Kate Steinle's, killed by an illegal immigrant in SF, murderer found not guilty

CNN article

Already a big thread on the Poliboard, but I wanted to bring it here, since this is not just political and some here don't always venture to that board.

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San Francisco (CNN) A jury on Thursday found Jose Ines Garcia Zarate not guilty of homicide charges in the July 2015 death of Kate Steinle in San Francisco. Jurors convicted the undocumented immigrant of being a felon in possession of a firearm after deliberating for more than 24 hours over six days.

The case became a political lightning rod in the debate over immigration policy. Proceedings lasted about one month. Garcia Zarate, a Mexican citizen, is subject to immediate deportation. He had been deported from the United States five times prior to Steinle's death. Garcia Zarate, 45, faced a charge of second-degree murder, but jurors also were 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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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. 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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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.

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