( CNN ) -- A three-judge federal appeals panel has ruled that Tucson shooting suspect Jared Lee Loughner can refuse anti-psychotic medication . Tuesday 's ruling comes days after the court said it would review an appeal by attorneys for the government who argued the alleged gunman should be forced to take anti-psychotic drugs for his behavior . The federal appeals court last week temporarily halted the forced medication . `` Since Loughner has not been convicted of a crime , he is presumptively innocent and is therefore entitled to greater constitutional protections than a convicted inmate , '' court documents said . `` While both interests are significant , we conclude that preserving the dignity and bodily integrity of an individual who has not been convicted of a crime is the stronger interest , especially when the government has demonstrated that it is able to prevent that individual from harming himself or others . '' Loughner is being held in a federal mental hospital after an earlier court ruling found him incompetent to stand trial . The hospital 's medical staff began forcing him to take psychotropic medication after it deemed him to be a danger to himself and others . He is charged with killing six people -- including the chief federal judge of Arizona , John Roll -- in a supermarket parking lot in Tucson , Arizona , on January 8 . Among the 13 people wounded was U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords , D-Arizona , who was shot in the head . On May 25 , a judge found Loughner incompetent to stand trial and committed him to federal custody for hospitalization at the U.S. Medical Center for Federal Prisoners in Springfield , Missouri , where the staff will determine whether Loughner will become competent in the foreseeable future and , if so , oversee his mental restoration . CNN 's Scott Thompson contributed to this report .
Michael says Loughner no longer has to take anti - psychotic medication , a court ruling . The defendant has also been diagnosed as schizophrenic , prosecutors say . Michael 's attorneys say forcing him to take strong drugs violates his rights . Loughner is accused of shooting U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Davis and several others .