Jose Ines Garcia Zarate not guilty in death of Kate Steinle
Jose Ines Garcia Zarate not guilty in death of Kate Steinle
By Holly Yan and Dan Simon, CNN
Updated 7:45 PM ET, Thu November 30, 2017
San Francisco (CNN)[Breaking news update, posted at 7:43 p.m. ET]
A jury has found Jose Ines Garcia Zarate not guilty in the July 2015 death of Kate Steinle in San Francisco. He was convicted of being a felon in possession of a firearm.
[Previous story, published at 6:30 p.m. ET]
The jury has reached a verdict in the trial of Jose Ines Garcia Zarate, a Mexican citizen and undocumented immigrant charged in the 2015 killing of Kate Steinle in San Francisco. The case became a political lightning rod in the debate over immigration policy.
Garcia Zarate had been deported from the US five times prior to Steinle's 2015 death in San Francisco.
Garcia Zarate, 45, faced a charge of second-degree murder, but jurors were also allowed to consider first-degree murder and involuntary manslaughter convictions.
Garcia Zarate was accused of fatally shooting Steinle, 32, with a Sig Sauer .40-caliber handgun as she and her father walked on San Francisco's Pier 14.
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Kate Steinle, 32, was killed in July 2015.
Jurors had to decide whether Garcia Zarate shot Steinle unintentionally or committed murder.
What happened
Steinle, her father and a friend were at the San Francisco pier when a bullet struck Steinle's lower back and tore through her abdominal aorta, authorities said.
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Kate Steinle: San Francisco shooting victim known for thinking of others first
Surveillance video showed Garcia Zarate running away. After his arrest, investigators found gunshot residue on his right hand, prosecutor Diana Garcia told jurors.
Prosecutors said Garcia Zarate was playing his own "secret version of Russian roulette" and deliberately fired into an unsuspecting crowd on the pier, killing Steinle.
Defense attorney Matt Gonzalez said Garcia Zarate found the gun at the pier. He said it was wrapped in cloth, and when Garcia Zarate unwrapped it, the gun accidentally discharged.
But in a police interrogation, Garcia Zarate admitted to firing the gun, saying he was aiming at a seal.
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Juors began deliberating Tuesday in the murder trial of Jose Ines Garcia Zarate.
He also told police that he stepped on the gun, causing it to fire.
Prosecutors said Garcia Zarate immediately tried to cover his tracks by throwing the gun into the San Francisco Bay, then fleeing the scene.
Garcia Zarate was formerly known as Juan Francisco Lopez-Sanchez, one of several aliases he is known to have used. CNN and other media outlets previously identified him as Juan Francisco Lopez-Sanchez.
Sanctuary cities and 'Kate's Law'
Garcia Zarate's undocumented status and San Francisco's status as a "sanctuary city" prompted widespread debate over immigration policies.
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Garcia Zarate had been deported from the United States back to Mexico five times. Before the shooting, officials in San Francisco released him from custody instead of turning him over to immigration authorities.
Steinle's death became a rallying cry for President Donald Trump and others, who have invoked the case in decrying sanctuary cities and promoting the construction of a border wall between the US and Mexico.
"This senseless and totally preventable act of violence committed by an illegal immigrant is yet another example of why we must secure our border immediately," Trump said in July 2015. "This is an absolutely disgraceful situation and I am the only one that can fix it. Nobody else has the guts to even talk about it. That won't happen if I become President."
Trump also mentioned Steinle in his acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention after winning the Republican presidential nomination.
In June, the House of Representatives passed "Kate's Law," a billthat would create harsher penalties for repeat illegal entry to the US. The bill would also expand US law to pressure local cities to cooperate with federal immigration enforcement.
This summer, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 3004, dubbed "Kate's Law" -- a measure named for Steinle. The legislation would increase maximum prison penalties for immigrants caught repeatedly entering the US illegally.
The measure was introduced in the Senate but failed to get the 60 votes needed to pass.
http://www.cnn.com/2017/11/30/us/kat...ict/index.html
AG Sessions UNLOADS On Kate Steinle Verdict As James Woods Warns ‘Lines Are Drawn’ In
AG Sessions UNLOADS On Kate Steinle Verdict As James Woods Warns ‘Lines Are Drawn’ In Border Wall Battle
November 30, 2017
by Joshua Caplan
Americans are furious after Jose Ines Garcia Zarate, an illegal alien from Mexico, was found not guilty on murder and manslaughter charges for shooting Kate Steinle dead in San Francisco.
