San Francisco (CNN) A jury on Thursday found an undocumented immigrant not guilty in the July 2015 death of Kate Steinle, a decision that reignited the debate over immigration policy. 
 
 Jose Ines Garcia Zarate, 45, was acquitted of murder and involuntary manslaughter charges, as well as assault with a deadly weapon. Jurors convicted the Mexican citizen of being a felon in possession of a firearm, which could bring a three-year sentence. 
 
 Prosecutors had argued Garcia Zarate intentionally shot Steinle, 32, with a Sig Sauer .40-caliber handgun as she and her father walked on San Francisco's Pier 14. But Garcia Zarate's defense attorney said the shooting was accidental and the bullet ricocheted off the ground and traveled about 80 feet before hitting Steinle. 
 
 Federal immigration officials said they will try to deport Garcia Zarate. He had been deported from the United States five times prior to Steinle's death. 
 
 Reaction to the jury's decision, after more than 24 hours of deliberation over six days, was swift. President Donald Trump called the verdict "disgraceful." Attorney General Jeff Sessions said San Franciso's status as a sanctuary city was largely to blame for what happened that summer day. Before the shooting, officials in San Francisco released Garcia Zarate from custody instead of turning him over to immigration authorities. 
 
 Kate Steinle, 32, was killed in July 2015. 
 
 "A disgraceful verdict in the Kate Steinle case! No wonder the people of our Country are so angry with Illegal Immigration," the President tweeted. 
 
 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 
 
 "I urge the leaders of the nation's communities to reflect on the outcome of this case and consider carefully the harm they are doing to their citizens by refusing to cooperate with federal law enforcement officers," Sessions said in a statement. 
 
 Sessions said: "When jurisdictions choose to return criminal aliens to the streets rather than turning them over to federal immigration authorities, they put the public's safety at risk." 
 
 Conservative pundit Ann Coulter said Steinle "would still be alive if we had a wall," referring to the President's call for the construction of a border wall between the US and Mexico. 
 
 Jury convinced that illegal alien killed Kate Steinle accidentally. She would still be alive if we had a wall. — Ann Coulter (@AnnCoulter) December 1, 2017 
 
 But one of the defendant's lawyers said the debate over immigration didn't belong in the case. 
 
 "From day one, this case was used as a means to foment hate, to foment division and to foment a program of mass deportation," public defender Francisco Ugarte said. 
 
 "Nothing about Mr. Garcia Zarate's ethnicity, nothing about his immigration status, nothing about the fact that he is born in Mexico had any relevance as to what happened on July 1, 2015," the defense attorney said. 
 
 Steinle's family: Justice 'was not served' 
 
 Assistant District Attorney Alex Bastian said prosecutors were disappointed in the verdict but respected the jury's decision. 
 
 "I can't stress this enough, this really is about the Steinle family. They've shown incredible resolve in this whole process," he said. "Our hearts go out to them." 
 
 Steinle's family did hear the jury's decision. Before the verdict, they told the San Francisco Chronicle that above all, they were looking forward to no longer being in the spotlight. 
 
 "We just want to get this over with and move on with our lives, and think about Kate on our terms. Nothing's been on our terms. It's been on everyone else's terms," said Steinle's father, Jim. 
 
 After the verdict, Jim Steinle told the Chronicle he was "saddened and shocked." 
 
 "There's no other way you can coin it. Justice was rendered, but it was not served," he said. 
 
 Deportation imminent? 
 
 Tom Homan, deputy director of the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement, also criticized San Francisco's sanctuary city policy. 
 
 "San Francisco's policy of refusing to honor ICE detainers is a blatant threat to public safety and undermines the rule of law," he said in a statement. "This tragedy could have been prevented if San Francisco had simply turned the alien over to ICE, as we requested, instead of releasing him back onto the streets. ... Following the conclusion of this case, ICE will work to take custody of Mr. Garcia Zarate and ultimately remove him from the country." 
 
 The fatal shooting 
 
 Steinle, her father and a friend were at the pier when a bullet struck Steinle's lower back and tore through her abdominal aorta, authorities said. 
 
 Surveillance video showed Garcia Zarate running away. After his arrest, investigators found gunshot residue on his right hand, prosecutor Diana Garcia told jurors. 
 
