PHOENIX (AP) — There was a stark difference between the beginning and end of the criminal case against a man accused in a string of freeway shootings in Phoenix that sent a metro area into a frenzy as drivers feared they would be fired at on the interstate. The shootings sparked so much fear in the Phoenix area that people avoided driving the freeways, school buses took different routes, and signs were posted telling people to be careful. The head of the Arizona 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. Ducey spokesman Daniel Scarpinato pointed out there was wide public interest in the shootings and public safety is among his top priorities. Authorities previously said they used ballistic tests to tie Merritt to four of the 11 shootings, but Merritt's lawyers have recently argued that ballistic tests cast doubt on the claim their client was behind the attacks.