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NBC Bay Area reporter Riya Bhattacharjee broke news of the verdict on Twitter:
“Jury finds Jose Ines Garcia Zarate not guilty in 1st or 2nd degree murder in the fatal shooting of Kate Steinle, not guilty in invol. manslaughter. Guilty of possession of a firearm. Jury unanimously finds Mexican man at center of national immigration debate not guilty of murder in San Francisco pier shooting. Jury finds him not guilty of crime w/ assault w/ semi-automatic firearm,” tweeted Bhattacharjee.
Riya Bhattacharjee
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@loislane28
#BREAKING: Jury finds Jose Ines Garcia Zarate not guilty in 1st or 2nd degree murder in the fatal shooting of Kate Steinle, not guilty in invol. manslaughter. Guilty of possession of a firearm.
4:37 PM - Nov 30, 2017
4 4 Replies 14 14 Retweets 5 5 likes
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2h
Riya Bhattacharjee
✔
@loislane28
#BREAKING: Jury finds Jose Ines Garcia Zarate not guilty in 1st or 2nd degree murder in the fatal shooting of Kate Steinle, not guilty in invol. manslaughter. Guilty of possession of a firearm.
Riya Bhattacharjee
✔
@loislane28
#BREAKING: Jury unanimously finds Mexican man at center of national immigration debate not guilty of murder in San Francisco pier shooting. Jury finds him not guilty of crime w/ assault w/ semi-automatic firearm.
4:40 PM - Nov 30, 2017
Attorney General Jeff Sessions blasted the verdict, singling out the city of San Francisco’s “decision to protect criminal aliens.”
“I urge the leaders of the nation’s communities to reflect on the outcome of this case and consider carefully the harm they are doing to their citizens by refusing to cooperate with federal law enforcement officers.”
Below is Sessions’ full statement:
“When jurisdictions choose to return criminal aliens to the streets rather than turning them over to federal immigration authorities, they put the public’s safety at risk. San Francisco’s decision to protect criminal aliens led to the preventable and heartbreaking death of Kate Steinle.
“While the State of California sought a murder charge for the man who caused Ms. Steinle’s death—a man who would not have been on the streets of San Francisco if the city simply honored an ICE detainer—the people ultimately convicted him of felon in possession of a firearm. The Department of Justice will continue to ensure that all jurisdictions place the safety and security of their communities above the convenience of criminal aliens. I urge the leaders of the nation’s communities to reflect on the outcome of this case and consider carefully the harm they are doing to their citizens by refusing to cooperate with federal law enforcement officers.”
Josh Caplan
@joshdcaplan
Follow Follow @joshdcaplan
AG Sessions' statement on Kate Steinle verdict: "I urge the leaders of the nation’s communities to reflect on the outcome of this case and consider carefully the harm they are doing to their citizens by refusing to cooperate with federal law enforcement officers."
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5:22 PM - 30 Nov 2017
Hollywood actor and conservative firebrand James Woods weighed in on the decision by tweeting, “#KateSteinle will leave an enduring legacy. The stunning depravity of her murderer’s acquittal will be a turning point in American history. The lines are drawn. #BuildTheWall.”
James Woods
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@RealJamesWoods
#KateSteinle will leave an enduring legacy. The stunning depravity of her murderer’s acquittal will be a turning point in American history. The lines are drawn. #BuildTheWall
5:21 PM - Nov 30, 2017
As The Gateway Pundit’s Jim Hoft reported, Kate Steinle was shot dead by an illegal alien criminal in San Francisco while walking on a pier with her father on July 1, 2015,
On July 1, 2015, illegal immigrant criminal Juan Francisco Sanchez opened fire on Pier 14 in the Embarcadero district in San Francisco, California, shooting 32-year-old Kathryn Steinle in the back.
Kate Steinle died in her father’s arm.
http://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2017...r-wall-battle/
Twitter Set Ablaze With OUTRAGED Americans Following Acquittal of Kate Steinle’s Ille
Twitter Set Ablaze With OUTRAGED Americans Following Acquittal of Kate Steinle’s Illegal Alien Murderer
November 30, 2017
by Cristina Laila
Twitter exploded with outraged Americans after a San Francisco jury acquitted the illegal alien who killed Katie Steinle.
