Los Angeles authorities opened a murder probe Sunday into the death of Auxiliary Bishop David O’Connell, who was found gunned down in his home Saturday afternoon.
The county sheriff’s office did not provide any more details into the Hacienda Heights slaying of the 69-year-old prominent local Catholic priest.
Investigators have yet to name a suspect and do not know the motive.
O’Connell, a native of Ireland, was pronounced dead at the scene by paramedics after he had been shot in the upper torso around 1 p.m.
“It’s very early in the investigation,” LASD Homicide Bureau Detective Michael Modica said, according CBS News. “We got a lot more steps we have to take to make more determination to what’s happening.”
LA Archbishop José Gomez said, “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.”
The church is “deeply disturbed and saddened by this news,” Gomez said.
O’Connell lived in California for 45 years and was known as a community “peacemaker.” After the 1992 LA Riots sparked by Rodney King’s beating by LAPD officers, O’Connell brought community members, religious leaders and law enforcement together and encouraged communication.
O’Connell also was involved in helping immigrants in California, especially children who cross the border without their parents, said Linda Dakin-Grimm, a pro bono immigration attorney who worked with the bishop.
“He helped kids who didn’t have a way to go to school, and he would call the principals and ask if they would allow the child into their school if he paid for it. He was just that kind of person,” Dakin-Grimm said.
On Sunday, Sheriff’s investigators were seen coming in and out of O’Connell’s one-story, four bedroom home located on a quiet tree-lined cul-de-sac.
More than 40 mourners lit candles and prayed the rosary just a few yards from O’Connell’s home. Among them was William Gill, who was given the sacrament of confirmation by the bishop about 9 years ago.
“He was a man of faith but he was also every man’s priest,” Gill said. “He did so much for everyone in the community and did it with love and a sense of humor. It just breaks my heart that he went out in such a violent way.”
Dakin-Grimm said O’Connell never spoke about being concerned for his safety. In his decades of service, he led churches throughout South Los Angeles and always had a strong connection with community members, the attorney said.
“I can’t imagine this had anything to do with him personally,” Dakin-Grimm said.
“There are are some people who are angry and maybe focus on a particular leader but he has always been a person of kindness and compassion,” he added. “I’ve never seen him treat anyone in any way that wasn’t the way Jesus would treat the stranger. It’s hard for me to believe and it still hasn’t sunk in.”