David O'Connell: Death of 'peacemaker' Catholic bishop, 69, found dead with gunshot wound in LA home being probed as homicide
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: The death of a Catholic bishop David O'Connell is reportedly being treated as a homicide, roughly 24 hours after he was found shot to death inside his Hacienda Heights home. O'Connell, 69, was known as a "peacemaker" in his predominantly Hispanic neighborhood. He was discovered with a gunshot wound to his upper torso on February 18 at his four-bedroom, three-bathroom home at around 1 pm.
O'Connell served as the auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles since 2015. He was pronounced dead at the scene and the unknown assailant has still not been arrested. Police revealed that the case is now being handled as a murder, according to the Daily Mail. "This incident is being handled as a murder investigation," a statement from the LA County Sheriff's Department said.
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'He was a peacemaker with a heart for the poor'
In a statement after O'Connell's death, Reverend José H Gomez, the Archbishop of Los Angeles, said, "As a priest and later a bishop here in Los Angeles for forty-five years, Bishop Dave was a man of deep prayer who had a great love for Our Blessed Mother. He was a peacemaker with a heart for the poor and the immigrant, and he had a passion for building a community where the sanctity and dignity of every human life was honored and protected."
Gomez added, "He was also a good friend, and I will miss him greatly. I know we all will. Please join me in praying for Bishop Dave and his family in Ireland. May Our Lady of Guadalupe wrap him in the mantle of her love, and may the angels lead him into paradise, and may he rest in peace."
Of the recent confirmation about O'Connell's death being treated as a homicide, the Archdiocese wrote on social media, "We learned early this morning from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s office that they have determined that the death of Auxiliary Bishop David O’Connell yesterday was a homicide. We are deeply disturbed and saddened by this news. Let us continue to pray for Bishop Dave and his family. And let us pray for law enforcement officials as they continue their investigation into this terrible crime. We ask Our Blessed Mother Mary to intercede and be a mother for all of us in this moment of sadness and pain."
'I was devastated to hear this'
O'Connell was born in Ireland in 1953. Back in 2015, he was named an auxiliary bishop for the Archdiocese of Los Angeles by Pope Francis. He went to All Hallows College in Dublin. O'Connell was ordained to serve in the Archdiocese in 1979, and he was first an associate pastor in various parishes. He eventually became an archbishop.
The citizens of the Los Angeles suburb were shocked at the news of his death. "I was devastated to hear this," Donna Marie, a local resident, said, adding, "Everybody is kind of shocked right now because this kind of thing doesn't happen around here."
Echoing Marie's thoughts, Jose Alvarez said, "When I first heard the news, I thought he had a heart attack. I'm shocked it was through a gunshot." Describing O'Connell as a man of the people, he said, "The bishops are usually inaccessible. A lot of times, they're kind of hidden in an office, but he was but in parish doing a healing mass."