ITHACA, N.Y. (AP) - A man charged with fatally shooting a UPS driver outside a central New York Wal-Mart last month has been ruled mentally incompetent for trial.
A Tompkins County Court judge made the ruling Thursday in the second-degree murder case against Justin Barkley. The judge committed him to a state mental health institution for evaluation. The move comes after two psychiatric examinations decided Barkley wasn’t competent.
Barkley was charged with killing 52-year-old William Schumacher of Candor outside the Wal-Mart in Ithaca early on the morning of Dec. 8. Authorities say Schumacher was a seasonal driver for the package delivery service when he stopped at the store to get something to eat.
Prosecutors say they’ll continue to pursue the case against Barkley.
Law enforcement officials haven’t disclosed a suspected motive in the slaying.
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