President Trump blasted the California jury’s verdict yesterday to acquit Jose Ines Garcia Zarate for the alleged homicide of Kate Steinle in 2015:
A disgraceful verdict in the Kate Steinle case! No wonder the people of our Country are so angry with Illegal Immigration.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 1, 2017
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
High-profile conservative pundits, such as Ben Shapiro, also condemned the ruling, highlighting the importance of the sanctuary city issue for the voters who swept Trump into the Oval Office: “The basic notion that an illegal immigrant can commit crimes in this country and then reenter the country at will is why President Trump won and that’s why President Trump ought to push for the construction of that barrier and ought to make sure that the American people are safe from predators like this one,” Shapiro said on Fox News.
On his program Thursday night, Sean Hannity said, “It was San Francisco sanctuary city policies that killed Kate Steinle. They did not obey the law. They followed these ridiculous liberal policies. And because of their stupidity and their ‘form of justice,’ caring more about the rights of illegal, convicted felons, tonight Kate Steinle is dead, and her family has received no justice.”
The Justice Department is considering bringing federal charges against Zarate. Zarate will be deported by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement for the sixth time.