 Garcia Zarate faced a charge of second-degree murder, but jurors also were allowed to consider first-degree murder and involuntary manslaughter convictions. 
 
 Prosecutors said Garcia Zarate was playing his own "secret version of Russian roulette" and deliberately fired into an unsuspecting crowd on the pier, killing Steinle. 
 
 Defense attorney Matt Gonzalez said Garcia Zarate found the gun at the pier. He said it was wrapped in cloth, and when Garcia Zarate unwrapped it, the gun accidentally discharged. 
 
 But in a police interrogation, Garcia Zarate admitted to firing the gun, saying he was aiming at a seal. 
 
 Juors began deliberating Tuesday in the murder trial of Jose Ines Garcia Zarate. 
 
 He told police that he stepped on the gun, causing it to fire. 
 
 Prosecutors said Garcia Zarate immediately tried to cover his tracks by throwing the gun into the San Francisco Bay, then fleeing the scene. 
 
 Garcia Zarate was formerly known as Juan Francisco Lopez-Sanchez, one of several aliases he is known to have used. CNN and other media outlets previously identified him as Juan Francisco Lopez-Sanchez. 
 
 Sanctuary cities and 'Kate's Law' 
 
 Steinle's death stirred an already heated debate over immigration. Before the shooting, officials in San Francisco had released Garcia Zarate from custody instead of turning him over to immigration authorities. 
 
 JUST WATCHED Officials sued after Kate Steinle's death Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH Officials sued after Kate Steinle's death 02:00 
 
 Freya Horne, chief legal counsel to the San Francisco County Sheriff, said in a 2015 interview that Garcia Zarate was let go because there was no legal cause to detain the suspect. 
 
 Steinle's family filed a lawsuit in 2016 alleging that San Francisco and its former sheriff were partly to blame for Steinle's death, because officials never notified Immigration and Customs Enforcement when Garcia Zarate was released from a local jail in April 2015. City officials have said they're not liable for a former inmate's actions. A federal judge dismissed the family's claims against San Francisco and former Sheriff Ross Mirkarimi earlier this year. 
 
 Steinle's death became a rallying cry for Trump and others, who have invoked the case in decrying sanctuary cities and promoting the construction of the border wall. 
 
 "This senseless and totally preventable act of violence committed by an illegal immigrant is yet another example of why we must secure our border immediately," Trump said in July 2015. "This is an absolutely disgraceful situation and I am the only one that can fix it. Nobody else has the guts to even talk about it. That won't happen if I become President." 
 
 Trump also mentioned Steinle in his acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention after winning the Republican presidential nomination. 
 
 This summer, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 3004, dubbed "Kate's Law" -- a measure named for Steinle. The legislation would increase maximum prison penalties for immigrants caught repeatedly entering the US illegally. 
 
 The measure was introduced in the Senate but failed to get the 60 votes needed to pass. ||||| Breaking News Emails Get breaking news alerts and special reports. The news and stories that matter, delivered weekday mornings. 
 
 / Updated By Daniel Arkin and Corky Siemaszko 
 
 The homeless Mexican immigrant who was pilloried by then-candidate Donald Trump after he was accused of fatally shooting a woman on a San Francisco pier was found not guilty of murder on Thursday. 
 
 Jose Ines Garcia Zarate, 45, was acquitted in a case that galvanized anti-immigration forces and forced San Francisco officials to defend their "sanctuary city" policy. 
 
 Kathryn Steinle, 32, died in her father's arms when she was shot on July 1, 2015, while they and a family friend were strolling along Pier 14 in the city's tourist-friendly Embarcadero district. 
 
 "We're just shocked — saddened and shocked ... that's about it," Jim Steinle, Kate's father, told the San Francisco Chronicle. "There's no other way you can coin it. Justice was rendered, but it was not served." 
 
 Trump seized on the case during the campaign as proof that the United States needs his proposed border wall and weighed in on what he called the "disgraceful verdict" in a tweet. 
 
 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 
 
 In other tweets early Friday, Trump said the man who killed Steinle had come "back and back over the weakly protected Obama border, always committing crimes and being violent, and yet this info was not used in court." He added that the jury was not told that Garcia Zarate was a seven-time felon. 
 
