CONVICTION OVERTURNED CA - Kathryn 'Kate' Steinle, 32, fatally shot, Pier 14, San Francisco, 1 July 2015

[JusticeWillBeServed]

Kate Steinle murder trial: Video footage of suspect shown in court

The grainy, black-and-white footage shows a small figure dressed in black, identified by police as Garcia Zarate, sitting down on a chair on the Pier shortly after 6 p.m., according to police Officer Craig Dong, who collected and analyzed the video.

A short time later, a group of people can be seen passing by, including one figure in white identified by Dong as Steinle.

In the video, Garcia Zarate remained seated until the figure in white can be seen falling down, at which point there is a splash in the water in front of him as he gets up and leaves the area, Dong said.

"I see Kate Steinle falling down and the man throws something in the water and he walks away almost immediately," Dong said, as prosecutor Diana Garcia played the video for jurors.

Kate Steinle murder trial: Agent testified he secured gun that was later used in shooting

A federal agent whose stolen handgun was used to kill a woman on a San Francisco pier testified Thursday that he was confident the weapon had been stored securely in his SUV while he and his family had dinner.

Radio station KQED reported Woychowski said he put the semi-automatic handgun in a backpack hidden behind the reclined driver's seat of his personal SUV.

"It was well-lit, metered parking with other pedestrians in the area," Woychowski testified. "I thought it would be pretty safe."

The vehicle was broken into and the gun used days later to kill Kate Steinle while she walked on the pier with her father and a family friend. The agent was not disciplined and was promoted five months later, court records show.

 

[JusticeWillBeServed]

Kate Steinle murder trial: San Francisco inspector describes ricochet of fatal shot

The bullet that killed Kate Steinle skipped off the concrete of San Francisco’s Pier 14 before striking her in the back, jurors were told Monday, but what that means is a crucial point of contention between city prosecutors trying to prove murder and defense attorneys who say the infamous 2015 shooting was an accident.

Into this dispute came city police Inspector John Evans, now retired, who testified Monday that he had returned to Pier 14 four days after the shooting, after investigators determined that the bullet that killed Steinle showed “evidence of having struck a hard object.”

“Given your personal knowledge from the investigation you conducted, any forensic evidence you gathered ... do you have an opinion on how this shot that killed Kate Steinle occurred?” Garcia asked Evans.

“A human being held a firearm, pointed it in the direction of Ms. Steinle and pulled the trigger,” Evans responded. “This is the only way this could have occurred that is reasonable.”

http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/officer-bullet-ricocheted-san-francisco-pier-shooting-50818510

Retired San Francisco police inspector John Evans conceded during cross examination that he doesn't know whether Garcia Zarate fired the gun accidentally. But he did argue that accidental discharges result from a shooter mishandling a gun and pulling the trigger.

Evans said guns "do not fire by themselves" and even accidental discharges require a trigger to be squeezed. Evans said he believed Garcia Zarate pointed the gun at Steinle and pulled the trigger.

Earlier, Evans testified that the bullet that killed Steinle ricocheted off the pier's concrete walkway. Gonzalez said the ricochet supports the accidental shooting argument.

 

[JusticeWillBeServed]

Trigger of gun that killed Kate Steinle had to be pulled, criminologist testifies

“I found no mechanical malfunctions or issues with the firearm,” Smith said of the .40-caliber Sig Sauer pistol. “The trigger will have to be pulled in order for the gun to operate.” Smith testified that when he received the gun for examination, it had one round in the chamber and six in the magazine.

The gun was in single-action mode, Smith said, typical for a gun that had been fired. A gun in double-action mode requires extra pressure on the trigger to *advertiser censored* the hammer and fire the bullet, while a gun in single-action mode already has the hammer cocked and requires less trigger pressure.

This is a key point of contention in the case. If the gun was in single-action mode at the time of the shooting, said defense attorney Matt Gonzalez of the city public defender’s office, it’s more likely that Garcia Zarate could have pulled the trigger accidentally when he grabbed the bundle or unwrapped the cloth around the gun. Prosecutors dispute evidence of an accidental shot.

http://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2017/10/31/firearm-expert-doubts-steinle-murder-weapon-discharged-accidentally/

Outside of court, Matt Gonzalez, chief attorney for the public defender’s office, said the discussion of trigger pull measurements, decocking levers and internal safety mechanisms was misleading in that it might lead jurors to think the gun is harder to fire than is actually the case.

