David G. O'Connell
Mount St. Mary's College | |
|---|---|
| Motto | Jesus I trust in you |
| Styles of David Gerard O'Connell | ||
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Reference style | ||
| Spoken style | Your Excellency | |
| Religious style | Bishop | |
David Gerard O'Connell KC*HS (July 16, 1953 – February 18, 2023) was an Irish-born prelate of the Catholic Church who was an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles in California from 2015 until his murder in 2023. He served in the Los Angeles area for the entirety of his career as a priest.
Early life and career
David O'Connell was born in
After his ordination, O'Connell served as associate pastor at three parishes in Southern California: St. Raymond in Downey from 1979 to 1983, St. Maria Goretti in Long Beach in 1983/84, and St. Hillary in Pico Rivera from 1984 to 1988. He later served as pastor at four Los Angeles parishes: St. Frances Xavier Cabrini and Ascension Parish from 1988 to 2003, Ascension Catholic, St. Eugene from 2004 to 2006, and St. Michael from 2003 to 2015.[1]
On the archdiocesan level, O'Connell also served for various periods as a diocesan deacon and a member of the Council of Priests.[1] He was also a member of the Priest Pension Board, the Together in Mission Board, and the Archdiocesan Finance Council. He was a Knight of Peter Claver.[3]
Auxiliary Bishop of Los Angeles
Pope Francis appointed O'Connell titular bishop of Cell Ausaille and an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles on July 21, 2015.[1][4] He was consecrated by Archbishop José Gómez on September 8, 2015.[5] Gómez named O'Connell his episcopal vicar for the San Gabriel Pastoral Region.[3] He was invested as a Knight Grand Officer in the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem in September 2022.
Murder
Police found O'Connell dead from a gunshot wound to the chest at his home in Hacienda Heights at approximately 1 p.m. PST on February 18, 2023.[6][7][8] He was 69. A deacon had called for emergency medical help when he visited the house after O'Connell failed to attend a scheduled meeting.[6] Police opened a homicide investigation.[9]
On February 20, police arrested 65-year-old Carlos Medina at his residence in Torrance, California. Carlos Medina's wife was O'Connell's housekeeper and has performed work on O'Connell's house.[6][10] On February 22, Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascón reported that Medina had confessed to murdering O'Connell. He reported that O'Connell had suffered multiple gunshot wounds.[11]
References
- ^ a b c d e f "Rinunce e nomine, 21.07.2015" (Press release) (in Italian). Holy See Press Office. July 21, 2015. Retrieved February 20, 2023.
- ^ a b c Murphy, Ann (February 19, 2023). "Shooting of Glanmire-born bishop David O'Connell in LA being treated as murder". The Irish Examiner. Retrieved February 20, 2023.
- ^ a b c d "Bishop David G. O'Connell". Archdiocese of Los Angeles. Archived from the original on October 7, 2015. Retrieved September 12, 2015.
- ^ "Archbishop Gomez introduces three new auxiliary bishops for L.A. Archdiocese". California Catholic Daily. July 21, 2015. Retrieved February 20, 2023.
- ^ "3 auxiliary bishops picked by Pope Francis are ordained in Los Angeles". Los Angeles Times. September 8, 2015. Retrieved February 20, 2023.
- ^ New York Times. Retrieved February 21, 2023.
- ^ Kay, Pablo (February 18, 2023). "LA's 'peacemaker' Bishop David O'Connell dead at 69". Angelus. Retrieved February 18, 2023.
- ^ "Auxiliary Bishop David O'Connell fatally shot in Hacienda Heights". CBS News. February 18, 2023. Retrieved February 19, 2023.
- ^ Queally, James; St. John, Paige (February 18, 2023). "Los Angeles bishop death's is being investigated as a homicide, authorities said". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved February 20, 2023.
- ^ Schlepp, Travis; Von Quednow, Cindy; McDade, Mary Beth; Menitoff, Rachel (February 20, 2023). "Husband of housekeeper arrested in death of Los Angeles Bishop David O'Connell". KTLA. Retrieved February 20, 2023.
- ^ Bukuras, Joe (February 23, 2023). "Suspect confesses to the murder of Bishop David O'Connell, LA prosecutor says". Catholic News Agency. Retrieved February 27, 2023.