Left: Joseph A. Garcia (Facebook). Right: Joseph M. Garcia (Starbuck-Lind Mortuary).
A California man who doused his father’s head with tiki torch fuel and set him on fire while the 68-year-old sat with his dog on his lap has been sentenced to spend the rest of his life in prison.
Joseph Ashley Garcia, 44, received a sentence last Wednesday of life without the possibility of parole. A jury convicted him on April 13 of murder, animal cruelty and four sentencing enhancements, including torture, in the June 2022 killing of his father, Joseph Michael Garcia.
Authorities said Joseph Michael Garcia died 10 days after the attack from septic shock caused by severe burns covering 35% of his body.
During testimony cited by the Santa Barbara news outlet Noozhawk, Joseph Ashley Garcia said he told his father, “You brought this on yourself,” on the night of the attack.
At trial in April, Garcia admitted pouring roughly 3 to 4 ounces of tiki torch oil, or acetone, from a bottle onto his father’s head. He testified that he intended only to ignite his father’s hair, an explanation prosecutors challenged in court.
“You didn’t do what you needed to do to only burn his hair, right?” Senior Deputy District Attorney Madison Whitmore asked Garcia during his testimony, according to Noozhawk. “I guess I’d agree with that,” Garcia replied.
Prosecutors said Joe A. Garcia was “more concerned” about himself than his father after setting him ablaze.
“I suppose so,” Garcia confessed, recalling how he didn’t yell or call for help during the incident.
Prosecutors recounted how Joe A. Garcia had accused his father of having an affair with his spouse before the attack. Methamphetamine use was allegedly a contributing factor.
“I just had it with him,” Joe A. Garcia told police after being arrested. “I was sick of his s—.”
Joe M. Garcia was holding his terrier, Charlie, on his lap when Joe A. Garcia set him on fire, according to local officials.
An obituary for Joe M. Garcia says he lived almost his entire life in Lompoc — where his son was a cannabis advocate — and “enjoyed” taking Charlie to the beach.
Prosecutors called his murder case “one of the most disturbing” they have ever dealt with.
“This verdict reflects exactly what justice looks like for one of the most disturbing cases our office has prosecuted,” said Santa Barbara District Attorney John Savrnoch in a statement after Joseph A. Garcia was convicted. “The jury heard the evidence and held this defendant fully accountable. A finding of first-degree murder with the torture special circumstance sends an unambiguous message that this community will not tolerate acts of extreme cruelty.”
While appearing in Santa Maria Superior Court last week for his sentencing, the younger Garcia remained expressionless during victim impact statements and while the court played video of his father, according to the Santa Barbara Independent. He reportedly spoke only to his attorney.
