Bishop David OConnell was at ease in the corridors of The suspect in the shooting, 61-year-old Carlos Medina, has been charged with the murder. (Photo by Dean Musgrove), People attend a public viewing for Bishop David OConnell at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in Los Angeles on Thursday evening, March 2, 2023. The murder charge against Medina includes an allegation of the personal use of a firearm, meaning he faces up to 35 years to life in state prison if he is convicted as charged. He was arrested about six hours later when he walked out of his home, he said. The suspect in the shooting, 61-year-old Carlos Medina, has been charged with the murder. The Wednesday and Thursday night Masses also included a message from Pope Francis, who wrote of how deeply saddened he was on OConnells death, but praised OConnells 45 years of ministry as being marked especially by his profound concern for the poor, immigrants, and those in need, his efforts to uphold the sanctity and dignity of Gods gift of life, and his zeal for fostering solidarity, cooperation, and peace within the local community.. David served in the US Army as Private First Class during the Korean War and worked for BASF He was the one we went to for advice and support. O'Connell was 69. Earlier Pope Francis sent a message paying tribute to Bishop OConnells years of devoted priestly and episcopal ministry to the Church in Los Angeles. OConnell would later tell how he was, in Washington, D.C., testifying before a panel on Capitol Hill. In 2015, Pope Francis named him an auxiliary bishop for the archdiocese. In response to the report that O'Connell was killed, Los Angeles Archbishop Jos H. Gomez said, "We are deeply disturbed and saddened by this news.". David OConnell, an auxiliary bishop in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, leading a memorial service in 2020. He became a priest there in 1953. Joe holds a bachelors degree in Political Science from The Catholic University of America. It was standing-room only in the cavernous Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, where the funeral Mass for Bishop David G. OConnell was held Friday morning. The people have touched my heart the way they are sincere.. Pope Francis named O'Connell an auxiliary bishop in 2015. Bail was set at $2 million. (Photo by David Crane, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG), Archbishop Jose Gomez at the Funeral Mass for Bishop David OConnell at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in Los Angeles, CA, Friday, March 3, 2023. OConnell was shot and killed at his Hacienda Heights home on Feb. 18. And he was faithful to me all the time I was in the hospital every day. The suspect in the shooting, 61-year-old Carlos Medina, has been charged with the murder. DAVID O'CONNELL Obituary He was ordained in June 1979 and returned to Glounthaune to say his first Mass in the Sacred Heart Church where he had been baptised almost 26 years earlier. The funeral Mass will be livestreamed both here and here. Apart from aiding neighborhood recovery efforts, OConnell pushed to restore trust between the inner-city residents and law enforcement. OConnell was found shot at his Hacienda Heights home on February 18. There were no signs of forced entry, and no weapon was found at the home, Sheriff Luna said. It was standing-room only in the cavernous Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, where the funeral Mass for Bishop David G. OConnell was held We are heartbroken. Killings were way down in south Los Angeles. OConnell was found shot at his Hacienda Heights home on February 18. But eventually, the sun broke the gloom. He was loved. Folks lined the aisles and craned their necks from behind the pews, not wanting to miss a moment of the Mass or their chance to say goodbye to a man theyd called a friend. He was the kind of person that, when he walked in the room, everyone felt better, Bishop Barron said. usually in the mountains focusing on how to be good fathers and husbands, something he saw as key to the health of a community. (Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG), Archbishop Jos Gomez holds a Vigil Mass for Bishop David OConnell at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in Los Angeles on Thursday evening, March 2, 2023. David O'Connell And its been a great privilege, a great blessing to be given these parishes all these years, to be pastor all these years. O'Connell Los Angeles county has the highest poverty rate in California and his work focused on helping marginalised people in communities affected by gang violence, drugs and poverty. (Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG), Priests and bishops walk to the altar for Bishop David OConnells Vigil Mass at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in Los Angeles on Thursday evening, March 2, 2023. He organised retreats to help men become better parents and partners, and believed in the power of parish communities and schools to transform peoples lives. David OConnell A secret place that you and I all have, as well that is where our spirit, our soul, our heart our mind converge with Jesus and the Holy Spirit.. It is a privilege to be part of peoples lives, especially in their time of suffering and need. Bishop Dave O'Connell speaks at the Archdiocesan Eucharistic Congress Aug. 13, 2022. 