FILE - This Nov. 16, 2015 file photo suspected Phoenix freeway shooter Leslie Allen Merritt Jr., right, talks with his attorney Ulises Ferragut during a motion to modify his release at Superior Court... (Associated Press) 
 
 FILE - This Nov. 16, 2015 file photo suspected Phoenix freeway shooter Leslie Allen Merritt Jr., right, talks with his attorney Ulises Ferragut during a motion to modify his release at Superior Court... (Associated Press) 
 
 PHOENIX (AP) — A judge on Tuesday allowed a man charged in freeway shootings that rattled Phoenix last year to be released from jail amid questions about evidence authorities say links him to the crimes. 
 
 The judge overseeing the case of Leslie Merritt Jr. reduced his bond to zero and said he can return to his home under electronic monitoring. He was expected to be released later in the day. 
 
 The reduction of the bond — once $1 million — was a major victory as defense lawyers contend that ballistic tests cast doubt on the claim by authorities that Merritt was behind four of the freeway shootings. 
 
 "With all due respect your honor, there's no evidence against him to show he's responsible for this," defense lawyer Jason Lamm said. "He is no more the I-10 shooter than, respectfully, you are." 
 
 Merritt lifted up his shackled arms in celebration as he walked from the courtroom. After the hearing, family members hugged and shook the hands of defense lawyers. 
 
 Merritt has pleaded not guilty to drive-by shooting, aggravated assault and other charges. 
 
 Judge Warren Granville has imposed a gag order on lawyers in the case. As a result, lawyers said they could not discuss the evidence that prompted the shift in bond. 
 
 Arizona Department of Public Safety officials declined to comment, citing the gag order. The Maricopa County Attorney's Office did not immediately return requests for comment. 
 
 Lamm told a crowd of reporters outside the courtroom that Merritt was elated and overwhelmed. 
 
 "Our client was branded public enemy No. 1, he was called a domestic terrorist and he's been in jail in solitary confinement for seven months. Our reaction? We're thrilled," Lamm said. 
 
 The shootings caused panic on Phoenix-area freeways, where 11 vehicles were hit in August and September. The head of the Department of Public Safety said the shootings were the work of a domestic terrorist, and authorities heightened patrols and surveillance in pursuit of a suspect. 
 
 Detectives took Merritt into custody on Sept. 18, prompting Gov. Doug Ducey to declare "We got him!" on Twitter five minutes after the arrest. 
 
 In court the next day, Merritt adamantly denied shooting any cars, telling the judge, "I'm the wrong guy." 
 
 His lawyers immediately began raising questions about the evidence, citing ballistics information and phone records they say provided an alibi for their client. 
 
 They also pointed to road rage shootings that happened on Phoenix-area freeways after Merritt was arrested, saying the cases were proof that the culprit was still out there. 
 
 Granville set a May 18 court date and told Merritt that it's important for him to show up. 
 
 "I'll be here sir," Merritt said. ||||| Jason Dalton (Photo: Associated Press) 
 
 Kalamazoo — A Kalamazoo County judge ruled Friday that an Uber driver charged with killing six people is mentally fit to stand trial. 
 
 The ruling clears the way for Jason Dalton to be tried in a shooting spree in February that also injured two people. 
 
 District Judge Tiffany Ankley made the ruling after receiving the results of a psychological exam from the state Center for Forensic Psychiatry in Ann Arbor. She said Dalton was mentally competent because he understands the charges and possible punishment against him and he is able to help his attorney in his defense. 
 
 The findings of the mental competency exam pertain only to Dalton’s current state of mind, not to what he was thinking during the alleged shooting. It doesn’t preclude him from eventually mounting an insanity defense. 
 
 “The (competency exam) process isn’t to determine whether he’s guilty or not guilty,” Kalamazoo County Prosecutor Jeff Getting said after the hearing. 
 
 Ankley scheduled a preliminary hearing for 9 a.m. May 20. 
 
 Dalton, shackled and wearing an orange prison jumpsuit, attended the hearing but didn’t say anything. 
 
 Laurie Smith, whose husband and son were killed in the shooting, sat in the courtroom’s front row. Smith, who declined comment, wore a blue T-shirt memorializing the two victims, listing the dates of their births and deaths, and saying “In Loving Memory.” 
 
 Dalton’s attorney, Eusebio Solis, made a motion to prevent the prosecution from using Dalton’s statements to police after he was arrested. But he withdrew the motion after Getting said he didn’t plan to use the statements in the preliminary hearing. 
 
 Solis reserved the right to raise the issue again if a trial is held. 
 
 Ankley was upset that the results of competency exam were released before the court hearing. Lt. Chuck Christensen told a reporter the results several days before the hearing. 
 
 Ankley said the information should have remained private until released by the court. 
 
 “Competency is a determination by the court and the court alone,” she said. 
 
 Ankley had ordered the competency exam at the behest of Solis after Solis told the judge Dalton didn’t seem to understand the case against him. 
 
 Dalton had told investigators the shootings were caused by a Uber app on his cellphone. He said the app turned into a devil’s head and controlled his actions during the rampage. 
 
 Dalton, who is being held without bond in the Kalamazoo County Jail, is facing 16 charges, including six murder counts. 
 
 He is accused of shooting eight people, including the six who were killed, in three incidents over a five-hour period Feb. 20. 
 
 Between the three shooting incidents, Dalton drove Uber passengers around town, said police and passengers. 
 
 Killed in the attacks were Mary Lou Nye, 62, of Baroda; Richard Smith, 53, and his son Tyler, 17, of Mattawan; and Mary Jo Nye, 60, Dorothy “Judy” Brown, 74, and Barbara Hawthorne, 68, all of Battle Creek. 
 
 The other two victims, Abigail Kopf, 14, and Tiana Carruthers, 25, are recovering from their injuries. 
 
 Carruthers’ condition at Borgess Medical Center has improved while Abigail returned home Wednesday from a Grand Rapids rehabilitation facility 
 
 FDonnelly@detroitnews.com 
 
 (313) 223-4186 
 
 Twitter: @francisXdonnell 
 
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– A judge on Tuesday allowed a man charged in freeway shootings that rattled Phoenix last year to be released from jail amid questions about evidence authorities say links him to the crimes. The judge overseeing the case of Leslie Merritt Jr. reduced his bond to zero and said he can return to his home under electronic monitoring, the AP reports. He was expected to be released later in the day. The reduction of the bond—once $1 million—was a major victory as defense lawyers contend that ballistic tests cast doubt on the claim by authorities that Merritt was behind four of the freeway shootings. "With all due respect your honor, there's no evidence against him to show he's responsible for this," defense lawyer Jason Lamm said. "He is no more the I-10 shooter than, respectfully, you are." Merritt lifted up his shackled arms in celebration as he walked from the courtroom. After the hearing, family members hugged and shook the hands of defense lawyers. Merritt has pleaded not guilty to drive-by shooting, aggravated assault, and other charges. The shootings caused panic on Phoenix-area freeways, where 11 vehicles were hit in August and September. Detectives took Merritt into custody on Sept. 18; in court the next day, Merritt adamantly denied shooting any cars, telling the judge, "I'm the wrong guy." His lawyers immediately began raising questions about the evidence, citing ballistics information and phone records they say provided an alibi for their client. (Also Tuesday, a motorist suspected of shooting at other vehicles on an Alabama highway died after a shootout with officers.)