Former freeway shooting suspect Leslie Merritt Jr. sues state, Maricopa County

The man who was jailed for seven months in connection with a string of Phoenix freeway shootings last year has filed a lawsuit against state officials, adding a new chapter to an embarrassing saga for police and prosecutors.

Leslie Allen Merritt, 22, was released from custody in April after a ballistics expert challenged the evidence that led to his arrest. Maricopa County prosecutors called for the case to be dismissed shortly thereafter.

The lawsuit, filed Tuesday, alleges false arrest, false imprisonment, malicious prosecution, negligence, intentional infliction of emotional distress and aiding and abetting tortious conduct. It names the state of Arizona, Maricopa County Attorney Bill Montgomery and Maricopa County as defendants, as well as various John and Jane Does.

"This is not a case against police," Merritt's attorney David Don told reporters Wednesday afternoon at a news conference in downtown Phoenix. "This is a case against poor police work."

Merritt was the only suspect named after a series of shootings that caused panic on Phoenix-area freeways in August and September 2015. Citing reports from the DPS Crime Lab, Arizona Department of Public Safety officials said his pistol could be traced to bullets found at four of the 11 freeway crime scenes.

The suit alleges that Merritt's arrest was the result of slapdash police work and a rush to judgment in the face of public pressure.

Notably, the lawsuit does not name Gov. Doug Ducey, who was included with the other defendants when Merritt served a notice of claim in March.

Suspected Phoenix I-10 shooter serves $10M claim against Arizona, Ducey

Ducey stepped into the fray moments after Merritt's arrest, tweeting "We got him!" to his followers. The tweet drew immediate criticism from those who said Ducey had implied that Merritt was guilty.

On Wednesday, Merritt's attorney Jason Lamm explained the decision to exclude Ducey from the suit.

“Millions of dollars, taxpayer dollars, have been spent on the botched investigation, the wrongful arrest and the malicious prosecution," he said. "We just don’t think it’s appropriate for the taxpayers to have to foot the bill for basically what amounts to a split-second error in judgment.”

Merritt’s notice of claim asked for $10 million, but Tuesday’s lawsuit does not name a specific dollar figure in damages.

DPS case investigation draws scrutiny

The lawsuit walks through a timeline of the case, highlighting missteps.

Shortly after the shootings began, investigators tapped the state crime lab to try and identify the type of gun that had fired bullets from four of the crime scenes.

Days later, they had their answer. It was a Hi-Point, 9mm C9 handgun, the crime lab reported — a model with about 286,000 firearms in circulation.

It was a rookie detective who suggested using a pawn shop database to see if there had been any recent sales of this model.

“If you want to buy a lottery ticket … go ahead,” his sergeant responded, according to the lawsuit.

The detective tried his luck. On Sept. 17, 2015, he trekked to various local shops, including Mo Money Pawn in Phoenix. It was here that he collected a Hi-Point, 9mm C9 that had been sold by Merritt on Aug. 30, 2015.

At the time, it seemed the detective had hit the investigative jackpot. Criminalists who analyzed the four crime-scene bullets said with “100 percent certainty” they were all fired from Merritt’s gun, according to the lawsuit.

Detectives soon learned there was a snag in this theory. According to pawn-shop records, Merritt had sold his gun at 5:31 p.m. Aug. 30. The final shooting occurred four hours later.

“In other words, DPS recognized that only one of two scenarios could be true,” the lawsuit states.  Either "a) the crime lab had botched its identification or b) Incident D did not occur when Merritt’s gun was at the pawn shop.”

DPS officials chose the latter and adjusted their timeline. They alleged that the shots had actually been fired days earlier but had gone unnoticed because of the vehicle’s durable tires.

Merritt was arrested on Sept. 18, 2015, and remained jailed until April 19.

The suit contends the DPS crime lab used "flawed methodology" and that DPS officials knew Merritt's gun couldn't have been involved in one of the shootings but tweaked the timeline to fit their theory.

Merritt’s attorneys allege prosecutors intentionally misled the grand jury by asserting that the shots had been fired days beforehand.

Earlier this year, an independent ballistics expert hired by prosecutors said his results could not tie Merritt's gun to the bullets, nor could the evidence exclude it.

As a result of his false arrest, the lawsuit claims, Merritt suffered "severe physical pain, mental anguish, emotional distress, medical expenses and lost wages."

Public officials say little in response to lawsuit

DPS officials declined to comment Wednesday, citing pending litigation.

At his scheduled news conference Wednesday, Montgomery said he wasn't surprised by the lawsuit.

“It’s an active case now in litigation, and I think I’m named in it," he said. "There’s not much more I can say other than I’m aware of it and we’ll handle it as we go forward."

The charges against Merritt were dismissed without prejudice, leaving open a window for prosecutors to refile charges in the future. The County Attorney's Office has seven years to decide whether charges would be refiled against Merritt.

Montgomery on Wednesday said he wasn't aware of the current status of the investigation.

"I haven’t asked for an update in a few weeks," he said. "There are a number of things still going from an evidentiary review and analysis standpoint, so I’m letting those folks do their job and handle that.”

In August, Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Warren Granville ruled that Merritt would not get his gun back for now.

Includes information from Republic reporter Garrett Mitchell.