while I am engaging with marketing messages that I receive and for a reasonable amount of time thereafter. I understand I can opt out at any time through an email that I receive, or by clicking here

Andrew Lester, who died days after his guilty plea in the high-profile 2023 shooting of Ralph Yarl, died because of “medical issues,” his defense attorney said Thursday. He said Lester did not die by suicide.

“I can not divulge any specific information related to Mr. Lester’s health,” Lester’s attorney, Steven Salmon, wrote in an email to The Star.

“However, I believe the questions surrounding his death are really inquiries as to whether he committed suicide. Mr. Lester had been in seriously ill health for a significant time. His death was due to medical issues, not suicide,” Salmon said in the email.

Salmon raised concerns about his client’s ability to stand trial last year, and in a court filing in September, he wrote that Lester had significantly declined in health. He said Lester had suffered a broken hip, heart issues, had been hospitalized and had lost more than 50 pounds.

Lester pleaded guilty Friday to a second-degree assault charge in Clay County Circuit Court on the eve of his trial, which was set to begin Tuesday. During a brief hearing, Lester agreed with an assessment by Judge David Chamberlain that his health was “not great,” but said he understood the proceedings and pleaded guilty to the charge.

Prosecutors first announced Lester’s death Wednesday.

Cher Congour, a spokeswoman for the Clay County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, said prosecutors will file a request with the court seeking to dismiss the case.

Lester was not in custody at the time of his death, officials said. He was scheduled to be sentenced March 7.

Since he was not in custody, both the Clay County Sheriff’s Office and the Clay County prosecutor confirmed they will not be investigating Lester’s death. It’s not yet known whether another jurisdiction might do so, as the location and manner of his death have not yet been disclosed.

Lester was charged in the shooting of Yarl after the teen mistakenly showed up on his doorstep in Kansas City’s Northland, looking to pick up his brothers on April 13, 2023. Lester allegedly shot Yarl after the teen rang the doorbell at Lester’s home.

Lester, who was white, told police he saw someone that he thought was trying to break into his home and shot twice within a few seconds of opening the door.

Yarl, who is Black, was shot in the head and arm, but survived his injuries. He told police the man who came to the door shot him in the head “immediately” and then shot him again after he fell to the ground, according to court documents.

The April 2023 shooting grabbed national attention, with many raising outcry about the shooting being racially motivated. Lester’s attorney has denied that allegation.

_____

(The Star’s Ilana Arougheti contributed to this report.)

_____