Illegal immigrant acquitted of murder faces new charges

Federal authorities on Tuesday charged a Mexican man with new immigration and gun violations after a San Francisco jury last Thursday acquitted him of murder. A federal grand jury indicted Jose Ines Garcia Zarate on Tuesday with two gun charges related to the fatal shooting of Kate Steinle in July 2015: a felon in possession of a weapon and “being an alien illegally and unlawfully in the United States” in possession of a gun and ammunition. The high-profile case has sparked a national debate on immigration and sanctuary cities. In a surprise decision, a San Francisco jury last week acquitted Garcia Zarate of murder and assault but convicted him of a state charge of being a felon in possession of a firearm. The conviction carries a maximum three years in jail, but Garcia Zarate plans to ask a judge to toss out the state conviction, according to his public defender Matt Gonzalez. Garcia Zarate, who has been in jail since the day of the shooting, is to be sentenced in state court on Dec. 14.