“We’re talking about a very light measurement, and I think the way they presented it was to make it seem very hard. You could imagine a 10-pound trigger pull is very hard to fire,” Gonzalez said, noting that the trigger pull is lighter if the trigger is pressed at, say, the very tip. “That’s not the case.”

Gonzalez said he is hoping the judge will allow the jurors to handle the firearm and feel for themselves what it felt like to pull the trigger in single-action and double-action mode.

 

[William N]

Does anybody believe a street criminal would break a car window, steal a backpack, find a firearm, and then leave the firearm somewhere and walk away from it?

 

[JerseyGirl]

Kate Steinle trial features demonstration of how suspect could've concealed murder weapon

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2017/11/0...-suspect-couldve-concealed-murder-weapon.html

 

[JusticeWillBeServed]

Crime lab expert supports theory of Steinle killing being accident; or not

http://www.sfgate.com/crime/article/Crime-lab-expert-supports-theory-of-Steinle-12336933.php

The homeless man accused of fatally shooting Kate Steinle on San Francisco’s Pier 14 had just one gunshot residue particle on his hands when he was arrested an hour after the incident — which could possibly mean the gun he handled went off accidentally when he picked it up in a cloth, a forensic consultant testified in court Monday.

However, James Norris, a former head of the San Francisco police crime lab, emphasized that accidental firing was just one of many possibilities, given the evidence gathered in the case.

And although Norris told the courtroom it was possible the lack of gunshot residue particles could support the defense’s claim that it was wrapped in a cloth when it discharged — a key component of the accident argument — he acknowledged that anything could be considered possible with the evidence gathered.

“He can’t say it is or it isn’t because he’s a legitimate expert,” Gonzalez said outside court. “But I think, for the first time, there’s a realization for the jury that you have to be a little bit more careful with the evidence. For me, the consistency of it being an accident is sufficient.”

http://kron4.com/2017/11/06/kate-steinle-murder-trial-lawyers-of-accused-pier-14-shooter-lay-out-case/

The forensic expert said the Sig Sauer P239 has no external safety and when in what’s called single action mode, has a trigger pull equivalent to a child’s water pistol.

And because of that, he always takes more precautions when testing a gun with a lighter trigger pull because there’s always the possibility of accidental discharge.

He also testified that because the bullet ricocheted off the concrete of the pier, it was flattened on one side, which causes a bullet to travel erratically and lose its accuracy.

 

[JusticeWillBeServed]

Canadian expert says Steinle shooting could have been accidental

While the prosecution contends that Garcia Zarate aimed the gun toward Steinle and pulled the trigger — an intentional act showing the malice needed for a second-degree murder conviction — Voth testified that the single fired shot and the ricochet, coupled with a lack of a known motive and firearms training for the person handling the weapon, point to an unintentional discharge.

“There’s no apparent reason to fire a shot into a concrete pier,” he said.

But Voth also testified that as a forensic firearms investigator, he would also examine the actions of the shooter directly after the discharge to determine if the shot was intentional.

Steinle murder trial: Defense witness says police interrogation mistranslated

Though homicide investigators asked Garcia Zarate at various points in the four-hour interrogation if he had pulled the trigger of the gun, Officer Martin Covarrubias never actually said the word for trigger — gatillo — when he translated the questions into Spanish, said Fanny Suarez, an investigator for the city public defender’s office and a former court interpreter.

Police asked Garcia Zarate several variations of the question, “Did you pull the trigger?” But instead, Suarez said, Covarrubias translated into Spanish, “Did you shoot?” Garcia Zarate answered in the affirmative.

Defense attorney Matt Gonzalez, of the public defender’s office, said it’s not clear if Garcia Zarate fully understood what police were asking and what he was admitting, such as that he had been aiming at sea animals or that he was 5 feet away from Steinle at the time of the shooting, not 90 feet away.

When asked outside court if there was a difference between admitting to pulling a trigger and admitting to firing a gun, Gonzalez said, “That’s for the jury to sort out.

Defense Rests Case in Kate Steinle Murder Trial

Prosecutor Diana Garcia has not presented a motive for the shooting, and is not required to prove that Garcia Zarate intended to kill Steinle for a second-degree murder charge, but she does have to prove that he fired the gun intentionally. She has pointed to the fact that he threw the gun into the water after it fired and left the scene quickly as evidence of his guilt.

