A disturbance at a home on Chain Mountain Road in Poestenkill on Wednesday ended with a 39-year-old man in custody, facing weapons, contempt and bail-jumping charges after troopers said he fled on foot while carrying two long guns near Algonquin Middle School. New York State Police took James F. Cooper IV into custody unarmed after a search of the area.
According to Newport Dispatch, troopers received a report of the disturbance at approximately 2 p.m. Cooper allegedly entered the residence of a person known to him, got into a verbal argument with the homeowner, and was asked to leave before fleeing the location on foot.
Police later located Cooper walking unarmed near Chain Mountain Road. The firearms involved in the incident were recovered nearby, and Cooper was ultimately taken into custody unarmed.
Search Prompted School-Area Alerts
Because the disturbance and search unfolded close to Algonquin Middle School, authorities issued both a public safety alert and a wireless emergency alert, the same report notes. The Rensselaer County Sheriff's Office assisted state police throughout the search for Cooper.
Troopers transported Cooper to State Police Sand Lake following his arrest. He now faces criminal possession of a weapon in the fourth degree, a class A misdemeanor covered under New York Penal Law § 265.01, which the state's criminal jury instructions describe as applying when a person knowingly possesses an applicable weapon, per New York State Unified Court System guidance.
Additional Contempt and Bail-Jumping Counts
Cooper was also charged with two counts of criminal contempt in the second degree, each a class A misdemeanor, along with bail jumping in the second degree, a class E felony, the report states. He was arraigned at Sand Lake Town Court.
He was held in lieu of $50,000 cash, $50,000 bond, or a $500,000 partially secured bond, and was remanded to the Rensselaer County Correctional Facility, according to the same account.
