An off-duty Chicago police officer was charged with attacking his cop girlfriend during a drunken rampage last week at a South Side police station, pulling her out of a marked squad car by her hair while carrying a loaded gun.
Officer Francisco Galvan, 30, from Hegewisch, faces misdemeanor counts of domestic battery and driving under the influence, as well as a citation for illegally transporting alcohol. A police report notes that his girlfriend declined to pursue felony charges.
About 12:15 a.m. Thursday, officers saw Galvan walking through the parking lot of the Englewood District station before he accosted his on-duty girlfriend, who was sitting in a police vehicle and wearing her full uniform. The officers then saw the vehicle “rocking back and forth on its tires” and heard a struggle, according to the report.
When the officers approached the couple, they saw Galvan crouched over the woman while grasping her hair, the report says. Galvan was placed into custody and found with a loaded Glock handgun.
While Galvan was being detained, the officers smelled “a strong odor of alcoholic beverages” and noticed “his eyes were extremely bloodshot, watery, and glass,” according to the report.
During a search of his pickup truck, officers found “numerous” empty canned cocktails, along with one in the center console that was still full. Two more Glock magazines were also found, the report says.
His girlfriend suffered abrasions to her neck and face, according to the report. She told investigators that Galvan opened the door to the police cruiser, grabbed her by her pant leg and pulled her to the ground. She said Galvan then tried to pull her up by her hair “in an attempt to force her into a standing position,” and the other officers ultimately intervened.
Throughout the attack, she repeatedly told Galvan to “stop,” according to the report. Both of them refused medical treatment, and the woman told police she didn’t want to seek felony charges.
Galvan was relieved of his policing powers on the day of the attack, a police spokesperson said. His attorney didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
During Galvan’s initial court appearance on Friday, he was released from custody but was ordered to turn over any guns and to avoid having any “unlawful contact” with his girlfriend, court records show. His next court date was set for Sept. 13.
