Left: Joseph A. Garcia (Facebook). Right: Joseph M. Garcia (Starbuck-Lind Mortuary).
A California man poured tiki torch oil on his father's head and set him ablaze while the 68-year-old was holding his dog on his lap, leading to severe burns on 35% of his body and the dad's death. The son was found guilty last week of first-degree murder.
"You brought this on yourself," Joseph Ashley Garcia, 43, admitted telling his father, Joseph Michael Garcia, on the night he attacked him, according to testimony he provided during his trial earlier this month, per the Santa Barbara news outlet Noozhawk.
Joe A. Garcia was found guilty on April 13 of murder, cruelty to animals and four sentencing enhancements, including torture, for the death of his father in June 2022. Joe M. Garcia died from septic shock 10 days after he was set on fire.
Joe A. Garcia admitted in court to pouring between 3 and 4 ounces of tiki torch oil, or acetone, from a bottle onto his dad's head. He alleged that he was only trying to set Joe M. Garcia's hair on fire, a claim prosecutors reportedly pushed back on.
"You didn't do what you needed to do to only burn his hair, right?" Senior Deputy District Attorney Madison Whitmore asked Garcia while he was on the stand. "I guess I'd agree with that," Garcia said, according to Noozhawk.
According to Whitmore, Joe A. Garcia was "more concerned" about himself than his father after setting him ablaze. "I suppose so," Garcia confessed, admitting he didn't yell or call for help during the incident.
Prosecutors said Joe A. Garcia had accused his father of having an affair with his spouse before the attack. Methamphetamine use was said to be a contributing factor.
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.
Joe A. Garcia pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity, with the same jury who convicted him deeming him legally sane on Tuesday before his sentencing.
Prosecutors called the 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. "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."
Joe A. Garcia is scheduled to be sentenced in Santa Maria Superior Court on June 6.