David O’Connell is associated with the shooting death of a Catholic bishop in Los Angeles
Archbishop David O’Connell of Los Angeles, Calif., was killed by a deacon at his home in Hacienda Heights
Los Angeles Archdiocesan Auxiliary Bishop David O’Connell was found dead with a gunshot wound at his home on Saturday. A deacon who had gone to check on him discovered the body, according to NPR member station LAist.
“He was a peacemaker with a heart for the poor and the immigrant, and he had a desire to build a community where the sanctity and dignity of every human life was honored and protected,” the archbishop said.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department previously said investigators responded to a shooting death at 12:57 p.m. on Saturday in the LA suburb of Hacienda Heights, where an adult male was pronounced dead.
“Among the many things that I admired in his life and ministry was that he was fluent in Spanish — with an Irish accent,” Los Angeles Archbishop José H. Gomez said of O’Connell — who was born in County Cork, Ireland — at Monday’s news conference.
O’Connell was a pastor in Los Angeles for many years and also in nearby communities. He worked on efforts to curb violence in the city, and many of his congregants were minorities and immigrants.
He said that being a pastor meant a great deal to him and he was happy to help people who were in need or facing difficulty.
On Saturday, parishioners gathered at the scene of O’Connell’s death and lit candles in memory of the religious leader, Los Angeles Daily News reporter Clara Harter tweeted.
O’Connell was always there for each and every child and family that I’ve represented, according to Linda Dakin-Grimm. Always. Helping, supporting and generally being the face of Jesus for me and many many others.”
Archbishop Dave Gomez: A labor of love for our parishes and for children, and a tragedy that destroys our society
A man was taken into custody in connection with the shooting death of a Catholic bishop renowned for his work as a community “peacemaker,” the LA County Sheriff’s Department announced Monday.
The archbishop of Los Angeles said Saturday that he had no words to express his sadness over O’Connell’s death.
“As a priest and later a bishop, Bishop Dave was a man of deep prayer who had a great love for Our Blessed Mother,” Gomez said. He was a peacemaker with a passion for building a community that honored the sanctity and dignity of all life, and he cared about the poor and immigrants.
“For me, it really is a labor of love,” he said of the task force in 2019, “because this is, I think, what our schools and parishes are all about. Not just for unaccompanied minors but for all our children. There’s an epidemic of hurting children, even the ones who have too much. They feel we’ve abandoned them. The migrant youths are a metaphor for our society.
I am brokenhearted. I’ve been crying for the last few days knowing that he’s no longer here to share all of his inspiration and his prayers and everything with us,” parishioner Ramona Torres said.
A sheriff’s investigation of the murder of the Los Angeles man arrested in connection with the shooting of the homeless man at a los angeles manso
The suspect was arrested at his home after he barricaded himself inside for several hours. The sheriff said authorities recovered “firearms and other evidence possibly linking Medina to the crime.” The suspect’s wife is helping with the investigation.
In 2015, O’Connell told Angelus News he hadn’t had any problems, despite being part of the people’s lives and being there during the suffering of young people who have lost their lives so many times. “I do believe what’s really important is for us to be out in the neighborhoods, to be out with the people.”
State Sen.Bob Archuleta said at the news conference that O’Connell was able to bring together people from all walks of life, from gang members to clergy members.
The murder charge was announced at a news conference on Wednesday by Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascon.
The motive in the death of O’Connell is being worked on, as authorities are praising him as a community peacemaker. O’Connell was a pillar in the Los Angeles area who brought attention to the plights of vulnerable populations such as homeless people and the immigrant community.
At Medina’s home, investigators found two firearms and “other evidence possibly linking Medina to the crime,” the sheriff said Monday. The weapons needed to be examined to see if they were involved in the killing of the bishop.
Several different reasons were given by Medina when he was interviewed, none of which made sense to investigators, said Modica. “So we don’t believe there’s any validity to the owing of money.”
He was taken into custody Monday at his home in Torrance, which is roughly 35 miles southwest of Hacienda Heights.
