COLORADO SPRINGS - A judge is set to rule on the mental state of a man who acknowledged killing three people at a Planned Parenthood clinic in Colorado.

Judge Gilbert Martinez is expected to announce Wednesday whether criminal proceedings should continue against 57-year-old Robert Dear.

If the judge decides Dear isn't mentally competent, the case would be put on hold while Dear undergoes treatment at a psychiatric hospital designed to restore his competency.

Dear is charged with 179 counts, including murder, attempted murder and assault, in the Nov. 27 shootings at the Colorado Springs clinic. Nine people were injured.

In courtroom outbursts, Dear has said he is guilty and called himself a "warrior for the babies."

Psychologists have testified Dear isn't mentally capable of understanding the court proceedings or helping his lawyers.