Illegal alien and murderer Jose Ines Garcia Zarate and Katie Steinle
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Twitter Set Ablaze With OUTRAGED Americans Following Acquittal of Kate Steinle’s Illegal Alien Murderer
by Cristina Laila 58 Comments
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Twitter exploded with outraged Americans after a San Francisco jury acquitted the illegal alien who killed Katie Steinle.
Illegal alien and murderer Jose Ines Garcia Zarate and Katie Steinle
On July 1, 2015, Kate Steinle was shot dead by an illegal alien criminal in San Francisco while walking on a pier with her father.
On July 1, 2015, illegal immigrant criminal Juan Francisco Sanchez opened fire on Pier 14 in the Embarcadero district in San Francisco, California, shooting 32-year-old Kathryn Steinle in the back.
Kate Steinle died in her father’s arm.
No Obama official contacted the Steinle family after their daughter’s death.
On Thursday a San Francisco jury found the Kate Steinle’s killer innocent of murder or manslaughter.
This illegal alien murderer is the exact type of person Nancy Pelosi, Chuck Schumer and the Democrats work around the clock to protect with taxpayer money.
Twitter was set ablaze with outraged Americans! Within 30 minutes of the news breaking, there were over 30,000 tweets with the hashtag #KatieSteinle and it was trending number one in the U.S.
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Where is the damn justice??
Ann Coulter, Bill O’Reilly, James Woods and others came out swinging:
Nick Short 🇺🇸
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@PoliticalShort
So the lawyer for Jose Zarate, the illegal alien found not guilty of killing Kate Steinle, is lecturing US about this case being used to "catapult a presidency" based on hate and that today's verdict is a vindication of "rights for immigrants". What about Kate Steinle's rights?
5:06 PM - Nov 30, 2017
388 388 Replies 2,013 2,013 Retweets 3,827 3,827 likes
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Tucker Carlson
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@TuckerCarlson
.@MarkSteynOnline: The Kate Steinle case and verdict is a miscarriage of justice. There is no dispute that he picked up the gun and the gunshot killed Kate. No dispute he should not have been in the country #Tucker @FoxNews
5:09 PM - Nov 30, 2017
737 737 Replies 3,694 3,694 Retweets 9,430 9,430 likes
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Sarah Palin
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@SarahPalinUSA
Such an insane recent news cycle, and now this?? Outrageous “not guilty” verdict in murder case of Kate Steinle. The illegal alien who shot her was just given more rights, grace and favor than the devastated Steinle family. San Francisco is NOT a safe place. - SP
5:06 PM - Nov 30, 2017
James Woods
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@RealJamesWoods
If this worthless Congress doesn’t pass #KatesLaw now, there is no hope for this nation. http://www.foxnews.com/us/2017/11/30...ty-murder.html …
4:54 PM - Nov 30, 2017
Kate Steinle’s accused killer found not guilty of murder
Jurors reached the decision Thursday in the sixth day of deliberations after first receiving the case last Tuesday.
foxnews.com
Ann Coulter
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@AnnCoulter
Kate Steinle's killer Jose Ines Garcia Zarate had been deported FIVE times. San Fran sheriff had released him from jail despite a federal immigration detention request.
4:52 PM - Nov 30, 2017
Liz Wheeler
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@Liz_Wheeler
Kate Steinle's killer was deported FIVE TIMES. He wouldn't have been in the USA if it weren't for Democrats' insane Sanctuary City laws, which AS WE CAN SEE, protect killers & cost American citizens their lives.
My God, what must Kate Steinle's family be feeling right now.
4:46 PM - Nov 30, 2017
Leah wakey Qfefe🐇 🌵🎸
@LeahR77
Not guilty verdict .. NO JUSTICE FOR Kate Steinle 😡 God Be With Their Family 🙏🏼 #KateSteinle
4:41 PM - Nov 30, 2017
Bill O'Reilly
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@BillOReilly
Kate Steinle’s killer found not guilty of murder. Not since OJ Simpson has this kind of verdict been dropped. At the very least manslaughter - he had a stolen gun! Awful.
http://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2017...lien-murderer/
