An 84-year old householder in the US state of Missouri, Andrew Lester, has been charged with shooting a teenager who rang the wrong doorbell while picking up his younger brothers.

Mr Lester, who is white, allegedly shot 16-year old Ralph Yarl, who is black, once in the head and once in the arm last Thursday night. The boy survived.

A prosecutor said there was a “racial component” to the shooting, but Mr Lester has been charged with first-degree assault and armed criminal action, and not been of a hate crime.

Family members say the boy trying to pick up his younger twin brothers from a friend’s house, mistakenly went to 115th Street instead of 115th Terrace and rang the bell twice, before the homeowner opened fire with a .32 revolver.