 And in a statement Friday, the White House called on Congress to secure the border, "provide the resources" for deportations and "finally stop sanctuary city policies that cause needless loss of innocent life." 
 
 "Had San Francisco enforced our nation's immigration laws, the Steinle family would be celebrating this holiday with all of their loved ones," the White House said. 
 
 The judge in the trial did prohibit discussion of Garcia Zarate's immigration status and the mention that he was deported to Mexico, but returned to the U.S. five times. Instead, jurors were told to focus on the events surrounding Steinle's death. 
 
 Defense attorneys maintained that Garcia Zarate’s history of deportations and drug offenses were nonviolent crimes. But in her closing argument, Deputy District Attorney Diana Garcia said the suspect found the gun somewhere and deliberately fired at Steinle in "his own secret version of Russian roulette." 
 
 Kathryn Steinle was shot dead at San Francisco’s Pier 14 while out for an evening stroll with her father along the waterfront in 2015. Steinle Family 
 
 The bullet that felled Steinle ricocheted off the pier's concrete walkway before it struck her. 
 
 Garcia Zarate was found guilty of being a felon in possession of a firearm. He could face up to three years in state prison for that charge, although he has already served more than two years behind bars and could get credit for time served. 
 
 But U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement said late Thursday that it wants him deported instead. 
 
 "Following the conclusion of this case, ICE will work to take custody of Mr. Garcia Zarate and ultimately remove him from the country," said Tom Homan, the agency's deputy director. 
 
 A Justice Department official said the federal government is considering bringing charges against Garcia Zarate. 
 
 "We're looking at every option and we will prosecute this to the fullest extent of the law because these cases are tragic and entirely preventable," DOJ spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores said on "Fox & Friends" on Friday. 
 
 Defense attorney Matt Gonzalez told jurors that the shooting was a tragic accident and that prosecutors were pushing a "wild narrative of a desire to hurt someone he does not know." 
 
 Gonzalez said that Garcia Zarate found the semi-automatic handgun wrapped in a shirt under a chair on the pier — and that it went off by accident when he picked it up. 
 
 The weapon, as it turned out, had been stolen from a federal Bureau of Land Management ranger a week before. 
 
 The six-man, six-woman jury was asked to consider first-degree murder, second-degree murder and involuntary manslaughter charges against Garcia Zarate. 
 
 After he was elected president, Trump signed an executive order to cut funding from cities that limit cooperation with immigration authorities, a policy that a federal judge in San Francisco permanently blocked last week. 
 
 Garcia Zarate, who also used the name Juan Francisco Lopez Sanchez, had been deported five times before the deadly encounter. He had finished a federal prison sentence for illegal re-entry into the United States and was transferred in March 2015 to San Francisco's jail to face a 20-year-old charge for selling marijuana. 
 
 But three months before the deadly encounter on the pier, Garcia Zarate was released after the district attorney dropped the marijuana charge — despite a request by federal immigration authorities to detain him for yet another deportation. 
 
 Attorney General Jeff Sessions expressed his displeasure over the verdict in a statement that claimed San Francisco's decision to release Garcia Zarate "led to the preventable and heartbreaking death of Kate Steinle." 
 
 "The Department of Justice will continue to ensure that all jurisdictions place the safety and security of their communities above the convenience of criminal aliens," Sessions said. "I urge the leaders of the nation's communities to reflect on the outcome of this case and consider carefully the harm they are doing to their citizens by refusing to cooperate with federal law enforcement officers." 
 
 Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas was one of the seven Republican senators who in January reintroduced "Kate's Law" — which would create a five-year minimum sentence for those immigrants who illegally re-entered the country — and shared his anger over the verdict on Twitter. 
 
 I am disappointed and angry at the not guilty verdict for Jose Ines Garcia Zarate, an illegal alien who had several felony convictions & was deported from the US five times. Justice must be served for Kate Steinle. https://t.co/IxiL9WCU50 — Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) December 1, 2017 
 
 Eric Swalwell, the Democratic congressman who represents Steinle's district, also said he was disappointed by the verdict. 
 
 "I greatly respect our jury system," Swalwell tweeted," but I could not disagree more with this verdict. I pray for Kate's family." 
 