While defense attorneys do not dispute that Garcia Zarate was holding the gun, a semi-automatic pistol that had been stolen from a U.S. Bureau of Land Management ranger's vehicle days earlier, they have argued that the shooting was accidental. Garcia Zarate, a homeless undocumented immigrant with a history of deportations and drug charges, fled the area because he was startled and had reason to try to avoid attention, they argue.

The prosecution will present at least one rebuttal witness on Monday and closing arguments are scheduled for the following Monday, Nov. 20.

 

[JerseyGirl]

Key witness for prosecution in Kate Steinle trial faces police misconduct claims in federal court

A key witness for the prosecution in the Kate Steinle murder trial is facing a police misconduct lawsuit in federal court, calling his crucial testimony into question for defense attorneys in the trial.

John Evans, a retired San Francisco police inspector, allegedly made inaccurate statements while on the stand during another high-profile murder trial in 2015. Evans is the only witness in the trial of an undocumented homeless man to testify that the shooter aimed in Steinle’s direction and pulled the trigger.

http://www.sfexaminer.com/key-witne...faces-police-misconduct-claims-federal-court/

 

[JusticeWillBeServed]

Jurors in Kate Steinle trial allowed to consider first-degree murder

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/jurors-in-kate-steinle-trial-allowed-to-consider-first-degree-murder/

Prosecutor Diana Garcia has sought to prove during the trial that Garcia Zarate, who had no connection to Steinle or known motive for shooting her, pointed the gun at her and pulled the trigger deliberately. And on Wednesday, Judge James Feng agreed to her request to instruct the jury in first-degree murder as well as second-degree murder and involuntary manslaughter, reports the station.

"The jury will be instructed on multiple theories of homicide," District Attorney's Office spokesman Alex Bastian said, declining to comment further.

 

[JerseyGirl]

Trial Wrapping up in Case That Sparked Immigration Debate

https://www.usnews.com/news/best-st...ng-up-in-case-that-sparked-immigration-debate

A jury may begin deliberations Tuesday on the fate of a Mexican man charged in the killing of a woman on a San Francisco pier _ a case that sparked a national debate on immigration enforcement.

 

[JusticeWillBeServed]

Jury in Kate Steinle murder trial goes home for Thanksgiving without verdict

http://www.mercurynews.com/2017/11/22/jury-in-kate-steinle-murder-trial-goes-home-for-thanksgiving-without-verdict/

There won’t be a verdict until next week at the earliest in the closely watched trial of the undocumented immigrant accused of shooting and killing Pleasanton native Kate Steinle.

The 12-person jury finished its second day of deliberations on Wednesday afternoon without coming to a verdict. They will return to court after the Thanksgiving weekend on Monday morning.

 

[JerseyGirl]

Jurors in Kate Steinle trial continue to deliberate case that sparked sanctuary city debate

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2017/11/2...-case-that-sparked-sanctuary-city-debate.html

 

[JerseyGirl]

Jurors returned Wednesday to deliberate for a fifth day in the trial of the homeless illegal immigrant accused of killing Kate Steinle on Pier 14 in San Francisco in 2015.

After 12 days of testimony, dozens of witnesses and two days of closing arguments in the murder trial of Jose Ines Garcia Zarate, jurors were given the case last Tuesday to determine whether Steinle’s death was the result of an act of murder or a tragic accident.

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2017/11/2...-case-that-sparked-sanctuary-city-debate.html

 

[Eclipse]

Not guilty ???????

 

[ATasteOfHoney]

Unreal verdict!!?

 

[neesaki]

Unreal verdict!!?

Amazing isn't it? Only in California? The illegal was deported multiple times, and defiantly returned over and over again, to then "accidentally" kill someone? :gaah:

 

[Jax49]

I haven't followed this case...I take it you guys are shocked at the not guilty verdict?

 

[Emi]

I haven't followed this case...I take it you guys are shocked at the not guilty verdict?

Yes I live in that state and am totally shocked by the verdict

 

[William N]

I haven't followed this case...I take it you guys are shocked at the not guilty verdict?

It's as bad as any verdict I've seen. But I'm not shocked.

 

[Tillicum]

I'm heartbroken.