UPDATE, AUG. 8, 12:10 P.M.: The Orange County District Attorney's office (OCDA) just confirmed that Kirk Michael Galvin has been charged with murdering his 58-year-old uncle, Douglas Brian Galvin of Buena Park, in the La Palma apartment of the 23-year-old's father (and the victim's brother).
Kirk Galvin's father was not at home at the time of the murder, and the younger man is further accused of dumping his uncle's body in a remote area of Santa Barbara and setting it ablaze. The OCDA statement after the jump reports Kirk Galvin could get 25 years to life in state prison if convicted of the one murder count filed against him.
]
August 8, 2011
MAN CHARGED WITH MURDERING UNCLE IN LA PALMA BEFORE DUMPING AND BURNING BODY IN SANTA BARBARA COUNTY
SANTA ANA – A man has been charged with murdering his uncle and dumping
the victim's body in a remote area of Santa Barbara County after setting
it on fire in an attempt to destroy the evidence. Kirk Michael Galvin,
23, La Palma, is charged with one felony count of murder and faces a
maximum sentence of 25 years to life in state prison if convicted. He is
being held on $1 million bail and is scheduled to be arraigned today,
Monday, Aug. 8, 2011, in Department CJ-1, Central Jail, Santa Ana. The
time is to be determined.
On July 27, 2011, Kirk Galvin is accused of murdering his 53-year-old
uncle Douglas Galvin. The defendant is accused of committing the murder
in his father's La Palma apartment while his father was out of town.
Kirk Galvin is accused of driving the victim's murdered body to Santa
Barbara County, dumping in a remote area, and attempting to destroy the
body by setting it on fire. He is accused of then fleeing the scene.
On July 30, 2011, two people found Douglas Galvin's burned body while
out on a walk and contacted the police. Following an investigation by
the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Department and La Palma Police
Department, Kirk Galvin was arrested Aug. 5, 2011.
The investigation is ongoing. Anyone with additional information is
encouraged to contact Supervising District Attorney Investigator
Randy
Litwin at (714) 347-8492 or La Palma Police Detective Jesse Amend at
(714) 690-3376.
Senior Deputy District Attorney
Susan Price of the Homicide Unit is prosecuting this case.
ORIGINAL POST, AUG. 8, 9:55 A.M.: A relative called authorities to report Douglas Brian Galvin missing on July 31.
Later that same Sunday, the 58-year-old Buena Park resident's charred remains were found in Santa Barbara.
Details are sketchy, but the investigative trail led La Palma Police to the apartment of the dead man's nephew, Kirk Michael Galvin.
Police say there is evidence the elder Galvin's homicide at least began in the
apartment in the 500 block of Orangethorpe Avenue in La Palma, but
confusion remains over whether the man was actually killed there or in
Santa Barbara
(or, one presumes, along the way).
What is clear is the younger Galvin was held in lieu of $1 million bail for his uncle's death.
If this is ultimately ruled a murder in Orange County, Doug Galvin will be added to our homicide count.
OC Weekly Editor-in-Chief Matt Coker has been engaging, enraging and entertaining readers of newspapers, magazines and websites for decades. He spent the first 13 years of his career in journalism at daily newspapers before “graduating” to OC Weekly in 1995 as the alternative newsweekly’s first calendar editor.