 CORRECTION (Dec. 1, 7:10 a.m.): An earlier version of this article misstated Kathryn Steinle's age. She was 32 when she died, not 33. ||||| SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A jury has been selected for the murder trial of a Mexican man whose case set off a national debate over U.S. sanctuary cities and immigration during last year's presidential campaign after he was accused of shooting and killing a woman on a popular San Francisco pier. 
 
 Six women and six men were selected Wednesday for the trial of Jose Ines Garcia Zarate after jury candidates answered a 14-page questionnaire that probed their views about Latinos, immigration and guns. 
 
 Zarate, 54, is charged with murder in the shooting death of office worker Kate Steinle, 32, in July 2015. Opening arguments in the case are scheduled for Monday. 
 
 Steinle was on a summer evening's stroll with her father on the pier crowded with pedestrians when she was shot. She collapsed into her father's arm, whimpering "help me, Dad." The bullet struck her heart and she died in her father's arms. 
 
 Zarate had been deported five times and was homeless in San Francisco when he said he found a gun wrapped in a t-shirt underneath the bench he was sitting on. 
 
 He said the gun fired when he picked it up. A ballistic expert testified that the bullet ricocheted off the concrete pavement before fatally striking Steinle in the back. 
 
 The shooting touched off a political furor during the presidential campaign, with President Donald Trump referring to Steinle's death in his campaign as a reason to toughen U.S. immigration policies. 
 
 The judge has prohibited the politics of gun control and immigration from Zarate's trial. 
 
 Zarate acknowledged shooting Steinle but said the gun he was playing with on the pier accidentally discharged. The gun had been stolen from the car of a Bureau of Land Management ranger several days before the July 1, 2015 shooting. 
 
 Trump since being elected president has threatened to withhold federal funding to so-called sanctuary cities such as San Francisco, several of which have filed lawsuits to prevent the move. 
 
 The jurors who were selected said they did not have negative experiences or views of Latinos or people who have entered the country illegally that would prevent them from keeping an open mind. 
 
 "If you learned that a person had illegally entered the country, would you believe he was entitled to the same due process rights as a U.S. citizen?" asked one of the 62 questions posed to the jurors. Responses to the questionnaire were not made public. 
 
 Five jury alternates were also seated after being asked their opinion of San Francisco's sanctuary city policy, which prohibits city officials from cooperating with federal immigration officials. 
 
 The jurors were also quizzed about their gun ownership and political views of firearms. 
 
 "We are very pleased with the jury," said Matt Gonzalez, Zarate's attorney. "We have such great diversity built in in San Francisco and I think we have a jury that understands a lot of the concerns about the defendant receiving a fair trial." 
 
 San Francisco Assistant District Attorney Diana Garcia declined comment.
– President Trump slammed the "disgraceful" verdict Thursday after a Mexican citizen was found not guilty of murder in the 2015 shooting death of Kate Steinle at a San Francisco pier. "No wonder the people of our Country are so angry with Illegal Immigration," Trump tweeted Thursday night, and he kept up his criticism Friday morning. "BUILD THE WALL!" he wrote. Jose Ines Garcia Zarate, a 45-year-old undocumented immigrant who had already been deported from the US five times, was also acquitted by a jury on charges of involuntary manslaughter and assault with a deadly weapon, CNN reports. Steinle was fatally shot on July 1, 2015, as she walked on Pier 14. Zarate's defense attorneys said he found a handgun wrapped in a shirt under a chair and it accidentally went off as he picked it up, NBC reports. The gun turned out to have been stolen from a federal agent days earlier, and prosecutors argued that Zarate deliberately pointed it at the 32-year-old Steinle. Zarate—who was wanted for a sixth deportation when he was arrested for the shooting—was found guilty of being a felon in possession of a firearm and will be sentenced at a later date. Months before the shooting, Zarate was released under San Francisco's "sanctuary city" policy, and Trump complained Friday that he "came back and back over the weakly protected Obama border." He added that the "Schumer/Pelosi Democrats" are weak on crime and "will pay a big price in the 2018 and 2020 elections." Steinle died in the arms of her father, Jim Steinle, who tells the San Francisco Chronicle that the family is shocked and saddened by the verdict. "Justice was rendered but not served," he says.