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Judge mulls competency of Mexican man who fatally shot Kate Steinle in San Francisco

This undated file booking photo provided by the San Francisco Police Department shows Jose Inez Garcia-Zarate. (San Francisco Police Department via AP, File)

A federal judge in San Francisco is mulling the competency to stand trial of a Mexican man who shot and killed 32-year-old Kate Steinle.

The 2015 shooting figured prominently in President Donald Trump’s run for the White House four years ago.


The case against Jose Ines Garcia Zarate on federal gun charges has been pending since a judge raised “serious concerns” about Garcia Zarate’s mental capacities back in January.

Two doctors have diagnosed Garcia Zarate with schizophrenia and found him unfit to stand trial.

The San Francisco Examiner reports that Garcia Zarate told the court Friday through a Spanish interpreter that he wanted to be sentenced to prison or deported back to Mexico.