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. Los Angeles Sheriffs Department Sheriff Robert Luna said at that press conference that Medina had done work at the bishops residence as well. David OConnell Apart from aiding neighborhood recovery efforts, OConnell pushed to restore trust between the inner-city residents and law enforcement. All services will be livestreamed at lacatholics.org/bishop-connell. 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DAVID O'CONNELL OBITUARY. I am here. The grief will scar. But now I wouldnt, A sad day for republicans: Sinn Fin activist Rita OHare dies aged 80, Ukraine under increased pressure as Russian onslaught in Bakhmut continues, Who to fire? Those who knew him testify that he seemed most at ease with the working people he spent all those years with in South LA. During his time as auxiliary bishop in Los Angeles, evangelization, pastoral care for immigrants, and ensuring the future of his regions Catholic schools were all top priorities for OConnell, who believed that parishes and schools are powerful instruments of transformation of people's lives and of neighborhoods.. Bishop OConnell once said that being a pastor was the greatest joy of his life. OConnell was shot and killed at his Hacienda Heights home on Feb. 18. In contrast to recent days, often taken up with spoken words at prayers services and masses that mourned the pastor, the viewing was a quiet event, focused on the singular image of the bishops casket amid the vast open interior space of the Cathedral. It is a shock and I have no words to express my sadness., During Sunday Mass at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels the next day, Archbishop Gomez announced that the LA County Sheriffs Department had confirmed to the archdiocese earlier that morning that, investigators had ruled his death a homicide. And now Cork man that he is has left without saying goodbye. David O'Connell: Funeral services announced for slain LA Bishop The 69-year-old OConnell, It was as if the city where OConnell had dedicated much of his life wanted to provide a glimmer for him as a final send off. (Victor Alemn). Carlos Medina has admitted to murdering the bishop, Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascn said in a press conference Wednesday. He said that over the last week many people had shared their last words with Bishop OConnell. Among those present were the bishops family and local dignitaries, such as former L.A. OConnell was Its been the great joy of my life to be the pastor of these people, especially the ones who are suffering or in need or facing difficulty, OConnell said after being named a bishop in 2015. The bishop's body was discovered when a deacon went to the home to check on him, because O'Connell was apparently late for a meeting, Sheriff Robert Luna said earlier this week. OConnell was found shot at his Hacienda Heights home on February 18. As a pastor, OConnell also saw firsthand the effect of broken families on the community. Monsignor Cunnane recalled his weekly Thursday night meetings for dinner with Bishop OConnell. 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The loss of OConnell, 69, has shaken the regions Catholic community, spurring numerous memorials and remembrances among parishioners and local leaders while exposing raw emotions of the Churchs own often stoic priests. Even then, he had such a strong sense of fairness about him and a compassion for vulnerable people, he said. Bishop OConnell said in a July 2015 interview with Angelus, the publication of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, that being a pastor in South Central Los Angeles had been the great joy of my life., Its been a great privilege, a great blessing to be given these parishes all these years, to be pastor all these years, he said. David M. O'Connell, loving husband and father, passed away on December 12, 2018 after a brief illness. (Victor Alemn), I think we have to bring the joy of the Gospels that Pope Francis talks about reaching out to each other and serving each other, he said. OConnell, who was known as Bishop Dave, served the San Gabriel Pastoral Region of the archdiocese, which covers East Los Angeles through the San Gabriel and Pomona Valleys. David O'Connell Obituary On Thursday, the Rev. He said Bishop OConnell was a kindly uncle who always had an encouraging word for them growing up. (Photo by David Crane, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG), Archbishop Jose Gomez greets family members of Bishop David OConnell at the Funeral Mass held at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in Los Angeles, CA Friday, March 3, 2023. (Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG), People attend Bishop David OConnells Vigil Mass at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in Los Angeles on Thursday evening, March 2, 2023. At Catholic News Agency, our team is committed to reporting the truth with courage, integrity, and fidelity to our faith. But above all, the bishops funeral Mass attended by thousands on Friday morning, March 3, with an untold number watching via livestream reflected the spirit of a man who saw reverence in the prosaic. He was a good priest and a good bishop and a man of peace.. OConnell was found shot at his Hacienda Heights home on February 18.