Wounded fugitive apprehended in Columbus



The fugitive's father lives in Columbus, police said.
YOUNGSTOWN -- After four days as a fugitive on the run, Kevin L. Dotson was found in Columbus with a bullet still in his shoulder from last week's prom shooting outside Woodrow Wilson High School.
Members of the U.S. Marshals Service fugitive unit in southern Ohio took Dotson into custody around 2:30 p.m. Wednesday. A tip to detectives in Youngstown led to the apprehension.
Dotson, 18, of North Belle Vista Avenue, left St. Elizabeth Health Center on Saturday afternoon. Dotson, after receiving medical attention in Columbus, where his father lives, will be returned to Youngstown, police said.
At the Wilson prom walk-in, around 6:15 p.m. Friday, shots were fired from a passing car on Gibson Street at a small group in the 200-plus crowd. Those suspects -- police believe three -- remain at large.
Prom shooting
A 17-year-old Berwick Avenue girl who attends The Rayen School was hit in the foot, and Dotson was hit in the left shoulder. The girl, her sister, Dotson and Ronaldo Miller, 21, of East Dewey Avenue, were walking on Gibson Street when three shots were fired at them, reports show.
Lt. Rod Foley has said Dotson and Miller were the likely targets and the girl "caught a bullet flying by."
When Dotson fell, a loaded .44-caliber revolver tumbled out of his pants and two bags of suspected crack cocaine were later found in his pockets, police said. He was charged with carrying a concealed weapon, illegal conveyance of a weapon onto school property and possession of crack. A new charge of escape has been added.
He told police that he was armed because of threats he'd been getting from some South Side men.
East Side link
Foley said detectives want to talk to Dotson in a effort to identify those who shot him. Dotson is just one victim in a series of shootings that involve two feuding groups targeting the East Side.
Miller, who picked up Dotson's gun, meanwhile, ran from the scene, police said. He tossed it to the ground before being caught in the 500 block of Wilbur Avenue, reports show.
Miller was arraigned Monday in municipal court on charges of carrying a concealed weapon, illegal conveyance of a weapon onto school property, obstructing official business and resisting arrest. Judge Elizabeth A. Kobly of Youngstown Municipal Court set bond at $150,000 and a preliminary hearing for Tuesday.