Andrew Lester’s attorney, Steven Salmon, said his client had been in “seriously ill health for a significant time.” He said Lester did not die by suicide.

Andrew Lester, 86, has died after pleading guilty to the intentional shooting of Black teenager Ralph Yarl outside Lester's Kansas City home in 2023.

Andrew Lester died on Wednesday (Feb. 19), according to a statement from Clay County Prosecuting Attorney Zachary Thompson. The news comes just days after the 86-year-old plead guilty to felony assault in the second degree for shooting Ralph Yarl, the Black teenager who accidentally knocked on his door in 2023.