DOJ Considers Federal Charges Against Jose Ines Garcia Zarate In Lieu Of Acquittal In Kate Steinle Murder

After a California jury acquitted Jose Ines Garcia Zarate of Kate Steinle’s murder, DOJ is now considering federal charges against the illegal immigrant, Fox News reports.

Lawmakers, President Trump, and people all around the Country have been very disappointed and unsettled after Garcia Zarate was found “Not Guilty.” U.S. immigration officials state that they plan to deport the undocumented felon, but the Department of Justice does not find this acceptable. After all, this would be his sixth deportation from the United States.

Sarah Isgur Flores, Justice Department spokeswoman, revealed that Garcia Zarate could face charges for felony re-entry, or possibly charges for violating his supervised release.

Flores explained to Fox News that sanctuary policies should be reconsidered as a result of Kate Steinle’s murder. She further revealed that Garcia Zarate, who has been deported five times already, is aware of San Francisco’s sanctuary policies and likely took advantage of them.

“This is a person who had been deported five times—he knew about San Francisco’s sanctuary policies. This is a person that never should have been on that pier, and Kate Steinle would still be alive.”

According to OCEIA, San Francisco’s sanctuary policies greatly limit the city’s law enforcement officers legal right to work with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) by not allowing them to use city funds or resources for the purpose of enforcing Federal immigration laws.

Garcia Zarate is facing three years in prison for being a felon in possession of a firearm, but if federal charges were brought against him, he could face more jail time.

Find Law reveals that an illegal immigrant who illegally re-enters the country after being previously deported, removed, excluded, or denied entry from the United States, could face both a fine and imprisonment of up to two years.

While Garcia Zarate is a convicted felon, his charges would be greater. Find Law mentions that a felon convicted of a non-aggravated felony charge could face a fine and up to 10 years of imprisonment. However, an illegal immigrant who enters the United States after being convicted of an aggravated felony assault could face a fine and up to 20 years of imprisonment.

President Trump tweeted that the verdict was “disgraceful” and is using Kate Steinle’s murder as a backbone to gain support for the border wall.

The Kate Steinle killer came back and back over the weakly protected Obama border, always committing crimes and being violent, and yet this info was not used in court. His exoneration is a complete travesty of justice. BUILD THE WALL!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 1, 2017

While federal charges against Garcia Zarate will not necessarily give justice to Kate Steinle, it might give our country a piece of mind that the Department of Justice is pushing for a more secure and safe environment for our communities.

Although Garcia Zarate didn’t deny shooting Kate, his attorney claimed that he shot her by “accident.” Kate was shot in the back while walking with her father in San Francisco two years ago.

[Featured Image by Michael Macor/San Francisco Chronicle/AP Images]