Man who vowed to prevent violence arrested for allegedly firing gun

A man who told NewsChannel13 he was committed to helping at-risk kids stay out of trouble earlier this summer was arrested for allegedly firing a gun at a busy intersection in Cohoes.

Dontie Mitchell, 43, was arrested in Cohoes Monday night. He was charged with criminal possession of a weapon and reckless endangerment, according to court documents.

In June, Mitchell told NewsChannel 13 he was disturbed by the violence seen throughout Albany. He did a one-on-one interview with our Taniqua Pennix to talk about his youth program, which aims to help kids stay on the right path.

“It’s sad because it’s going to happen again if no decisive action is taken.” Mitchell said earlier this summer. “What I’ve noticed is that if the kids are with me, they’re not in the streets. They’re not in danger. When I’m able to do activities with them or send them on activities, that’s when you get to see them flourish.”

Mitchell told us he was incarcerated for more than 20 years. He said “a lack of adult support” was one of the things that led him to prison. Now, he could be facing more time behind bars.

Mitchell was arrested for an incident that happened at Last Friday night near 125 Main Street in Cohoes, according to court documents.

While police have not linked him to August 11’s homicide, this is around the time and place where Shieer Leggett was killed.

Leggett died after an argument erupted between eight to ten people which lead to more than one person shooting multiple guns, Cohoes Police said.

That shooting happened at the intersection of Main Street and Schuyler Street.

Leggett was shot twice and died shortly after being taken to the hospital. This is the first homicide in three years in Cohoes, according to officials.