“REVOLT Black News Weekly” aired on Friday (April 21) with a close look at Black people literally being under attack. Global news anchor Mara S. Campo hosted an eye-opening episode that examined the case of Ralph Yarl, the 16-year-old shot by an alleged racist after mistakenly ringing his doorbell; a setback in the Shanquella Robinson case; Black inmates disproportionately being held in solitary confinement and more.
Yarl is a Kansas City, MO teen who went to the wrong house when attempting to pick up his younger siblings. Instead of being told he was at the wrong address, he was shot in the head and arm. Nevertheless, he managed to get help from a neighbor and survived his injuries. But that was only the start of the ridiculousness.
The community called for answers and justice after more details of the shooting became available. The shooter was 84-year-old Andrew Lester, who was not immediately arrested afterward. Instead, he was able to turn himself in on his own accord, then claimed that he feared for his life. A warrant was only issued after an outcry from the community, and he was charged with two felony counts after his surrender — assault in the first degree and armed criminal action. The Clay County prosecutor confirmed there was a racial component to the shooting after Yarl recalled he was told, “Don’t come around here.”
Ralph Yarl thought he was arriving at 1100 NE 115th Terrace to pick up his younger brothers. However, he mistakenly rang the bell of 1100 NE 115th Street. Yarl, who was unarmed, was shot despite never crossing the threshold of the white man’s apartment. “If he suspected something, he could have called 911,” said Yarl’s father. “To shoot, that was wrong.”
Lester told authorities he was scared and shot through the front door. As mentioned, one hit the teen in the head, then he stepped over him and shot him in the arm. Yarl’s lawyer hopes the shooter’s advanced age doesn’t let him off the hook. Protests soon erupted with the family also hiring Ben Crump to represent them. However, Lester has not been charged with a hate crime.
“It’s unfortunate that Mr. Lester was able to go home, sleep in his own bed, was not immediately arrested the night of by police and that it did take some community uproar and protest in order for these charges to be brought,” said Atlanta attorney Mawuli Mel Davis. “Hopefully, with the correct pressure under community, they will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Under Missouri law assault in the first degree is the equivalent in other states to attempted murder. So this charge comes with a possible sentence of life in prison.”
As for the Shanquella Robinson tragedy, no one will be going to prison for her death anytime soon. The Department of Justice, unfortunately, decided there was not enough evidence to charge anyone in the North Carolina woman’s death. This means Robinson’s six traveling mates will not face any charges in the United States.
“We are deeply disappointed, but we are not deterred,” said family attorney Sue-Ann Robsinson in a press conference held after the Feds made their announcement that the group known as the Cabo Six —Daejhanae Jackson, Nazeer Wiggins, Alysse Hyatt, Wenter Donovan, Malik Dyer, Khalil Cooke — would not be getting charged. Viral footage showed Shanquella being beaten by Jackson, who was identified as the aggressor.
However, North Carolina officials said the FBI held a detailed investigation of the available evidence, but they were unable to press federal charges. Shanquella’s cause of death, per the autopsy, was undetermined. Two autopsies were conducted on her body, one by Mexican officials and one by the U.S., almost three weeks after her passing. The former noted Shanquella’s death was violent, but the latter’s was inconclusive.
“The cause of death and manner of death are actually two different things,” said Dr. Joye Carter. “We try to figure out what injury or disease has caused the death and then what is that manner — is it homicide, natural, suicide or undetermined?”
She added, “In this particular case, the initial question was whether or not this young woman had consumed too much alcohol. But when they did the initial autopsy in Mexico, they failed to gather the proper specimens to test for ethanol in the body. When the second autopsy is done in the U.S., it is too late to get those specimens. The body was already embalmed.” Dr. Carter agreed that there is just not enough evidence to prove homicidal violence in a court of law.
Moreover, a question looming for those incarcerated is whether they will be thrown in solitary confinement. It’s a place no one wants to be.
“Twenty-three hours, three days a week, two days a week, you don’t get out all all,” said Anthony Pickens, who was convicted of murder as a teen, of his experience with solitary confinement. “A lot of guys I recognized going into solitary confinement as a human being, when they got out, you couldn’t recognize who they were mentally because solitary confinement… The torture surrounding it actually broke them.”
If they happen to be Black, it’s more likely solitary is where they will find themselves. Human rights lawyers are appealing to the U.N. for help, claiming solitary confinement is actually torture under international law. This is especially since Black people are thrown in the bing up to six times more often than other groups, per the Vera Institute of Justice.
“The United States has a long and unfortunate history of weaponizing solitary confinement against Black prisoners,” said human rights attorney Delia Addo-Yobo. “The most prominent example of that would be the Angola Three.”
The Angola Three — Albert Woodfox, Herman Wallace and Robert King — were infamously held in solitary confinement in Angola Prison in Louisiana for decades as punishment for being members of the Black Panthers. Woodfox was held for nearly 44 years in solitary, a U.S. record. Up to a third of people in solitary can become psychotic or suicidal after just 15 days.
Other topics covered by “RBN’s” latest episode included Black people making inroads in the legal cannabis business after it was criminalized for years (the first dispensary in Queens, NY is owned by a Black woman), the struggle of the “Love Is Blind” reunion on Netflix, and Sean “Diddy” Combs making a surprise visit as a guest of The Weeknd at Coachella, which for the first time was entirely headlined entirely by non-white artists.
Be sure to catch new installments of “REVOLT Black News Weekly” every Friday at 5 p.m. ET via REVOLT’s app.
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