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Trial of accused gunman in 2016 Kalamazoo shooting begins this week

File photo: A makeshift memorial near one of the scenes of the shooting that left six people dead in Kalamazoo.
WMUK
File photo: A makeshift memorial near one of the scenes of the shooting that left six people dead in Kalamazoo.

Jury selection is expected to wrap up Monday in the trial of Jason Dalton.

Dalton is accused of shooting eight people, six of them fatally, as he drove around Kalamazoo one evening in February 2016.

He allegedly picked up fares for Uber in between the killings, and after his arrest, he told police that the ride-hailing app had taken over his mind.

The Michigan Court of Appeals later ruled that those statements could not be used at trial.

Kalamazoo County Prosecutor Jeff Getting says survivors and witnesses of the shootings have been patient with the delays.

“Now that it’s here of course, you know all those emotions are being brought back to the surface now and it’s difficult,” he says.

The Kalamazoo Gazette reports that Dalton’s lawyer has dropped plans for an insanity defense.

Opening arguments are set to begin on Tuesday.

Copyright 2019 Michigan Radio

Sehvilla Mann joined WMUK’s news team in January 2014 as a reporter on the local government and education beats. Before that she covered a variety of topics, including environmental issues, for Bloomington, Indiana NPR and PBS affiliates WFIU and WTIU. She’s also written and produced stories for the Pacifica Network and WYSO Public Radio in Yellow Springs, Ohio. Sehvilla holds a B.A. in French from Earlham College and an M.A. in journalism from Indiana University.