The last time we heard any news about Kate Steinle’s killer, Jose Ines Garcia Zarate, was back in early 2020 when he was found incompetent to stand trial on gun charges. As you will recall, Zarate shot and killed Steinle on a pier in San Francisco in 2015 with a stolen gun he claimed to have “found” wrapped up in a t-shirt nearby. He was somehow acquitted of manslaughter charges before dodging the illegal weapons charges. He’s remained locked up in jail while the case bounced back and forth since then, but he reached his final disposition this week. A district court judge sentenced Zarate this week to the seven years he’s already spent behind bars and ordered him to be deported (for the sixth time). He also warned him to never return to the United States. But he’ll have to make a stop in Texas first for another hearing.

A California federal judge on Monday sentenced the Mexican man acquitted of murder in the 2015 shooting death of a woman on a San Francisco pier to the seven years he’s already spent in jail — bringing to a legal close the case that ignited a national firestorm over immigration, crime and sanctuary cities.

Jose Inez Garcia Zarate was in the U.S. illegally when Kate Steinle, 32, was fatally shot along a crowded Pier 14 where she was walking with her father and a family friend. He faces deportation and U.S. District Judge Vince Chhabria told him court to never return to the U.S.

The shooting shocked a country already divided over immigration and fueled Donald Trump’s successful campaign for president. Trump called for a crackdown on unlawful immigration and the sanctuary cities and states — including San Francisco and California — that refuse to cooperate with federal immigration authorities.

Thanks to clever defense attorneys and a sympathetic jury, the only thing Zarate was ever sentenced for was being a felon in possession of a firearm and a person illegally in the country in possession of a firearm. So was there ever really any justice for Kate Steinle? It hardly seems that way. Her family didn’t even bother showing up for the sentencing, saying they “did not want to participate in the proceedings.”

The warning that the judge issued to Zarate at his sentencing will likely be seen as a joke. He said, “If you return to this country again and you are back in front of me, I will not spare you. Let this be your last warning: do not return to this country.” I’m sure that will have a huge impact on someone who has already been deported five times and continued to come back and forth into the country with impunity until he finally killed someone. (/sarcasm)

In Texas, Zarate will be facing a relatively minor charge of failing to report his location to officials after he was released from detention in San Francisco shortly before he killed Steinle. That could result in a little more time behind bars, at least in theory. But now the illegal alien has a court record declaring that he suffers from mental illness and can’t be held responsible for his actions. With that in mind, I won’t be surprised if the officials in Texas simply drop the entire thing and send him back to Mexico. Then we can start the clock until he comes back across the border again.

In court, Zarate’s lawyer said that his client “feels horrible about what happened and that he’s very sorry and apologizes.” I somehow doubt that the statement will do much to assuage the feelings of Kate Steinle’s family. Their daughter is still dead and her killer is on his way to freedom and the likely continuance of his criminal career. This entire episode has been a disgrace from beginning to end.